Epoch Times is dangerous
The Epoch Times is a dangerous newspaper, which appears to be owned by the Falung Gong religion. Although the Falung Gong and the Chinese Communist Party hate each other, they seem to be united in their desire to see China emerge as the dominant world power. To that end, they both are working to weaken America.
The Epoch Times is working to make conversations of civil war and secession normal, and encourage American self-destruction. As psychological toughening, they tell us to anticipate war within the military and wars among the police (with) high casualties — in the first Civil War, 620,000 men were killed from a population of 19.2 million. Today’s population is more than 300 million. Do the math. They don’t touch on the nature of the civilian participation — like Ukraine, with partisans using civilian infrastructure for cover, drawing artillery onto housing, businesses, etc. — and like northern Ireland, with personal vengeance, houses burning, wounded people, dead bodies. Suspicion, hatred, fear. Who wants that for us?
And then they actually encourage Americans to turn inward and fight ourselves.
“Pondering this while driving across Middle Tennessee the other day to visit a friend who lives in a rural area, gazing out at the endless farms with the strong men and women working the land — we can call them unabashedly The Patriots — I knew that they would win in the end, bitter as it would be. They’re godly, they’re brave, they would persevere, and they’re armed and know well how to use those weapons.” (“Would the Indictment of Donald Trump Lead to Civil War?”, by Roger L. Simon, Opinion, The Epoch Times, Aug. 3-9).
Are they trying to get the ball rolling? Simon: “The second U.S. civil war may already have begun with the arrests of Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon because of their refusal to speak with the [Jan. 6] committee.”
Are we going to allow foreign organs of influence like The Epoch Times to lead us into shooting ourselves off the list of major powers, or are we going to come together and repair what’s broken, like the administrative state?
Wiley Hollingsworth
Pullman
Improving the court system
Just as I did while on the (Lewiston City Council), I intend to provide Daily News readers with information about the judiciary which you wouldn’t know unless someone who has been on the inside told you. During the primary, a couple of lawyers wrote I didn’t have to be a judge to get the reforms I was advocating.
When I was first elected your district judge I noticed that many of the criminal defendants belonged in a hospital instead of jail. For example, when I asked a drug court 19-year-old man why he was using meth, he replied that it was so he could tell which voice was his — an undiagnosed adolescent onset of schizophrenia.
When I asked the Rexburg district judge who started the mental health court what I could do to get one in Orofino, he said I wouldn’t get permission so I should just start one because the administration wouldn’t have the guts to shut it down. So that is what I did and it was the first mental health court in this region and is still the only rural one in Idaho. During my six years running it there were only two or three participants who had received medical care until I ordered it. The need was real. And it was only as a judge I was able to meet it.
More to come about how, together, we can improve the court system.
John Bradbury
Lewiston
It’s still not truth
Masters of misinformation have caused many conservatives to believe the hysterics from disingenuous, shrieking hosts at Fox News, led by Tucker Carlson opining his opposition to liberals, and, especially COVID-19 vaccines.
According to factcheck.org, “Virtually none of what Carlson said was accurate, however. It’s not ‘fact’ that the vaccines suppress the immune system, nor is there any reliable evidence to suggest that it could be true. The paper that Carlson cites, which was written by some individuals opposed to COVID-19 vaccination, misrepresents and distorts other scientists’ findings to make illogical and unfounded claims.”
Many former Republicans, clearly influenced by Carlson, support and believe various conspiracies that liberals are fascists. This argument is a sham. The recent stream of FBI, voting, societal, election misinformation and threats of violence leads me to believe former conservatives and their supporters interpret constitutional protections as only applicable to them, which fascists are wont to do.
As for the FBI, Republican lawmakers liken the agency to Hitler’s “Gestapo.” Through hatred and violence (Texas election officials death threat resignations), the entity — so instrumental in handing Trump the presidency — is under fire for search warrants, legally served, issued because Trump twice refused to return classified government files. Trump says, his “standing order” magically declassified the documents, making them irrelevant. Nonsense.
Unfortunately, Republican talking points and constant repetition does not make misinformation truth, even as Kevin McCarthy closes his eyes, clicks his heels three times and says there’s no place like Mar-a-Lago.
Jim Roach
Moscow
Gilbert should lead
It is no secret that public education is under attack. For years, certain lawmakers have worked to divert public school monies to private schools. More recently, legislators micromanage education, exercising their biases by controlling discussions in the classroom. Books are censored and removed from library shelves. Teachers are left unsure of what material may be covered and the consequences of doing so. This will severely and unacceptably limit and narrow children’s education. We stand to lose quality teachers in groves with grim prospects of attracting replacements.
Importance of the upcoming election looms large in terms of electing people who understand their proper roles in support of public education. In particular, I address the Idaho state superintendent of public instruction. Terry Gilbert is clearly the best choice. Terry has significant experience as a classroom teacher, which gives him important insight into the education process. In addition, he is uniquely qualified as a teacher advocate because of his capacity as president and later region director of the Idaho Education Association. He understands the challenges classroom teachers face and is motivated to give them the support they need to achieve success.
Republicans’ education plank in their political platform was penned by an ego-driven individual whose goal is to inflict his religious views on all of us. Given that Republicans expect their candidates to embrace their platforms, we must not embrace those candidates.
Terry Gilbert is the superior choice for state superintendent of public instruction. Please give him your vote.
Shirley Ringo
Moscow
