My letter to the editor for today.
Oct. 10th, 2008 06:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fabrisseI wrote this immediately after reading the article. I had not, at that point, read the letters associated with the article. I still haven't read them all. I don't think anyone could. Reading the ones I did was like drinking poison.
The article is at The Washington Post.
And this was my response:
I think anger is a problem on both sides of the argument.
Three years ago, someone at a party started raging against George Bush's presidency and asking how we could keep the stupid people in the middle of the country from voting.
I am of the left. I have never registered with either political party. Depending on the office and the candidate, I have voted for Libertarians, Greens, Democrats, Republicans, and Other.
This divisiveness disturbs me. Rather than being about evaluating the best candidate for the job, presidential elections seem to have devolved into team sports where if you like the Redskins, you have to spit before you mention the Cowboys.
Both sides need to understand the fears of the other side. We on the left need to reassure those on the right that we are not trying to destroy the society they love.
The right has to understand our mistrust of law enforcement without checks.
The anger needs to be diffused by both sides.
***
One letter writer said that the main problem with the Republican party was rednecks and if they "learned to read and some basic hygiene" they might become liberals too.
My family were rednecks until Grandpa went to college. Hell, we may still be rednecks. When I laugh at Jeff Foxworthy, I'm laughing in recognition, not derision.
What happened to the idea of rising above the fray? Can't we, as liberals (I may not be a Democrat, but I am certainly a Liberal), be better than we perceive them to be?
People have defriended me because I don't think Mr. Obama was the best candidate for the Democratic ticket. He's done better than McCain in both debates, but he's not a fluid speaker when responding to questions. And there are legitimate concerns about his lack of experience, though with Mrs. Palin joining the Republican ticket, those fly out the window. Had Mr. Obama chosen to serve a full term in the Senate before running for President, I would probably have worked on his campaign.
Still, I'd rather vote for the person who answers in complete sentences, the person more likely to answer the question that was asked, and the person who shows evidence of having thought about the topic. Barring some major revelation (that can stand up to even cursory factcheck.org or snopes googling), I will be pulling the lever for Mr. Obama.
I keep hearing from Mr. Obama's supporters about how inspirational he is. Please let him step away from this mudslide and be that inspiration.
I weep for my country.
The article is at The Washington Post.
And this was my response:
I think anger is a problem on both sides of the argument.
Three years ago, someone at a party started raging against George Bush's presidency and asking how we could keep the stupid people in the middle of the country from voting.
I am of the left. I have never registered with either political party. Depending on the office and the candidate, I have voted for Libertarians, Greens, Democrats, Republicans, and Other.
This divisiveness disturbs me. Rather than being about evaluating the best candidate for the job, presidential elections seem to have devolved into team sports where if you like the Redskins, you have to spit before you mention the Cowboys.
Both sides need to understand the fears of the other side. We on the left need to reassure those on the right that we are not trying to destroy the society they love.
The right has to understand our mistrust of law enforcement without checks.
The anger needs to be diffused by both sides.
***
One letter writer said that the main problem with the Republican party was rednecks and if they "learned to read and some basic hygiene" they might become liberals too.
My family were rednecks until Grandpa went to college. Hell, we may still be rednecks. When I laugh at Jeff Foxworthy, I'm laughing in recognition, not derision.
What happened to the idea of rising above the fray? Can't we, as liberals (I may not be a Democrat, but I am certainly a Liberal), be better than we perceive them to be?
People have defriended me because I don't think Mr. Obama was the best candidate for the Democratic ticket. He's done better than McCain in both debates, but he's not a fluid speaker when responding to questions. And there are legitimate concerns about his lack of experience, though with Mrs. Palin joining the Republican ticket, those fly out the window. Had Mr. Obama chosen to serve a full term in the Senate before running for President, I would probably have worked on his campaign.
Still, I'd rather vote for the person who answers in complete sentences, the person more likely to answer the question that was asked, and the person who shows evidence of having thought about the topic. Barring some major revelation (that can stand up to even cursory factcheck.org or snopes googling), I will be pulling the lever for Mr. Obama.
I keep hearing from Mr. Obama's supporters about how inspirational he is. Please let him step away from this mudslide and be that inspiration.
I weep for my country.
