Letters to the Editor
Editor, What is a demagogue? In a recent conversation the term “demagogue” came up as the other speaker was describing a person with whom he disagreed. Somehow, that just didn’t seem to fit – so I looked up the definition. Wikipedia says this: A demagogue is a power-seeking individual who uses a number of the following techniques: * Scapegoating * Fear Mongering * Lying * Emotional oratory and personal charisma * Accusing opponents of weakness and disloyalty * Promising the impossible * Violence and intimidation * Personal insults and ridicule * Vulgarity and outrageous behavior * Folksy posturing * Gross oversimplification *...
Editor, We face serious problems in this country, and lots of folks are pretty unhappy. Among those that governments led by both parties have failed to address adequately are rising inequality between those with and without college degrees, the increasing difficulty for Americans to make ends meet, health...
Editor, To Senators Daines and Sheehy, and Representative Zinke: for years the Republican platform has been, “tough on Russia,” a country led by a dictator, which uses assassination of opponents, voter suppression, choking the media and free speech, and war crimes, and now our president and Co...
Editor, With us humans, fear is one of the most powerful motivating factors in how we think and act. We humans have each been ruled by the power of fear at times in our personal lives. The power of fear is presently ruling our nation by President Donald Trump. Trump and his huge base are putting ...
Editor, I am writing to express my gratitude and appreciation to our local legislators for their unwavering support and leadership in voting for HB 245. This crucial legislation has preserved Montana’s current Medicaid program, which is vital to the economic wellness of businesses and the health of ...
Editor, “Imagination is the only weapon in the war with reality.” (Lewis Carroll) I love words. I love to play. Here is some wordplay of shock and awe: “woke” (the opposite of asleep); “deep state” (the shallow state’s gaslit ideology); CRT (Shhh!!); Gaza...
Editor, The present chaos in our nation and our world calls for a dramatic change in the way we humans live together. This change can only occur by how we individually think, speak, and act. For me this change occurred in the summer of 1982. That summer I was introduced to a course of study that ...
Editor, To Senator Daines - recently, you proclaimed that the inauguration of Donald Trump as 47th president marks a new day in America. Wow. Where to start. Calling Trump’s cabinet nominations “all-star” is laughable. Pete Hegseth, ousted as head of two veterans’ groups for mis...
Editor, As recounted by Economist Roger Smith, (Jan. 21), the U.S. lags behind other G7 nations in many metrics of national wealth: poverty, incarceration rates, infant mortality, academic performance, homelessness, and … health outcomes. Why, given our dismal standing among developed nations, i...
Editor, I have seen an ad in the Advertiser for several weeks now, recommending a book titled Tribal Tyranny. I have not read it so I am not aware of her issues, but based on the title, I feel it necessary to respond. I have lived on the Flathead Reservation since 1994. In my early years here, I was oppos...
