Thursday, December 31, 1998

Thursday, December 31, 1998

Letters to the Editor

Bias in editorials

In response to your editorials of Dec. 19 and 20 that alleged Republican partisanship, revenge against Democrats, dislike of Bill Clinton and threats of retribution by majority leadership as motives behind impeachment, I offer your subsequent piece Dec. 22 about Rep. Charles Stenholm’s vote.

Therein you pondered, not how his vote clearly validated Republican votes to impeach, but merely what Charlie’s vote means to his future in Congress and back home. Missing was the insinuation that his vote was badly motivated in any way or purely threatened into being, as you claim, via a suspect “spin machine,” other votes were.

Between the first two writings and the third there seems a serious inconsistency, imbalance, disconnect or however one labels it. The truth is that both Mr. Stenholm and Republicans voted to impeach and both indicate their motives to have been principle, conscience and the “rule of law.” If Stenholm’s vote is acceptable, albeit politically risky and a no-win, then why not the Republican vote? Would you prefer the five Democrats to have voted alone to impeach Clinton? That would have purified Republicans for you, I guess.

As an American, a Republican and a careful reader of your paper, I am sadly disappointed by the partiality shown in assessing motives that, according to Scripture, are “thoughts and intents of the heart.”

MELISSA STRUM

Anson

Clinton should quit

Mr. Clinton and his supporters have been calling for the end of “the politics of personal destruction.” However, Clinton and his cronies are the ones who are the masters at it. Even George Stephanopoulos, Clinton’s one-time aide, said Clinton leaves carnage wherever he goes.

Clinton just repeats the same little speech, then sends James Carville, Hillary, Gephardt and others to vilify anyone who gets in their way.

Clinton and his group, with the help of the media, repeat over and over words like mean-spirited, vicious, extreme and call the Republicans right-wing extremists. They call for bipartisanship, which to them means only their way. Who do you think is into personal destruction?

Clinton is the one who has behaved in a very unseemly way, who lied under oath and obstructed justice. Yet he is blaming everyone else for his problems. If you can believe the polls, which I do not, it seems a lot of people also refuse to see the truth.

The Republicans and a few Democrats finally stood upright in impeaching the president. What legacy do we want to leave our children?

This country was built on truth and honesty and an abiding faith in our Creator. Do we want to leave them a country where “anything goes,” or a country where faith, honor and truth mean something?

I call upon our president to resign. If he does not, then I call upon our senators to remove from office this man who has brought shame and dishonor on the presidency, on our people and on our country.

HANNAH CURTIS

Abilene

For real men

As an avid deer hunter, I really enjoy the hunting and the thrill of the kill.

So don’t worry about if hunting is a socially acceptable activity. Go save a whale or seal and leave the deer hunting to real men.

ROBERT CHAPMAN

Abilene