Letter: Disagreements not a reason for hatred

The president of the Moses Lake School Board suggested that perhaps the employees of the school district might take a reduction in pay during the COVID-19 crisis. Since that time, some people have responded with no small measure of vitriol that has maligned the president and has overtly wished that all of life’s failures befall him. I don’t understand when it became OK to hate someone with whom you disagree. I admire the president’s ability to be straightforward with his ideas and thoughts, and I further admire that he stands unafraid in the face of the awful comments that have been showered upon him since. This country was founded by people who vehemently disagreed. They argued, and fought, and argued and fought. They did not, however, make their disagreements a reason to hate one another. In fact, because of their disagreements and fighting, they created the greatest legal document ever written by man: the U.S. Constitution. It stands as the standard around the world, and one of the most important parts of it is defined in the First Amendment that reads in part, “Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech…” We are a choice nation and part of what makes us great is our ability to speak our strong opinions, express our anger, debate, get frustrated, come to positive conclusions and still have an abiding respect for one another. Our differences make us great. Our differences make us powerful. Our differences make us the envy of every other nation on Earth. Our differences are not a reason to hate one another, but rather, a reason to ponder about that which we disagree on. It gives us the chance to see things from another perspective. Frankly, as a retired schoolteacher, I would enjoy a discussion about the possibility of school employees taking a cut in pay during this COVID-19 crisis, or any other controversial topic of discussion. We need to talk to each other, not talk at each other, and definitely not spew hatred toward one another.

Barbara Morgan

Moses Lake