{"id":4431,"date":"2026-06-17T07:03:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T07:03:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4431"},"modified":"2026-06-17T07:03:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T07:03:51","slug":"letters-ufcs-toxic-masculinity-a-vote-for-remote-work-recalling-reagans-civility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4431","title":{"rendered":"Letters: UFC\u2019s toxic masculinity | A vote for remote work | Recalling Reagan\u2019s civility"},"content":{"rendered":"
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UFC event a tribute to toxic masculinity<\/h4>\n

Donald Trump celebrated his birthday like a Roman emperor with a gladiators\u2019 cage fight on the South Lawn of the White House. The event is a win-win for Trump. He demeans the White House, while sending a message to his supporters that life is a zero-sum game won by strong men willing to use violence to achieve their goals.<\/p>\n

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Americans should be appalled by the message this spectacle sends to the world: only men are strong enough to rule, might makes right and soft power is a joke. Since the advent of the Marshall Plan after World War II, the United States has effectively leveraged soft power in an attempt to create a world governed by laws and led by men and women who value collaboration and education over domination and ignorance.<\/p>\n

Americans also should be repulsed that, in celebrating male dominance, Trump\u2019s testosterone-fueled \u201cmanosphere\u201d event is adhering to the playbook of dictators like Hitler, Stalin, Khomeini and Franco. Belonging to that group is not a good look for anyone, especially an American president.<\/p>\n

But it is American women who should be the most troubled by the message this event sends to males everywhere: aggression, domination and violence pay off. Throughout history, toxic males in many cultures have worked hard to limit women\u2019s options, control their behavior and treat them as second-class human beings. A night of cage fights (all between men) to celebrate Trump\u2019s birthday sends a message to insecure, unhappy, entitled men everywhere that toxic masculinity is back.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Maggie Culp, Longwood<\/em><\/p>\n

Abandoning remote work is a hardship<\/h4>\n

The corporate push to abandon remote work overlooks a grueling reality for suburban Central Floridians: the brutal hardship of the mandatory, in-office routine.<\/p>\n

As a recruiter in my 40s who has worked remotely since 2015, my day is full of phone interaction. The claim that remote work breeds social isolation is a myth for some; instead, I believe it\u00a0 protects women from an exhausting, artificial stress tax. For those in our 40s, appearance pressures have escalated like never before. An unspoken expectation to look like counterparts in their 20s and 30s demands a massive investment in expensive med spas, cosmetics to cover gray roots, and professional attire and dry cleaning that cost more today than ever before. An office mandate forces an hour of aesthetic labor before the day even begins.<\/p>\n

Then comes the geographical nightmare. Living in Port Orange, finding decent career options means traveling into Orlando. Public infrastructure like the SunRail is a non-starter; driving just to reach the closest station takes 40 minutes. Because of Orlando\u2019s urban sprawl, a train does not help when jobs are located near the parks or outer corporate hubs.<\/p>\n

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That leaves one option: sitting in grueling, stop-and-go I-4 traffic for 1\u00bd hours each way without accidents. Combined with high gas prices, outrageous dry-cleaning bills, and the hour spent getting ready to look younger, an office job demands four hours of unpaid, stressful labor daily just to reach a cubicle.<\/p>\n

We aren\u2019t escaping hard work. It is time for employers to recognize that for professionals like myself, the combination of broken transit options and rigid aesthetic standards is the real wellness crisis facing the workforce today.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Jennifer Skirrow, Port Orange<\/em><\/p>\n

Reagan\u2019s civility is a model<\/h4>\n

I enjoyed reading Thursday\u2019s guest commentary by Patti Davis, daughter of President Ronald Reagan, in which she compares the comportment of her father and our current president. She writes \u201c\u2026if we just accept that dignity and civility are now extinct, we\u2019ll find ourselves in a wasteland from which we can\u2019t escape.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Although I am a Democrat through and through and can\u2019t even recall if I voted for Reagan, I\u2019ve always thought of him as a good man.\u00a0 Davis\u2019 writing reminds me of what I have learned of his relationship with Speaker of the House Tip O\u2019Neill. I have read that while the two disagreed often on economics and social policy, they respected each other as men and were often able to compromise for the good of the country. They have been referred to as \u201cfrenemies.\u201d It was said that they were political enemies before 6 p.m. and best of friends after. Apparently they often had a drink together at the end of a workday.<\/p>\n

I long to see more of this kind of respect and civility in the politics of our time. I believe many others feel the same way.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Anne Gardepe, Winter Park<\/em><\/p>\n

You can submit a letter to the editor by sending it by email to insight@orlandosentinel.com or by filling out the form below. Letters are limited to less than 250 words and must be signed (no pseudonyms nor initials).You must include your email address, address with city and daytime phone number for verification. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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