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Sentinel publishing recent column was disappointing

To the editor:

I was disappointed by The (Lewistown) Sentinel’s decision to print Pat Buchanan’s latest column. (Editor’s note: The column this letter writer is referencing appeared in the Tuesday, June 20 edition.)

I get that this is a conservative area, and Pat Buchanan is a conservative columnist. Normally his columns are fine, and I get why The (Lewistown) Sentinel prints them. I might normally disagree with his columns, but that’s OK. People are allowed to have different political beliefs.

What’s not OK, however, is a misleading column that smears a large group of people and cherry picks history.

One can easily find violent acts committed by far right individuals, but that does not mean all conservatives are hateful and violent. Timothy McVeigh does not represent all Libertarians any more than this recent shooter represents all liberals.

I feel The (Lewistown) Sentinel has an ethical obligation to print columns that do not smear large groups of people or provide very misleading information. Not all of Pat Buchanan’s columns need to be printed. A column that also shows up in Alex Jones’ infowars site (yes, that Alex Jones who believes Sandy Hook was a conspiracy) should make the editors at The Sentinel think about whether that particular column meets The Sentinel’s ethical standards.

Hopefully, in the future The Sentinel will stick with columns that express political beliefs without smear tactics and misleading information.

Elizabeth S. Book

Port Royal

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