Working families and minimum wage

I agree with Jose Azel that minimum-wage laws do not create jobs (Good intentions, bad policy, June 29, Other Views). However, it does alleviate the economic burden of families struggling to make ends meet.

Syrian rebels caught in middle

The United States will provide just enough aid to keep the Syrian rebels from being decisively defeated by President Assad’s forces but not enough for them to defeat Assad until Hezbollah has been pounded and bloodied in the meat grinder that is urban warfare.
FCAT not an accurate measure of academic improvement

Thank you for publishing Jeremy Glazer’s June 15 Other Views article, FCAT can’t capture teachers’ influence, effectiveness, about the ludicrous emphasis placed on the FCAT by our public-school system.
We are all responsible for the integrity of our democracy

Re Fred Grimm’s June 3 column, Surprise! Both parties cheated in Joe Garcia’s district: I take exception to the cynicism that Grimm nonchalantly throws around when he suggests that resident of House District D 26 need to “come up with congressional candidates not inclined to subvert elections.”
Better uses for the public funds that the Heat wants

Re the June 16 story Amid Heat mania and mounting costs, team shoots for extended arena lease: How could Micky Arison (with a personal net worth of close to $6 billion, have the audacity to try to renegotiate the lease on the AmericanAirlines Arena with more public subsidies?
Heat fan a spur in San Antonio

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS — In the third quarter of Game 7 of the NBA Finals, a San Antonio Spurs fan leaned over and whispered something in my ear.
World Refugee Day in Miami

Since the 1960s, Miami-Dade County has become home to hundreds of thousands of refugees, including more than 100,000 Cuban or Haitian entrants, and Colombian and Venezuelan asylees who have settled here in the past five years.
Declare tarpon a catch-and-release species; end deceptive fishing practices

On Wednesday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will
Courts, lawmakers chip away at our right to victim’s compensation

As a trial attorney and adjunct law professor, I could not help but notice the parallels and the contrasts in news coverage about what happened recently in Miami and in Savar, Bangladesh. In Miami, four workers lost their lives, and others were severely injured, when parking garage at Miami Dade College in Doral collapsed in October. The legal claims were settled last week. In Savar, Bangladesh, the death toll in the Rana Plaza disaster reached more than 650, as the rescuers sorted through the rubble looking for bodies. Both disasters were preventable structural collapses.
Federal workers keep the country running

Government employees protect and serve our nation. To honor these workers and their service, May 5-11 has been designated as Public Service Recognition Week.
Learn about the lives they lived

The obituaries are the most interesting part of The Miami Herald. You get to “meet” some wonderful people, folks who were hard-working, dedicated, charitable and caring. You’ll meet Americans, no matter where they were born, who led hard lives with tough jobs, but people who could look back and say, “My son, the doctor” or “My beautiful little girl is now a lawyer.” These are people who lived the American Dream that their kids will have a better life than they did.
Remove Cuba from list of terrorist states

As a Cuban American, I think it’s time to remove Cuba from the terrorist list. Most Americans wouldn’t be able to determine what Cuba, Iran, Syria and Sudan have in common. They are four countries that are on the State Department’s list of “state sponsors of terrorism.” Not only does this designation affect our relationship with our island neighbor, it also affects our relationship with the Western Hemisphere, and the rest of the world, which does not see Cuba as a terrorist threat.
We will run, undaunted

I’ll never forget the first time I drove in the pre-dawn darkness to meet the group of women runners at Kennedy Park in Coconut Grove. I was stunned to learn that a secret society convened every Saturday morning with hundreds of runners meeting to run the route that provided the reward of a spectacular sunrise as we crested the bridge on Key Biscayne.
Push back against toll increases

In his March 26 Other Views article, Why MDX tolls should increase, Maurice Ferre said, “The difference between a tax and a toll is that in the latter you have no choice.” The choice, said Ferre, who is chair of the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority, is whether millions of residents will continue to use those MDX roads or sit in traffic on such corridors as U.S. 1 and Bird Road. But this is a flawed argument.
Don’t harm elderly now being cared for by family

The Florida House will soon vote on proposed legislation that, if not amended, would severely harm our elderly citizens who are being cared for by a family member. A similar bill is in Senate committees.
Dolphins take their eyes off the ball

I have been a season-ticket holder of the Miami Dolphins for 35 years. But, over the years, it has become more difficult to justify renewing my ticket. Since Stephen Ross bought the team four years ago, we never-say-die fans have seen a devotion to anything but the traditions of this once-proud sports franchise.
Jackie Gleason Theater an irreplaceable jewel

It’s inevitable that things change. Progress is always the name of the game, from technology to medicine to city planning.
Enrique Ros’ words of wisdom: Know your precincts

“Know your precincts.” Those words of wisdom were spoken to each of us at some time by Enrique Ros: loving husband, caring father, doting grandfather and great-grandfather, dedicated historian, active community leader, and, to us, political grandfather.
Depression too often mistreated

Jose Clark’s March 30 Other Views piece, Depression does not discriminate, was masterful. It took unbelievable courage and introspection to share his thoughts with us. The Miami Herald needs to repeat it on Page One, then in Local and Sports. Everyone should understand that this disease needs to be treated medically, but also with love and understanding from friends and family.
Don’t stifle professors’ academic freedom

The “Jesus-stomping incident at Florida Atlantic University has been grossly mischaracterized and poorly explained by the administration.