Thank heavens for Elizabeth Ward Nottrodt's letter to The Sun detailing the victimization of Del. Pat McDonough ("McDonough a victim of political correctness," May 27).
But perhaps she could clear up a few things for those of us who don't get it. When The Sun editorially criticized Delegate McDonough for his motives and unnecessary racially charged rhetoric, Ms. Nottrodt characterized that opinion as Marxist in nature because it "identifies, marginalizes, and demonizes anyone who disagrees with it until no one is left."
And here I thought newspaper editorials fell under the constitutional umbrella that provides both freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Thanks for pointing out that the editorial was merely Marxist.
She ask in her letter, "How can any problem be solved without honest discussion and proper use of language?" I couldn't agree more, but with a caveat: Telling the "truth" is admirable until it distracts from the actual process of solving the problem.
If the "truth" drives two sides apart, what has been accomplished? To repeat an adage: A man can rant at his wife and call her fat and old. All he will accomplish is to create turmoil in his marriage. Presuming the man is telling the "truth," she will nevertheless not be young and slim in the morning. But he will have created a wound that will be difficult to heal.
That's pretty much what Mr. McDonough does. He correctly recognizes a problem, then blusters his way into the local and national spotlight by injecting unnecessary -- but appealing to some – and hateful rhetoric. At the end of the day, the problem still exists and Mr. McDonough has raised the difficulty bar for solving it.
Ms. Nottrodt made the observation that "youths with no purpose in life exist in a void not of their own making. They riot because they can, because no one stops them. They have been deprived of meaningful education, discipline and faith, and emboldened by the hands-off attitude of the law. This is the result of permissiveness."
There. She brilliantly stated a problem related to inner-city violence without once referring to race. We should all learn to practice this kind of expression, Delegate McDonough included.
Art Lapenotiere, Westminster
