Political arguments disputed

Mr Blackstone. We thought maybe you were veering away from political arguments but sadly, that’s not the case.

1. President Obama did not remove the citizenship question from 2010 census. If you research it, that question has come and gone for years on the questionnaire. In the beginning it only counted white adult males. Eventually even white females.

2. Colin Kaepernick and Megan Rapinoe are using their constitutional right to peacefully protest, one by kneeling and one by politely standing without hand over her heart. Kaepernick’s silent protests are calling attention to police brutality and injustice to black men that we, as a nation, see constantly on all the news broadcasts except Fox News. Megan Rapinoe supports Kaepernick in those issues along with the injustice of sexual and gender discrimination. The USA Women’s Soccer Team has now won four World Cups in its 28-year history. The USA women’s team has won four Olympic Gold Medals (since the event was added in 1991). The USA men’s team has never won a Gold World Cup in its 135-year history. They have won two Olympic Gold medals in over 115 years of play. The male soccer players make an average of $250,000 per year. The women make $50,000. The FIFA world federation pays out almost $400 million to men’s teams after the World Cup. The FIFA pays a little over $30 million to the women’s teams. The systemic, blatant discrimination in our country over racial, sexual, gender and financial status is long standing and wrong. For two exceptional athletes to use their fame and status to respectfully call attention to these issues is an American right and courageous and honorable, in our opinion.

3. To argue over what AOC said, saw, reported when visiting the camps is typical Russian “Whataboutism.” We see on the news daily the atrocities in the caged camps. The inmates are denied such basic necessities as toothbrushes, soap, mattresses, pillows, bathing. Thousands of children have been separated from their parents. It IS LEGAL to seek asylum in the United States when fleeing your country in fear for your life. Under the Obama administration ICE deported hundreds of thousands of criminal illegals and undocumented. But the Obama Administration also instituted aid programs, both monetary and educational, to help the countries of their origin to become habitable by reducing police brutality, rapes, gang violence, domestic violence unchecked by their legal systems and government, horrific unemployment and starvation. Mr. Trump promptly ended those working programs after his inauguration. Hence, the increase in families running for their lives.

4. On St Patrick’s Day the Montana State flag has been swapped out for the Irish flag for years. A spokesperson for LGBTQ rights asked Governor Bullock to fly the rainbow flag in honor of Gay Pride week. Though Bullock is in fact running for President, we doubt Mr. Blackstone has personally spoken with Governor Bullock about his reasons for flying that flag celebrating newly acquired equality for the LGBTQ population.

5. Wherever Mr. Blackstone came up with his example of price fixing at an AfroFuture Fest in Detroit to use it as an example of a liberal scam is just dumb. Any event can charge whatever they want to whomever they want. Have you ever noticed medical clinics, hospitals, many small businesses have pay scales for low-income families? If you ever noticed your POC (People of Color) people in our country are notoriously less affluent than their NPOC (Non People of Color) neighbors. The income disparity in our country has never been higher. However, we in Sanders County are almost 99% NPOC and have over 30% living in poverty. We realize that likely isn’t an issue for a retired LAPD cop with a fantastic retirement program. Google is free and accessible to all and we can learn much about your LAPD career that you so often highlight in your columns.

6. And please, please stop touting your version of our American Values. Did you know thousands of POC (the term you discovered in your research for #5) veterans were not legal citizens but were recruited by our military and sent to the front lines. Since their return (if they didn’t die) from deployment many have been deported. Or their families have. American values are Liberty, Equality, Equal Opportunity for All. The MAGA people, inspired by your President, chanting “send her back” (instead of “lock her up”) are far louder and sadly pathetic than any moderate, independent, Democrat, voter ever. Our country is absolutely in a very scary, very dark place today. Please stop repeating lies that add to this darkness and partisan divide.

Both of us were registered Republicans. The longstanding platform of the GOP has emphasized free trade, less government, separation of church and state, a solid immigration policy (that provides cheap labor to large, profitable corporations), honor in our judicial system, a strong military, unwavering Support for NATO and our Allies, and a healthy wariness and staunch disapproval of authoritarian dictators and rogue nations. Other than a strong military, all of these GOP values have been discarded in the Trump era.

Somewhere along the line we have proudly joined the ranks of the, “fools, self-promoting posers, liberals with an ‘individual agenda.’” We find ourselves “pandering to a voting bloc” like Governor Bullock who had the audacity to fly a Rainbow flag at the Capitol for a day. We find ourselves wondering if God weeps watching a world with 65 million homeless refugees wandering our planet knowing his only begotten son was once a refugee.

Kris Anderson and Sharon Pound,

Thompson Falls