In my on-going letter-writing campaign, I do believe I’m making progress in shaping the local debates.
Category: <span>Opinions & Commentary</span>
I’ve been posting letters to the editor (LTEs) fairly regularly these past months. Most of the letters end up being published here on my family blog along with background commentary. What I don’t usually publish here, or even comment on, are e-mails I’ve been sending directly to the columnists. Normally, the columnists ignore my e-mails. On two occasions they’ve graced me with nasty replies, which I get the last word in on.
But for the first time ever, several weeks ago a writer actually published my e-mail to him as basis for an extremely mean-spirited and insulting column. The end result was getting my first-ever column published under my byline.
Here in my lovely Prince William County, we have a group of very vocal people complaining about “Illegal Immigrants.” These people complain about a lot of things in general, but immigrants are tops on their list. Our County Board of Supervisors, led by one Cory Stewart, have done what politicians in a democratically-elected government always seem to do – pander to the loudest.
Just because yesterday was Thanksgiving, it didn’t mean all the turkeys were in the ovens and on the tables. Yesterday’s Potomac News columnists included two of my most favorite writers; Charles Reichley and the big turkey himself, James Simpson. Reichley’s column was incoherent to the point of being meaningless and I actually couldn’t read all the way through. Simpson’s column, however, pissed me off.
So for the second time this month, I’ve written a rebuttal to one of Simpson’s columns. To the many things I was thankful for yesterday, add that I’m thankful no trees were killed to support my latest LTE.
Back on November 14, the editorial section of my favorite local newspaper “The Potomac News” once again scored big with one of our local columnists James Simpson. Unlike Ken Concannon and Charles Reichley, I haven’t bothered writing rebuttals or personal e-mails to Mr. Simpson before, simply because I don’t normally consider him worth the effort.
However, for this particular column I just had to make an exception and respond.
Last week my newest most favorite “The Potomac News” columnist, Charles Reichley, ran a column defending Rush Limbaugh’s now infamous “Phony Soldiers” comment. Rush “ditto head” Limbaugh annoys me just by sharing the same planet, but his September 26 “Phony Solider” crack really got to me. I’d already signed Gen Wes Clark’s petition to have Limbaugh’s show pulled from the Military Armed Forces Radio Television Stations (AFRTS) network, and Reichley’s column was one more chance to make my feelings publicity known.
I submitted my LTE Friday morning, and it was published yesterday, Sunday.
Last Week the Liberal activist organization “MoveOn” ran a half-page advertisement in the New York Times against the pending September 11 Iraq report. The report was previously planned to be presented by the U.S. Army General Field Commander, General Petraeus. MoveOn used a clever play-on-words with the General’s name, referring to the General as “Betray Us” to make Their Point. Their Point being that MoveOn was simply asking the General to be honest in his report, not parrot President Bush’s talking points.
This ad has caused an uprising of angst and outrage amongst Conservatives all across these United States of America.
It seems that the producers and staff of CBS Evening News are a bit thin-skinned. Recently, CBS News Reporter Katie Couric recently produced a series of “reports” on Iraq. CBS has taken a considerable amount of criticism over these pieces ever since. In fact, they’ve taken to insulting people who criticize their work.
So now, I’ve taken to writing my own letter of criticism over the way CBS news insults people who criticize. My letter is written to two senior producers at CBS Evening News, Jim McGlinchy (jmp@cbsnews.com) and Betty Chin ( bc2@cbsnews.com).
Well, it’s over. After seven trips to the local DMV office, two letters to the Governor of Virginia, one letter to the DMV Commissioner, and three phone calls to the DMV office of Identification Review Service, Winnie has a driver’s license good for five years, in her married name, and with our current address.
Once again I’m left wondering: Why was that so difficult?
Vote Republican or the Democrats Win!
Now that the Republican Party has settled on their candidate for President, Saint John McCain of Hanoi Hilton, we quickly see the main theme of the Republican campaign; Fear, Fear, and Fear.
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