Column personified intolerance on the left
Re: “Poisonous partisanship at the ballot box,” Dec. 2
After reading the Peter Mueller’s latest column I wondered how many other readers also saw the irony of the headline versus the content of his column.
It has always been obvious from Mr. Mueller’s many columns written for the News that he was coming from the left side of the political spectrum. And that is fine because living in a free country allows all political persuasions to be expressed. I have rarely agreed with any of his opinions but after reading the title to his most recent letter I wondered, in this case, if we might actually be in agreement. I strongly favour rational dialogue and debate to work out solutions and compromises for important issues facing society and the world in general. Because we all have our biases, we should make a conscious effort to keep an open mind to the opinions of others. The headline to his column suggested to me that he was going to be critical of “poisonous partisanship,” which would be a healthy sentiment. Instead, the whole column was focused on spewing vitriol against a variety of politicians who are not from the left or apparently don’t share his worldview. I don’t know how he could’ve done a better job of giving an example of exactly what he was apparently railing against! In the past, I have not seen much pushback from other readers to Mueller’s leftist ideology and wonder if that has lulled him into thinking that he, in fact, speaks for the moderate middle? For anyone doubting that he has a narrow political bias, I will quote just one line from his column, “Any reasonable analysis should indicate a victory for Notley — unless Albertans remain mired in blind partisanship.” Wow, if that doesn’t reek of poisonous partisanship then what does?
In my opinion, this column personifies the left’s complete intolerance of political views with whom they disagree. Is there any wonder why it is so difficult to have rational, objective discussions about important issues such as climate change, health care and environmental policies in our country today?
Lynn Thacker Medicine Hat