Obama not elitist

Dear editor:

It is wonderful that we live in a country where we all have the right to speak freely.

But we must remember that just because someone is speaking freely doesn't always mean that they are speaking truthfully. Sometimes people speak to their fears and their feelings rather than speaking to the realities that lay before them.

My hope is that readers of this newspaper can see the difference.

Mr. Bradbury's OPINION that Barack Obama is as dangerous as Hitler because of his inexperience is only that -- an opinion and one that he is entitled to. I do not believe that the majority of Americans would agree with that. I have faith that after the last eight years of corruption, greed, and fear mongering that the American people can see through these absurd kinds of statements.

I would argue that a lack of intelligence, an unwillingness to listen and miscommunication are much more dangerous qualities in a leader than lack of experience.

Obama is highly intelligent, shows a capacity to listen and work with others and he is a good communicator. These are good qualities to look for in a president.

I propose that it is not dangerous at all for someone to inspire young people and old people alike to participate in their government with a message of change and hope for the future. It is not dangerous to hope that our next leader is better than our last. It is not dangerous to have more people participating in our democracy. That is how a democracy works best.

Maybe Mr. Bradbury is just afraid that many of these inspired people don't prescribe to his political opinion. People who are inspired by Barack Obama want to see new solutions to old problems. New solutions and change can be a bit unsettling, but had our country not sought change and new solutions to old problems we would still be using kerosene lamps rather than light bulbs, slavery rather than freedom and equality for all.

I find it perplexing that people don't want government unless it is convenient for them. The same people that sought to get rid of government financial regulations, reduce their corporate taxes and rid themselves of obligations as employers to provide employees with decent wages, retirement and health insurance are now more than happy to rely on government to bail them out of their greed and mismanagement.

I believe that government should be there for the things that we cannot do individually and that we agree to do collectively. Government should work with the people to provide things such as infrastructure, education for our children, Social Security for our parents, libraries for our communities, and protection from harm.

Mr. Bradbury equated the Democratic ticket to being elitist. No sir, they are intelligent and I find intelligence to be pretty important when you are the leader of a country.

Elitists are people like McCain, who don't know how many homes that they own, and whose wives wear $300,000 outfits to acceptance speeches. That sir is what I would refer to as "elitist."

Intelligence and an inquiring mind are things we need to celebrate in our children, our communities, ourselves and our leaders. With such an important election coming our way, I am confident the American voters will use their intelligence, look at the issues at hand and make an informed decision.

Rebecca Lampman

Bruneau