Letters for October 4, 2018

Ah-hah!

The ballot questions remind me of wanting to change something which works just fine to something that sounds good.

John Fisher

Reno

Censor it

Re “It’s back: The vampire theory of gay reproduction” (letters, Sept. 27):

Why? Just why? Why would the RN&R post such a homophobic and destructive letter and actually spend the time and money to print it? I understand that the paper should reflect a myriad of opinions and world views, but would this same paper publish blatant racism or sexism? This isn’t the ’90s, gays are normal boring people just like anyone, though, yes—we are secretly in a vampire cult. Let the real journalism begin.

Tucker Monticello

Reno

Re “It’s back: The vampire theory of gay reproduction” (letters, Sept. 27):

I would love to travel to Salt Lake City and sock Mr. Jarvis square in the Cocker . Why, why did this asshole’s twisted opinion get published in the Reno News & Review? Help me understand, Mr. Editor !

Ashley James

Reno

Editor’s note: By all means, let’s keep this kind of prejudice out of sunlight and public debate and underground where it belongs and can fester, never meeting with disagreement but only discussed by those of like mind. Let’s clamp down tight on unfavored opinions. That has always worked so well in the past.

Short hunt

Re “This dog will hunt” (Upfront, Sept. 27):

I wasn’t there when Mr. Myers observed this behavior, but I can tell you that when they asked me to sign a “petition,” and I said no, they did, in fact, ask me if I was a registered voter. When I answered yes, they did not ask me what party.

Stephen Bloyd

Carson City

Party on

The Republicans have two very powerful tools they wield with awesome efficiency—minimizing voter turnout and a creating a system that minimizes the effects of opposition votes. In many states, Democrats and Republican vote counts are near-equal, but Republicans control up to 70 percent of the elected offices. In some states, Democrats can actually win a majority and wind up with much less than 50 percent of the seats. This is possible because of a power-play done during the previous census which allowed Republicans to define voting districts.

Republicans have many ways for minimizing voter turnout, but the primary method is to create so much disgust, confusion, and distrust for the whole institution that significantly less than half the voting population participate.

The debacle that I witnessed during Thursday’s Kavanaugh hearing will allow the Republican propaganda machine to not only feed their base the raw meat they crave, but it has the potential to fuel the “it’s both sides, they’re all liars, etc.” part of the population that is already looking for some reason not to vote and has recently been fed a steady diet of “you can’t believe anything anyone tells you.”

If we don’t do something soon, the slow-coup that has been the Republicans’ near-complete takeover of the courts will become complete. Not allowing President Obama his Supreme Court nominations was part of it. What amazed me was the lack of care by McConnell et al about hiding what they were doing. But they’d ensured that a minimum number of voters were paying attention and of those, most would just be disgusted.

But maybe it won’t work this time. Maybe enough people will have tuned into the hearing and witnessed first hand the difference between shit and Shinola. Maybe enough people will be inspired to finally try and turn off the ugly that the Republican Party has become.

It’s going to take a lot to overcome the rigged system the Republicans have created, but it’s doable and necessary. And regarding the census, contact your congresspersons and let them know you’re not in favor of using the census as a political weapon.

Michel Rottmann

Virginia City Highlands