To the editor: It’s wrong to equate the hard left and the hard right. (“Why both sides in America’s partisan war feel like they’re losing,” June 22)
To begin with, the hard left has been kept in its place by moderates and left-of-center leaders. In contrast, the moderate right has fallen under the spell of the hard right.
Al Gore won the populate vote against George W. Bush in 2000 but lost the presidency. Was there an insurrection?
Hilary Clinton beat Donald Trump in 2016 by nearly 3 million votes but lost the presidency. Was there an insurrection?
Joe Biden won the popular vote by about 7 million people and won the presidency. Insurrection and mayhem resulted at the U.S. Capitol, led by the man who lost.
In his article, David Lauter points out that the country has changed. If people marry a person of their choice, the government has nothing to do with that and shouldn’t. But that could change under another Trump administration, because while presidents can’t do bans and mandates by themselves, dictators can.
Both sides may feel they are losing, but so far only one side has engaged in insurrection and will vote for a dictatorship led by pugnacity and retribution.
Larry Margo, Valley Village
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To the editor: Buzz words do not accurately reflect how people really feel about the current political dynamic.
At our core, we Americans believe in our own mythology. Yes, we do believe we are a free people. Real life is distracting and busy, but if our core premise is seriously threatened, we rise up and say no way.
We are definitely at a turning point in history. Do we get to evolve and grow as a species? I think so. It’s easy to define concern as pessimism, but in fact, there is a lot to be concerned about. We are fumbling toward solutions. Our better angels need to be encouraged, not diminished with wordy and academic brush-offs.
We are confronted with two distinctly different world views. They are not the same. We have choices to make. We need to trust the power of that mythology we say we own.
And I do believe we will, with common sense and American ingenuity.
Suzannne Gegna, La Mesa
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To the editor: As Lauter’s piece points out, Americans over the last 60 years have become more secular and more liberal, and more inclusive than exclusive regarding their fellow citizens. He relates that conservatives have been “unable to turn back the tides of change in American culture.”
A history teacher of mine some 60 years ago, when asked to distinguish between conservatives and liberals, responded:
Picture a stagecoach in the 19th century crossing California, the driver (a liberal) urging the horses forward, while the person riding shotgun (a conservative) is applying the brake to slow things down. This holds true today.
Noel Johnson, Glendale
