Gary Bruner’s letter, “The Reflector’s opinion page leans too far right” struck me as odd when page A2 of the same edition featured a favorable article about the very progressive Sen. Murray.
He’s concerned about “slant” and wants “balance” on our little local op-ed page. Since most major papers are left-leaning, perhaps a local paper that provides some balance seems right leaning? It is becoming increasingly difficult for conservatives even to get their voices heard. Major papers and other media outlets present overwhelmingly from the left and even supposedly neutral social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, Google, etc., play favorites and censor conservative voices. How about this? When we local Americans see major entertainment offer “balance” in TV shows and movies, when tech companies stop de-platforming and punishing any conservative voices with whom they disagree, when our school systems teach patriotism and when conservative speakers are allowed to come to taxpayer-funded colleges, then maybe we can have a conversation.
What seems to be missing in Mr. Bruner’s lament over a couple of columns criticizing Governor Inslee is that bureaucratic officials like Inslee, Murray, etc., have never created anything. Compare this to the businesses he decries, who provide opportunity and financial resources. Government officals such as Inslee and Murray like to take from those hard-working businesspeople and then determine how that money will be spent — with no input from us middle-class taxpayers. He seems uninformed. Why is a town like Ridgefield growing? Because the middle class he mentions from other states are fleeing their overtaxed lives, so they come to a conservative place that offers livability until Inslee’s Seattle and its homelessness and drug infestation or Kate Brown’s Portland encroaches. I don’t think there is “integrity” in a government that takes and redistributes and creates dependency. By comparison to major media, The Reflector does refreshingly offer that balance and integrity. Thank you for that.
