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Letter to the Editor from Juli DeJonghe

I believe at this time in our world everybody should be educating themselves and paying attention if we care at all what kind of world will be here for our grandchildren, or if there will even be a world. I believe ignorance is a choice and it is not defined by stupidity.

The mainstream media is corporate-owned and often very biased, which necessitates seeking other sources of information that can verify and follow-up on the facts. You cannot have a fair judgement of anything without truly educating yourself about the facts on both sides of an issue. Everyone should keep this in mind throughout 2004 while we all decide who we will support for President in November.

In his State of the Union speech, George Bush gave no clear detailed answers to the important questions on the minds of Americans, such as health care, jobs, and education. He dodged these subjects with very brief comments because he has no solutions, only extreme right-wing, corporate-America agendas. He refuses to discuss in detail the facts behind the war and exit strategies for getting us out of Iraq; the fact that there is no proven connection between Iraq and 9/11; the 500+ dead American soldiers; the thousands of dead or wounded Iraqi civilians; veterans' benefits and what will happen to our troops when and if they come home; unfair aspects of the Patriot Act that is stripping us of our civil liberties; or any other controversial issue that he chooses to ignore. I consider his speech a "Mis-state of the Union" just as it was last year when he was adament about the WMD's that do not exist. To quote former President James Madison:

"Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy or perhaps both."

I am often told there is no hope and involvement in politics is a waste of time. or that I am unpatriotic for not conforming to the unjust standards of the Bush Administration. My response is that I am an American who believes in democracy and truth, not in empire building, and that we must share this planet, not control or destroy it, or hold-on to the arrogance that refuses to allow many to acknowledge we have been misled. I have my peace of mind in knowing I have educated myself and made a decision based on facts not political propaganda or a "follow-the-leader" mentality. It would seem those that choose ignorance have no right to judge the State of Our Union.

"If you assume that there's no hope, you guarantee that there will be no hope. If you assume that there is an instinct for freedom, there are opportunities to change things, there's a chance for you to contribute to making a better world. That's your choice." - Noam Chomsky, philosopher

Juli DeJonghe
Manchester Township
21 January 2004