Rebuilding trust
Dale Courtney touts Trump’s diverse coalition and proposes uniting Americans for a fresh start (Trump’s victory: A rejection of elites and woke agendas, Nov. 19). Count me in if it includes non-Christians, the LGBTQ community, POC, immigrants, women and liberals.
Call me skeptical, but Dale’s criticism of “divisive social agendas” cuts both ways. He denigrates Democrats as woke social elitists, out of touch with “everyday Americans.” He seeks to restore “individual freedom” and America’s founding values (which tellingly included Christian proselytizing, patriarchal dominance and harsh treatment of uppity women, disobedient children and omnipresent “others”). Trump’s disdain for rules holds primordial allure. Dale — a former submariner — knows they matter. Without orderly structure, communication falters, tempers flare, jobs go undone and environments deteriorate. It happens in cities and countries when individualism overpowers collective well-being. Security and quality of life will be diminished after Trump takes over. Given his Cabinet picks and masterplan, expect a more polluted, overheated planet, conflict over resources, unreliable food safety, mass climate migration, more dangerous pregnancies and emerging illnesses.
Dale dresses down “institutional elites” (“self-appointed gatekeepers”) over what’s socially acceptable, but civility has a place in civilized societies. He praises alternative media as champions for “independent journalism” and “honest perspectives.” Advancing MAGA conspiracies reflects neither. Having been a military instructor, Dale knows successful leaders rely on facts. Let’s start with rebuilding local trust, as Dale suggests. Celebrate diverse ideas, faiths, backgrounds, family structures, economic circumstances and aptitudes. Let’s stop trying to dominate each other, and pull together again.
Nancy Chaney
Moscow
Gratefulness this Thanksgiving
This is the time of year that I reflect on my ancestors because of how their lives touched me personally. My maternal great-grandfather was a plumber when the Great Depression hit. He would say, “Times are hard. Pay me what you can, when you can, Joe.” Due to a sense of commitment to his community, putting others first, he went bankrupt. He and his wife lost everything and went to live with their son, who soon enough went off to World War II.
My great uncle was known for his kindness and generosity and spent much of his pay giving chocolate to any children he encountered. My paternal grandfather was 40 years old when that war broke out. Somehow, he was able to talk his way into a reenlistment, despite his dedication to his wife and sons. After his return, he joined multiple service clubs to continue to give back. His heart was so big and full of thankfulness.
His eldest son, my father, enlisted to fight in Korea. My father told me that he knew of the suffering and death of Korean families as the communists swarmed down to consume them, so he was willing to sacrifice his own life for them so that they could be free.
The thing my ancestors had in common on both sides was their strength of character and core values. They lived with honesty, integrity, kindness, generosity, service and sacrifice. Many would have also considered themselves Republicans (after much morphing of the party).
Now my elders are all gone, but I am grateful for their passing because I know they would be absolutely horrified to see the kind of GOP that exists today. It is now a power hungry, cheating, lying, stealing group of people that think human rights need a rollback, science is a hoax, truth can be made up and high-quality public education should be diminished. I am thankful that my ancestors are not here to see the Neo Republican Party and their utter lack of core values. These people prefer to force their beliefs on others by stealthy political means. They even have a heartless, lying bully as their leader! The right wing especially lacks humility and compassion, something Jesus Christ himself would abhor.
Lisa A. Cochran
Moscow
Patel pick a dangerous one
The U.S. Senate’s advise and consent role is a vitally important part of the founders’ co-equal branches model of government. We understand our Idaho Senators want to allow President-elect Trump broad discretion in choosing his cabinet appointments, but the choice of anti-government ideologue Kash Patel to as director of the FBI is so wildly ill-advised that they should place the interests of our nation and the integrity and functionality of our national government and our law enforcement capability above the whims of a duly-elected but at times unstable and impulsive chief executive.
The choice of Patel seems part of a larger plan to sabotage and dismantle various federal agencies and either devolve their authority to individual states, or — equally likely — simply leave a vacuum of unmet needs and unchecked risks to our national security. Unclear why this administration would want to destroy important parts of our federal government — maybe to enable further unchecked breaking of laws by them and their cronies? If so, that is corruption of a sort and at a magnitude that it puts at serious risk both our national security and the integrity of our society as the nation of laws intended by our founders and the U.S. Constitution.
Chris Norden
Moscow
Fun with English
English is hard to learn, but it is still the most popular second language on the planet. It is not because America is so powerful; otherwise everyone would be eager to learn our funny measuring system — ounces and pounds, feet and inches. English and the metric system are popular because they are the most useful.
English is the most useful language because:
1. It has twice or three times the vocabulary of any other language, and when it finds a more useful word in another language, it simply adopts it.
2. English is used to describe the most technical ideas in science, math and engineering. At the same time, English is used to write poetry so beautiful it makes you weep, insightful literature of all kinds, and has the machinery to translate from other languages.
Here are three English fun facts:
A word that means the opposite of what you think: “Decimate” does not mean to almost destroy, it means to reduce by one-tenth.
A very precise and useful definition: “Stupid” does not mean uneducated; it does not mean a low IQ. “Stupid” is the stubborn refusal to think rationally.
My favorite newly coined word: “ERRORGANT” applies to someone who is so terribly wrong, but adamantly believes they are right and everyone else is wrong.
Helen Wootton
Moscow
Ukraine’s war for independence
We are seeing Ukraine’s war for independence. This is their 1776. We must help them, as the French and Spanish helped us.
Moreover, a win for Ukraine is also a win for the Russian people. They will see their Ukrainian relatives having meaningful elections, and profiting by trading with the West. Russians might start wanting those things for themselves.
I’m told that in World War II, President Roosevelt wanted the American Army to fight in Europe, because he wanted to stop Russia in Germany, preventing Russia from rolling over the entirety of conquored Europe, capturing our major trading partners.
Unfortunately, America and NATO are acting cowardly, fearful of adequately arming Ukraine and allowing them to wage war freely, to expell the invaders from their country. This is dangerous, because if we fail to enable Ukraine to win, then Russia will consume Ukraine’s industry, drone technology and army, and then use them against the next country, then the next, etc. It may be correct to apply the domino theory here, because Russia will take everything that we lack the valor to defend.
History is just a little embarrassing. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Ukraine gave its nuclear arsenal to Russia, in exchange for our security guarantee. Yesterday, we guaranteed Ukraine’s security. Today, our failure to secure Ukraine’s borders is showing the world that our word carries no value.
The security of our ancestral countries in Europe — and our honor — require that we help Ukraine kick Russia out!
Wiley Hollingsworth
Pullman
Skip the morality lecture
In response to Larry Kirkland’s Dec. 5 screed: Matthew 7:3-5. If you choose to ignore everything the Son of God ever taught in order to support an adulterous, lying, thieving, abuser of women, that’s your business. But maybe stop giving lectures on morality?
Ryan Urie
Moscow
