the Oregonian stoops low

letter to Oregonian

Dear Editor,
I was so disappointed to read Rich Lowry’s commentary of November 23 on your pages. Why would the Oregonian print such an unabashedly divisive and mean-spirited joke? For anyone to suggest that the media would collectively prefer one political outcome is a dismal and hurtful attempt at political humor. The grim fact remains that the media would never put themselves in a position where they could lose advertising dollars from either major, i.e. monied, political party. So why do you print a self-deprecating commentary which soils our nation’s leaders in the name of the media? Is it so the Oregonian can try to win back lost "moral" subscribers of the right-leaning politic?
What I found most disturbing was the attack on Colin Powell who has served this country so well. He is politely excusing himself from being in the morally-difficult position of having to advocate the self-serving Republican agenda over what’s best for international relations and the U.S. labor force. For Lowry to assert that Powell is self-serving is absurd. How are such demeaning remarks encouraged by the Oregonian? I challenge the Oregonian to find any scrap of evidence that would paint Secretary Powell in a self-serving light. If there is internal dissension in the White House could we not assume that maybe Bush and his cronies are wrong vis a vis the rest of the world? Lowry’s implicit attacks are simply immoral and plain wrong. And the Oregonian stoops down low to sling the mud. Why choose to alienate more readers at the expense of your own journalistic integrity? It just doesn’t make sense to print such baseless, antagonistic, hyperbole. As a forum for what should be intelligent thought and meaningful discussion, Rich Lowry has no place in the Oregonian.