Dear Editor:

It was with great sadness that I read the article about conservative values picketers who support the current resident of the White House. I have tried to ignore so much of the ugliness that has ensued with this election cycle because I find it incredibly depressing. My questions to the picketers is: whose God do they espouse to support? Do they support police that violently murder people of color? Whose freedom is important to them? How many have lived and worked in a metropolitan area and have witnessed racism first hand and all the ramification that entails? How many have lived through inter-city riots as I have and tried to understand the rage? 

The "All Lives Matter" mantra is one that doesn't understand racism and the BLM movement and why it has seized the nation. We live pretty much in a white bubble here in the Boothbay region. We are truly fortunate to have law enforcement that is responsible and compassionate. It always amazes me that good Christian folks support a man who sexually assaults women, cannot tell the truth from lies, mocks people with disabilities,  whose corruption in business is well documented, who deals in nepotism and sycophancy, who recently declared a need for "patriotic" school curriculum that doesn't teach
real history but a mythological one, whose administration has basically committed crimes against humanity in his immigration policies and his COVID-19 response, who has no compassion for others and hasn't a spot of introspection.

I wish we could have a leader in the religious community gather people of differing perspectives together to talk respectfully to one another. And through discussion try to come to compromise and a way forward to solve really serious issues our nation faces. It  was once mandated by law that our news programs be fair and balanced — no more. That and the rise of social media where people of like positions speak only to those who agree with them forwarding unsubstantiated information has contributed to the problems of our severe partisanship. I hope for the sake of all of us we can come out of this difficult time united as we did after 9/11. 

Bonnie Ginger

Boothbay