LETTER FROM THE EDITOR: We can communicate better

Yesterday, we published a story on Lt. Governor Denny Heck’s efforts to improve civic engagement and discussion in Washington at both the state and local levels.  

Monday, we published a story about a protest held in Moses Lake last Saturday wherein participants were saying Hispanic people are important to the community and shouldn’t be arbitrarily deported.  

Reactions to the protest were varied. While some honked horns, waved or simply ignored the protesters, others rolled down their windows to put out a thumbs-down gesture. Arguably, that’s still fairly civil and an easy way to say that one disagrees with something. Still others made it a point to roll down their windows and yell racial epithets and flip off the protesters.  

That’s where there’s a bit of a problem. Using pejorative terms for another race is wrong. Flipping others off is wrong, especially considering there were children at the event ranging in age from toddlers to high school.  

Is that where we are as a community? We flip off anyone who has a different opinion than us? Even when there are children there? I feel like we can find a way to discuss an issue like immigration without being horrible to one another and making crude gestures at minors.  

Note that, just because someone in the country is Hispanic, doesn’t mean they’re here unlawfully. Further, if someone is in the country unlawfully, that doesn’t mean they’re Hispanic. It’s not a matter of race or origin, but one of a proper application process prior to entering the country.  

The immigration debate isn’t alone on the front of causing a stir though. Government spending, diversity programs, electric cars, bailing out banks, student loan forgiveness and even whether or not to put pineapple on pizza or which way we put the toilet paper on the holder are all things we get worked up about.  

I’m going to admit that I’ve occasionally lost my temper over politics and have opinions in one or more of the above categories. I mean, there’s a lot going on and we do live in those “interesting times” the old curse mentions.  

I’ve never flipped off a child though.  

In the information age, with all of the facts and figures we have at our fingertips, that type of thing really ought to have been a thing of the past. But here we are, unable to talk to each other and have a reasonable discussion about something that’s incredibly important to have an educated opinion about.

Let’s be honest. Most people, myself included, have strong opinions that aren’t necessarily based in fact. If we were honest with ourselves, we’d be open-minded enough to correct ourselves if we learned more about whatever issues we're ignorant of. Admitting ignorance isn’t bad; it’s just acknowledging that we all have more to learn. 

Identity politics is a part of the problem, of course. We psychologically label ourselves as well as others and we want to carry the label we like best. 

We could all worry a bit less about being left or right and more about being caring humans who want the best for each other.  

Within 20 minutes of the story being posted to Facebook though, I was a bit exhausted with watching the post. We monitor our social media to ensure people aren’t swearing or threatening one another. Some of the commentary was frustrating with people bickering back and forth, but there were no threats and only some mild name-calling.  

Should there have been any name-calling though? I mean, if we don’t have a cogent argument, maybe we should just keep quiet until we’ve educated ourselves. Just like, if we see a kiddo at an event, maybe we ought to keep our middle finger to ourselves. 

Take care of one another out there.

With appreciation,
R. Hans "Rob" Miller
Managing Editor