Feb. 22 Letters to the Editor
'March of the Ladies' has time to get it right
I read with interest the news story in The Black Mountain News about the recent "Women’s March" in Black Mountain (BMN Feb. 1). Seemingly, I had searched in vain for any specific reason for the march. But behold, there it was before my very eyes! Town alderman Carlos Showers clearly revealed the reason when he said, "that we care, and that we are not going to back down from his (President Trump’s) intimidation and his bullying."
A more appropriate, and certainly a more revealing, title for the march of the ladies might be "The We Hate Trump March."
The ladies and Mr. Showers still have time to get it right. There is next year, of course. And, good news for many of us, after next year they will still have six more chances to plan and refine the march.
Don Reid
Montreat
There's no peace in condoning this president
This is a response to the letter to the editor "The secret to living a peaceful life" (BMN Feb. 8). Yes, this past year has been very upsetting for a lot of people in our community and nation, but to say that praying that God would protect the President is the “secret to living a peaceful life” is frankly naive.
Our President is a deeply flawed man, a liar, narcissist with no moral compass. His words and actions have shown him to be such. There are a lot of things about the presidency that are hard, but condemning neo-Nazis isn’t one of them. Trump's failure to condemn the alt-right hurts his presidency and the conservative movement. He has dismissed Russian interference in the 2016 election. The fact that a foreign government tried to undermine our democracy should outrage all Americans, regardless of party — including the president.
To say that “if it is good enough for God that he is President, then who am I to object” is appalling. God gave us free will, the power to make decisions of our own rather than having God or fate predetermine what we do. What would give me peace is for people to use their free will to improve our community and our country.
I did not agree with all of President Obama’s policies, but at least I was comforted in the fact that he was an intelligent, morally upstanding man doing what he thought was best for our country, not himself. I was proud of him, and he was highly regarded throughout the world. I now fear for our democracy and our way of life.
"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to remain silent." I will not remain silent.
Kathy Phillips
Black Mountain
Trump is merely indicative of his times
The unstable temperament and undeclared/unknown theological/spiritual basis of our president's personality and perspective reminds us of the fragility of our country, society, and security. He appears to have no authoritative/validated supervisor.
However, to single him out of his (and our) technological, media-dominated, materialistic, cultural environment, without discerning how this context shapes who he appears to be and how we experience and interpret who he is, is a grave mistake. He is the epitome of a way of life and the type of person that way of life creates, applauds, rewards, idolizes. At the present time there appears to be little hope that this way of life and the type of leadership and personality it creates will be seriously challenged or transformed.
He may be a "genius." Unfortunately, however, it appears to be the kind of intellect, talent, and energy which serves an autocratic, oligarchical politics and governance, rather than a democratic, representative one.
Bill Janes
Black Mountain