I read with interest the recent Sunday Valley News Perspectives piece by Brian Porto (“Ongoing battle between promise and prejudice,” Jan. 17). Like his, my grandparents fled southern Italy seeking opportunity in America. They would have decried the events of Jan. 6, as I do.
My father and many uncles fought in World War II. My mother’s youngest brother is buried on a battlefield in France. Another brother was determined to be lost at sea after his ship was torpedoed. Miraculously, after two days of floating amid oil and debris, he was rescued. Dad served on a ship in the Pacific designed to carry cargo, landing craft and weapons, supplies and Marines during amphibious operations. His ship may have delivered the flag hoisted on Iwo Jima. They were all proud of America and they risked their lives to protect the freedom we all enjoy.
They would have condemned the events of Jan. 6, and as well the riots and thousands of rioters this past summer who looted, burned police stations and cruisers, defaced government buildings and injured and killed police and others. The media reported them as mostly peaceful and motivated by racial justice. Come on, man. It was domestic terrorism and outright lawlessness.
My relatives would also be saddened today that our history, flag and anthem are being trashed after they gave so much to protect these sacred symbols. Adding insult to injury, progressive prosecutors have refused to prosecute many of the lawbreakers and, when some did go to jail, they were bailed out by progressive supporters.
Democracy can spawn mob rule when laws are disregarded for some and enforced on others. Laws should be enforced equally. The ends never justify the means, despite what the media feeds us. Is it any wonder that a majority of citizens have lost faith in the media? Porto’s op-ed is a prime example of an opinion piece that fails to relate the whole story.
DAVE CIOFFI
Etna
It is long past time for our government and society to require journalistic accountability and standards in terms of truth. After the Jan. 6 armed insurrection against the U.S. Capitol and our democratic government by Donald Trump’s supporters, who were fomented by Trump’s lies about him having won the presidential election and literally urged on to violence by him, aided and abetted for months by Republican members of Congress, the role of journalists in helping to create the mass delusion of millions of Americans in the belief in Trump’s lies and the incitement of violence must be examined.
The behavior of powerful national media organizations such as Fox News is especially relevant with regard to the above lies and attempted insurrection. Using the excuse of freedom of speech, so-called journalists such as Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Lou Dobbs and Tucker Carlson of Fox “News” regularly spew out lies with complete impunity that are believed by masses of politically polarized Americans. Such dangerous nonsense, presented as factual, should no longer be allowed. All journalists and editors, at even the smallest local publications, should adhere to standards of truth and balance in reporting. Those who don’t do so are as guilty as Fox News in having helped promulgate the dangerous lies that led to division and violence in our nation.
ALICE MORRISON
Newbury, Vt.
Our government completely stopped functioning under Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. He broke every norm and rule to make sure that President Barack Obama couldn’t get legislation passed, or get a Supreme Court nominee confirmed.
Then Donald Trump came to power, and McConnell did his level best to make sure that nothing could pass the Senate unless the worst president in history pre-approved of it.
Millions of Americans were hurt, both economically and physically, under an administration where Republicans representing a minority of voters in this country were able to completely control the levers of power in Washington.
Now Democrats have control of the House, the Senate and the White House. McConnell, now the minority leader of the Senate, wants to make sure that as little as possible can be done by the government while Democrats are in power.
His pleas for fairness and power sharing, and his complaints about the need to keep the filibuster, are not spoken in good faith. They are simply a tactic to try to retain whatever power he can.
But I haven’t forgotten that when he held power, he took great pleasure in being the “grim reaper” of the Senate, making sure all efforts to legislate would die before they could begin.
The country cannot endure two more years of government that can’t accomplish anything. The pandemic, rising white supremacist nationalism and terrorism, an economic downturn — these challenges cannot be met only with executive orders from President Joe Biden. The Senate must ensure that McConnell can’t prevent it from doing the business of governing, finding solutions to help people and save lives.
I urge New Hampshire Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan to work within the Senate to persuade their colleagues to end the filibuster.
JOE MONTIBELLO
Hanover
I call out our federally elected representatives to vocalize moral and ethical leadership on the issues of the day (or maybe I just want them to vocalize my issues).
For example:
■ A very large number of our fellow citizens are in dire straits, having been thrown into extreme poverty by the COVID-19 economic crisis. They are hungry and in danger of being homeless.
■ There are maybe 800,000 DACA “dreamers” — young people who have no clear path to legitimacy in our economy and life.
We don’t even hear or read of our elected representatives taking moral stands on those issues Even the best swamp dwellers talk in political terms of policies or procedures. We need them to make clear statements, such as: “It’s immoral to let our citizens suffer, it’s cruel and we can do better.”
Let’s hear real moral leadership from them.
PAUL P. TIERNEY
Norwich
When I wrote this, we were as a country four straight days without a reportable hint of revolution in the air, four straight days of an administration not wielding power against the very people it vowed to protect.
An invisible calm has descended. I can’t help but wonder what has become of those wild faces storming the Capitol — you know, the images seen ’round the world and by all of us during each night’s news?
I pause to wonder, what have we come to? Our senses, perhaps.
DONALD B. PERRON
Lebanon