To the Editor:
In the wake of this paper’s unexpected endorsement of Barack Obama, two letters appeared on this page Wednesday. Thank you for printing them. That page has been preserved for posterity, placed in a time capsule so future generations can view the entire ‘kitchen-sink’ that has been thrown at Barack Obama. For these writers hit every conceivable note; not a myth, lie, smear, or distortion was missing from the paranoid chorus.
Dire hints of a “dark agenda for America” and maniacal claims of spiritual warfare rounded out the correspondence nicely. Both letters promote the emerging wingnut meme that Barack Obama’s middle name is actually Nicholae Carpathia.
Of course, the unhinged writers are members of a demographic Karl Rove refers to as “the base” – an interesting choice of words, since al-Qaeda literally translates as “the base.”
There! See? That was easy. I have linked the writers to Osama bin Laden just by using them in the same sentence. Obama’s tangential associations become monolithic schemes in the writers’ minds – why should they not receive the same bizarre logic? As they sow, let them reap.
If I seem harsh, it is because such screeds deserve it. To have my respect for an opinion, the writer must have a respectable opinion – built on verifiable facts instead of rehashed talking points from viral emails, fringe websites, and dubious publications.
Information is not knowledge.
In a world of information, the human brain perceives things that aren’t true; the hard work of discerning truth is where knowledge begins. Fear makes it hard to discern truth. What these writers fear is the future, which Obama represents and inaugurates. It is time America knew the world better and feared it less – which is why his can be a truly transformational presidency.
UPDATE: The letter ran Sat. Nov.1. Here’s the link.
