Letters: Why is columnist biting the hand that feeds him?
Every Sunday when I open the op-ed page of The Tribune, my blood pressure spikes just looking at the smirky smile of columnist Marc Thiessen. But in the belief that one should always listen to other points of view, I read his column of Jan. 9, only to find it particularly outrageous.
In that piece, Thiessen makes the claim that our democracy was never in danger during the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol because all the institutions, including Vice President Mike Pence, congressional Republicans, GOP governors and state officials and the courts “did the right thing.” The “one institution” that failed us, Thiessen said, was the media. Because the news media consistently called out The Big Lie promoted by Trump and his enablers, the American people have lost trust in our electoral process — the very foundation of our democracy.
This stance is incomprehensible on many levels. But for all of Thiessen’s misguided claims about the righteousness of those who continue to defend and enable Trump’s ridiculous claims, the most absurd is that he is biting the very hand that feeds him. He is part of the media he so obviously despises. I, for one, am tired of people deriding the media for fulfilling its constitutionally protected role of holding all institutions accountable. Yet here we have a card-carrying member of the media effectively shooting the messenger. It makes no sense to me.
Thom Villing
South Bend
Matter of life, death
There are too many citizens who cannot afford to get their prescriptions because of cost. They have to balance between food, utilities, housing costs — either rent or home upkeep. Against paying high out-of-pocket prices for their medicines.
The drug companies keep raising the cost for medicines. Senior citizens and the poor cannot afford to pay them. It's a matter of life or death for many of them.
Our government needs to help them. Most people have worked and help build up this country by paying into Social Security through the payroll plan.
Now it is the time for the U.S. government to step up and help the citizens by putting a cap on high drug pricing. We need to call or write to let our senators and representatives to stand up and vote to to allow Medicare to negotiate with these companies on the cost of their medicines.
Polls show that the majority of Americans overwhelmingly favor government action to reduce drug prices.
Frank Freeman
Mishawaka
A disappointment
I find it deeply disappointing and frankly shameful that Rep. Jackie Walorski did not attend the House of Representatives’ Jan. 6 observance. Somehow she couldn’t make the effort to be there to observe the moment of silence in honor of all the Capitol Police officers who were injured that day protecting her and her colleagues. The pity is I suspect Walorski sees nothing wrong in this.
John Monczunski
South Bend
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Columnist Marc Thiessen is part of the media he so obviously despises.
