Civil service piece is interesting

To the editor:

“The ‘Deep State’ is out to get Trump.”

“The ‘Deep State’ wants to overturn the legitimate election of Donald Trump.”

You can go online to any alt-right website and find such exclamations any day of the week. If you prefer, you can tune in a radio station that will support any and all manner of conspiracy theory.

According to some, the “Deep State” is the worst thing ever in an attempt to overthrow a duly elected government. It is so bad it has necessitated the Attorney General of the United States to investigate the Department of Justice, of which he is the head. That is like leaving the fox in charge of the henhouse.

I used the preceding as a bit of melodrama as a segue into my purpose for writing this letter.

There is an opinion essay in the Oct. 27 edition of The New York Times titled; “Why We Have the ‘Deep State.’” The opinion piece by Margaret O’Mera gives a historical look at the genesis and reason(s) for the Civil Service, or as the alt-right likes to call it the “Deep State.”

It is of interest that the Civil Service began at the behest of a Republican. The article, as I stated, presents reasons for the need for the Civil Service. Whether you agree or disagree with the article, it is interesting to see how what we find acceptable versus what is not and how those values evolve or in some cases, devolve over time.

As a side note, Jack Ronald’s recent eloquently presented defense of the importance of differing opinions served to remind why the First Amendment is the bedrock of our representative democracy.

Michael Kinser

Portland