December 26, 2017 at 5:16 p.m.

Democracy dies in the darkness

Letters to the Editor

To the editor:

I am retired so I have the wonderful luxury of organizing my day as I see fit.

I have more time to exercise, play music, read and watch television.

Given this increased freedom to do as I please, I offer some observations on the current political climate in the country.

I watch "Fox News", CNN and a little bit of MSNBC. "Fox News" basically parrots the Trump agenda and makes little effort to hide it.

CNN tends to parrot the anti-Trump viewpoint but with more subtlety. CNN is much quicker to call out the "alternate facts" espoused by the administration.

MSNBC, like "Fox News" is much less reserved in its support for an anti-Trump agenda. "Fox News" leans to the right, MSNBC to the left and CNN, in my opinion is center left, but more balanced than their competitors.

I have used the above remarks as a preface for the following remarks. Nikita Khrushchev said many years ago that the then Soviet Union (now Russia) would bury us without firing a shot.

He would, no doubt, be chagrined at how prescient his comment was.  I imagine Vladimir Putin sets in his Kremlin office every day and marvels at how efficient and effective his state meddling has been at undermining our most sacred of institutions.

Putin is a very smart, calculating man, as a ex KGB operative he should be. Donald J. Trump is the consummate pawn to accomplish Putin's objectives and not just in the U.S., but world wide. The chief executive of our country on an almost daily basis, attacks the very agencies that serve him.

It is like a dog chewing off its own leg.

Unfortunately some "news" organizations report and support the chief executives assertions with, often, disputed "facts". 

"Fake News" ?

Is it "fake" because it might disagree with preconceived bias's and prejudices?  Democracy does indeed die in darkness. It dies in the darkness of ignorance.

It dies in the darkness of prejudice. It dies in the darkness of mendacity.

It dies in the darkness of apathy.

It is impossible for knowledge to come into a closed mind.

It is impossible to rejoice in the light if we only embrace the darkness.

Michael Kinser

Portland
PORTLAND WEATHER

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