Last week I submitted another of my on-going series of Letters to the Editor of our local newspaper “The Potomac News.” This time, I took on a local wing-nut who is key in whipping up anti-immigration hysteria in this area. It seems that after a few years of diligently and successfully working to build his reputation as a local racist, this individual was unhappy about being labeled a “nativist” by the Southern Poverty Law Center and local newspapers.
In my on-going letter-writing campaign, I do believe I’m making progress in shaping the local debates.
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.
The Friday before going on vacation, June 29, I read a column in our local “Potomac News” that irked me more than normal. I read the Potomac News every day on my morning bus commute, and I can only state how shocked I am at the tone of local editorials and Letters to The Editor (LTE). “Hateful” and “bigoted” are two words that come to mind in my daily readings. “Willful ignorance” is a term I frequently think of. But columnist Ken Concannon, who pretends he is a “fair and balanced writer”, really annoys me.
Even against the background of ignorance, hatefulness, and bigotry, Mr. Concannon’s column of June 29 “Some commentary on Nazis and socialism” got me angry.
Look Into The Mirror
A few weeks ago I had another of my letters to the Local Newspaper “The Potomac News” published. This letter expressed my lack of sympathy towards one of our most out-spoken racists complaining about being listed in the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as a “nativist.”
My letter received a direct letter to the editor rebuttal only two days later. My follow-up was never published by “The Potomac News,” so I’m publishing it here.
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