Polls DO Suck
Polls intend for us to be the parrot of other men’s thinking [“Polls are for suckers,” Nov. 7]. Polls drive people into smaller, more manageable groups by politicians who have the money to sing the right “songs” to these groups. Hot-button issues emanate from polling procedures. Would to God that no one would participate in polls, or if they did, give absolutely wrong answers. Then, if many more would vote, we the people would be much more empowered with our representatives. They might have to address the great issues that face us.
Warner Seargeant
Bush is not a Nazi
[While] your statements about Nazism and comparisons to Bush, Inc. are accurate [“The La Rouchie Code,” Nov. 3], nothing short of Pol Pot and Cambodia resembles Nazi Germany.
However, fascism is an operating political system and Bush XLIII exemplifies this process. To the extent that corporate power, military adventurism, suppression of dissent, destruction of personal freedoms, etc., can be merged with functions of a supreme executive authority, then the GOP has created a fascist government.
Hitler’s psychotic Reich, Mussolini’s Italian hell and Franco’s insane Spain were all bastard variants of despotic fascism. It is not useful to compare the current U.S.A. tyranny to Hitler when elementary references to textbook descriptions of fascism are readily available.
It’s simple logic: Hitler was a fascist dictator; not all fascists are Hitlerian.
WHL
Tenino, Wash.
America is A-OK
America is a country of wonderful people [“War is still hell,” Nov. 3]. It’s time for these wonderful people to stand up and be counted. The majority does not care about same-sex marriages. In fact, Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to love others as he loved us, not to judge others. As a Catholic it is hard to support the Iraqi invasion. An Iraqi life is as valuable as my own.
Let our tough president go there and serve with our men and women.
I have a solution. Have George and Saddam slug it out in the ring. It was personal anyway.
Pat G.
Chicago, Ill.
It’s not just our fault
Good point on the lack of difference between the parties [“War is still hell,” Nov. 3]. However, regardless of Iraqi opinion, aren’t they killing each other even without the help of the U.S., Iran and the outside terrorists? Do you think that if we pulled out right now there would be fewer killing in the next year than there has been this year? If Iraqis had avoided being petty in the first place maybe they could have avoided this situation.
John
Kansas City
Cut back on unnecessary spending
I’m very happy that the Democrats won [Oregon election results, Nov. 8].
I’m disappointed that in most elections the commercials scare and bully voters into believing that if we don’t give the state more money it can’t function. I am wondering where the money went that was supposed to go to the schools from the Multnomah County I-Tax three years ago. If my household can make it work, then certainly the whole state can. Don’t buy unnecessary crap. Don’t buy the most expensive stuff.
I also think, and many agree, that political ads should be about the candidate, not against their opponent. If they had to talk about themselves and what they would do for us, instead of what their opponent won’t do, we’d have no ads on TV. I can dream.
I’m tired of paying for the government’s mistake. Quit raising my taxes because you can’t balance your budget.
Ashley
Oregon
The harmful homosexual stigma
I’m writing in the wake of all of the recent sex scandals in the past couple of years, months, weeks and days in Washington and now the leader of the evangelicals [“Choose your words wisely,” Nov. 14]. Obviously because of their high-profile positions in our society these stories tend to monopolize the news. For this reason I believe it is high time that the phenomenon of “the closet” needs to be addressed and understood.
I rarely hear of “the closet” even discussed as playing an enormous role and contributing factor on whether it is newsworthy or not. I believe it essential to discuss “the closet” to provide the necessary context from which to view some of these scandals. This discussion needs to be civilized, and our knee-jerk reactions and judgments held in check. We need to discuss this subject with compassion.
The fear of being discovered can be enormous and absolutely terrifying. These men will often then do whatever they believe society expects from them. Many closeted men develop coping mechanisms such as addictive behaviors of all sorts whether they are alcoholism or prescription or non-prescription drug abuse. They may develop addictions to pornography, sexual addiction or other self-destructive ways of acting out.
Society needs to take some responsibility with this matter of the closet by being more accepting of alternative lifestyles. Without the closet, try and imagine how much less pain many people and families would have to endure.
Aaron Jason Silver
Fennville, Mich.