To the Editor: As many of you know, Lonn Taylor, my beloved husband, died suddenly at our home last week. We have all watched as he became more and more restricted in his movements. He hated it. But he loved all of you. The outpouring of love and help I have received since his death is simply proof that Lonn and I made an excellent choice when we moved to Fort Davis in June 2002. Thank you all for being the nicest, best people on earth.
Dedie Taylor Fort Davis
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Dear editor, The “idiotes,” too large a portion of our current citizenry? See the classical Greek meaning below. While we all have jobs, children and other matters to attend to responsibly, a few hours a week for thoughtful attention to public affairs at all or at least some levels? Admittedly, it was far easier when one had only his local city-state to pay attention to. In the U.S. we have three levels of government to worry about. And worry us they do! [In ancient Athens contributing to politics and society in general was considered the norm and highly desirable. Being apolitical and selfish was frowned upon and all citizens aspired to be politically active. It was rare for citizens to demonstrate apathy towards what was happening in their state and common issues. The overwhelming majority of Athenians participated in politics to a greater or lesser extent. Those who did not contribute to politics and the community were known as “Idiotes” (ΙΔΙΩΤΕΣ), originating from the word “Idios” (ΙΔΙΟΣ) which means the self. If you did not demonstrate social responsibility and political awareness you were considered apathetic, uneducated and ignorant. The word was transferred to latin as “idiota” and was used to describe an uneducated, ignorant, inexperienced, common person. Considering the above, it is easy to identify how the primary form and meaning of the word mutated to modern“idiot”. Most importantly it is worth noting that ancient Greeks valued political participation and collective governance. A completely different state of mind from what we see in most societies today where most demonstrate apathy to what happens around them.] From www.historydisclosure.com/what-does-idiot-mean/.
Dale Christophersen Alpine
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Dear editor,
Herd of presidential candidates
In 2015-2016 there was a herd of 17 Republican candidates for president who negated each other by sharing campaign funding, diluted votes in the primary, and elected and established the least qualified candidate for President. We now suffer with a president who does not understand the workings of our government, has fired or forced to resign around 25 key personnel; and attacks the press, judiciary, and our intelligence agencies. We have a mirror image of the 2015-2016 Republican situation with the herd of Democrats running for president in the 2020 election. These candidates want to feed their egos and gain name recognition for future local elections. They include a screaming female senator, a flailing male congressman, and a male Socialist senator. Twenty-three of 24 Democratic candidates are unqualified to be President, and one of them could end up running against the current unqualified Republican contender for President in 2020. As an Independent I vote for the candidate who is most qualified for the position. If the Republican and Democratic candidates for president are not qualified, then I will vote for myself.
Donald Moskowitz Londonderry, New Hampshire
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