To the editor:
The intention of my original letter to the editor was to enlighten people, who are not political junkies like me, about the different perspectives being stated about the same information. I apparently did not present this intention in a better manner. If I had, I can't imagine why I would get the responses that I did. I did not write my letter in a negative tone, or attack the Republican candidate, their party, or the members of their party. But that is what I got in return. These responses now compel me to defend the Democratic Party and me.
I was criticized for my "myth/fact" analysis concerning President Obama's, "You didn't build that" statement. My intended point was that his statement, taken out of context, became a 10-second sound byte in the conservative talking points. The Republicans took this one-liner and made it the theme retort at their convention; "We Built That." It is just to judge a man by what he said. It is not just to judge him on a contorted meaning of what was he said. My attempt to explain any this further would be futile since there are those who will believe what they want to believe regardless of any proof. So I will move on.
One respondent brought up the issue of high gas prices. I did not address this topic in my letter. I believe the person did so to express his interpretation that the President is solely responsible for this problem. Curiously, just weeks ago, when the price of gas kept dropping, I don't recall reading anything in the Opinion Line or hearing the media giving the President any credit for that. But he is always responsible for rising gas prices. The factors responsible for rising gas prices include, but are not limited to: the futures on Wall Street; weather effects on well operations in the oceans and the threat that Iran will block the water passages that oil tankers take out into the open seas.
The truth is the current U.S. oil production is the highest since 2003. The U.S. is the world's largest producer since 2009. Experts say more domestic drilling will not end the need for foreign oil since we hold only 2 percent of the planet's resources but consume 25 percent of the world's output of crude oil. America's dependence on foreign oil has gone down every single year since President Obama took office. In 2010, we imported less that 50 percent of the oil our nation consumed. This is the first time this has happened in 13 years.
Another respondent challenged my statement that Politifact.com (the source of my information), was unbiased and that I was naive for believing that it was. This website won a Pulitzer Prize Award in 2009 for its fact checking during the Presidential campaign. The website also debunks liberal pundits' statements. For these two reasons, the website demonstrates its credibility for posting unbiased information. The proof the respondent gave that the website is liberally biased was that the website dubbed Sarah Palin's "death panel" statement as the "Lie of the Year." When I investigated this claim, I discovered that it was actually 61 percent of the readers of the website that voted this statement as "Lie of the Year." It was not the choice of the reporters of Politifact.com. There is a difference.
I said that the website was unbiased. I did not say that their readers were unbiased. There was also the allegation that this website has increased in their liberal bias in the past years. I will not dispute this claim. My thought is that the reporters can only report on what they find. Could it be that Politifact.com increasingly finds more of the right wing telling less than the truth? Think about it.
Now I want to address the other issue I did not write about, religion. In both responses, the lack of God in the Democratic Party (the party of atheists) and in my own life was raised. I never mentioned in my article anything about being part of the Democratic Party. I presume it was assumed that I am, apparently because the information I presented found in favor of our President. Is it possible that I am an Independent just trying to find the truth in order to make an informed choice? I do view myself as open minded and willing to hear all sides. Once I investigate the differing views, I feel I can then make an informed choice. Again, this was the main theme of my original letter, seeking the truth.
Since the issue concerning the Democratic Party's "God-less" platform was raised, I will address it. The Democratic Party platform merely reflects the U.S. Constitution providing for the freedom of religion, even to those who have none. Replacing the word "God" with "Faith" in their platform does not mean all Democrats are Godless, hate God or are atheists. It just allows room for all who want to be a member. An atheist is a person who does not believe in the existence of God. It does not mean they hate God. How can they hate an entity they don't believe exists? Nonbelief in a deity does not mean a person is evil. It simply means the person has not found a reason to believe. Even God gave us free will to choose. There is a book that describes a time when all people will be required to have the same religious beliefs. Do you know how that is predicted to turn out? I do.
Here are some other things you may not have heard:
In order to even begin to discuss solutions to our massive problems, there must first be an agreement of the facts. Without that as a starting point, any discussions are futile.
People claim the President has failed. He tried to compromise with the Republicans instead of standing up to them. That was his failure.
On last thing, Bill Finkenbiner suggested that I do some soul searching. Well Bill, I have done that. I am happy to report that I am completely content and totally at peace with my soul. I do not hate or despise anyone just because they disagree with me; believe or think differently than I do; or make life choices differently than I would. As the song says, "It Is Well With My Soul." Peace be with you.
Teresa Hobbs
Lewistown
