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OPINION

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Fauquier Times | October 14, 2020

NO ELECTION-RELATED LETTERS WILL PRINT AFTER OCT. 21 ISSUE

The Fauquier Times’ editorial policy states that no election-related letters will be printed the week before an election. The last edition of the Fauquier Times before the Nov. 3 national election is set to publish Oct. 28.

All election-related letter submissions must be received by Oct. 19 to be considered for publication in the issue of Oct. 21, the last issue they will appear in print.

Election-related letters submitted to the paper will be posted online no later than Tuesday, Oct. 23. Rebuttals to letters appearing in the Oct. 21 issue will be posted online until Oct. 28.

Keep calm and trust God

Reading the "Letters to the Editor" is one of my favorite reads in the Times.

It seems the new year, 2020, started with great expectations that turned into anxiety, worry, fear and even anger. It is indeed a trying and stressful time with the virus pandemic, violent riots, the emotionally charged political climate and election time upon us.

Several definitions Webster gives on politics are: "#4. political methods, tactics, selections, etc.; sometimes, specif., crafty or unprincipled methods. #6. factional scheming for power and status within a group."

It seems to me we are seeing this in full display today. Five years ago, I read a small book titled "Keep

Calm and Trust God." The idea for the title came from British slogan in WW II, "Keep Calm and Cary On." "Keep calm and trust God" might be a good slogan for present times.

Has God allowed us to come into this crisis time to remind us to turn our trust towards Him? Someone penned these words, "Pray that the hardships resulting from the global pandemic will point people to Jesus as the only lasting hope."

Advice from history could be helpful. David the shepherd boy put his life on the line in confronting the giant Goliath at a very fearful time in the life of Israel. About that time he wrote the 23rd Psalm. This is a much-used Psalm by funeral parlors on memory cards for the deceased.

While I'm still alive, I concur with David: "The lord is my shepherd." That is where I'm putting my trust in these fearful times. David's son, King Solomon wrote, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy path," Jesus said, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things will be added unto you." These words from history remind me "to keep calm and trust God" in these uncertain, troubled, political and fearful times.

SIMON SCHROCK

Catlett

Sen. Mark Warner and two definitions of intelligence

Two definitions of the word intelligence as found in Webster’s dictionary are: 1) the ability to learn or understand or the skilled use of reason and 2) information concerning an enemy or possible enemy, also an agency engaged in obtaining such information.

Both definitions speak to me about Sen. Mark Warner and his service to his Virginia constituents and our country. The first definition seems fitting given his known track record in the Senate as a moderate. The second is his leadership position as vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, a topic unfamiliar to many.

Recognizing the importance of intelligence is crucial to our national security, particularly given the current administration’s tendency to marginalize and/or dismiss such guidance provided by senior offi cials, including those in the intelligence community. Two examples of such behavior include:

A whistleblower complaint describes efforts by senior [President Donald] Trump appointees to limit or censor information about Russian activities in the US. The report alleges that officials ordered certain intelligence assessments to be halted because they were making “the president look bad.” The official also was instructed to downplay intelligence about white supremacy to make the threat appear “less severe” and play up evidence of “left-wing” violence.

FBI Director Christopher Wray, in direct contrast to statements by the administration, cast doubt on concerns raised by some that mailin voting could pose an increased chance of voter fraud. Wray told a Senate committee that widespread voter fraud would be a “major challenge” for a foreign adversary to pull off, noting the FBI has not seen, historically, any kind of coordinated national voter fraud effort in a major election by mail or otherwise.

As the vice-chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Warner is committed to strengthening our national security and knows and respects the Intelligence Community for the service it performs. We all may do well to keep this in mind on Nov. 3.

KIRSTEN KING

Warrenton

Parent gives school reopening plan a failing grade

The Fauquier County School Board’s newly adopted hybrid plan is as inequitable as they come. Under the plan (which parents/other stakeholders had zero say in), the board arbitrarily decided to send all students into the building in November.

The board has been asked for the data (requested Sept. 24) they used to make this decision but has failed to respond. If it were a data-driven decision, the data should be easily shareable. The board failed to address how this return could even happen after the county’s own finance officer outlined how K-2 could not even return to the building with fidelity (lack of busing, staff, substitutes, etc.).

Where does this leave our younger or more vulnerable learners? We are failing them without continuous instruction. There will be only two chances a week to receive instruction (Monday/ Tuesday or Thursday/Friday), with zero access to teachers on the three asynchronous days. Now these students will have five days of regression for every (potential) two days of instruction. This will further widen the gap as we fail to build off of new concepts or master concepts due to lack of instruction.

The Fauquier County School Board receives an “F” for failing to provide an equitable reopening plan. They receive an “F” for failing to define a plan at all. A hasty decision to send all students back without the supports in place to do so fails all students, teachers and families. Failure is not an option. Our kids deserve better!

ASHLEIGH ZYLSTRA

Warrenton

Student: No more changes, please!

I am a sixth-grader at Auburn Middle School. Our schools and other safe activities are hard to navigate right now, and proposed changes to our education plan yet again feel like a chaotic mess. I like how things are going with online schooling right now — I get to see my teachers and friends safely; we are making virtual work.

I don’t want to switch to the hybrid model. People are getting sick from COVID; I really don’t want to see my friends and their families getting sick. I am hoping our schools stay virtual, not only for health and safety but because I don’t think a lot of us can handle another change without a good plan. I don’t want to watch other students in the classroom learning things that aren’t interactive. I’m worried that us virtual students won’t be able to ask questions or even say hello to our friends.

We will be isolated even more than we are now, and I feel like it will be very difficult and depressing. We virtual students don’t want to watch “teacher TV” — it feels like the sole purpose of this change is to limit our learning. I’m afraid I’ll end up learning nothing new after this change.

I know I’ll miss seeing my friends’ faces, and I’ve already cried enough about all of the changes. Please school board, do not make us change one more thing.

ARDEN ERDOSSY

Warrenton

Remembering past awakenings

There have been a few “awakenings” in our past. The 17th century “Great Awakening” had to do with religious revival and a broadening of religious tolerance and democratic ideals.

Recently, people have become “awoke” to racial injustice and sexual/gender dysphoria. The jury is still out on the efficacy of this movement.

Fewer people are aware of the “Wide Awakes” movement of the late 1850s. This was a branch of the new Republican Party working to elect Abraham Lincoln. They were young (20s and 30s) folks who were anti-slavery and very pro-Union. They marched, wore black outfits, “discouraged” hecklers at outdoor rallies and grew to 100,000 strong. No property damage or police abuse reported.

Imagine that. Republicans standing up for the disenfranchised against Democratic pro-slavery politicians. Opportunity zones, pro school choice policies, the largest subsidy to historically black colleges and the highest black, Hispanic and women employment numbers in history are the most recent outcomes of good Republican efforts.

MIKE STRAIGHT

Warrenton

The Republicans say that in the future (always in the future) the Democrats will destroy the economy. However, in the past, it’s been just the opposite. In the last 50 years, every Republican presidency has experienced economic upheaval ranging from serious to catastrophic. The two Democratic administrations of the period were marked by economic stability and expansion. One administration gave us the largest economic expansion in history, the other, the longest sustained economic growth in history.

Trump's claim of achieving record unemployment is a little like someone who was born on third base claiming he hit a home run. During the preceding eight years under President Obama, unemployment fell by about 5.5%, or about 2.75% per term. In Trump’s term it fell by about 15 until COVID. So, yay! He maintained the trend, sort of.

We now know that Trump was aware of the seriousness of the threat the coronavirus presented early on, but he was publicly stating that the direness of the situation was a Democratic “hoax.” He did little to contain the spread. His inaction lead to both economic and health crises. Unemployment is now 7.9%, and we have now passed 200,000 dead from COVID. To put the latter in numbers the Republicans can better understand, that’s more than 50,000 Benghazis.

The Republicans call social programs “free stuff” that can only lead to dependence and degeneracy. They cite failures by third-world authoritarians and communist thug-ocracies as proof, but the analogy is false. Virtually all the industrialized nations with stable democracies and market economies have provided health and other beneficial social programs for decades without deleterious effect.

The Democrats recognize these programs as investments that pay off. After World War II, the federal government paid for free college and job training for millions of young Americans. Far from being a socialist disaster, it produced the skilled work force that stoked the technical revolution of the last half of the 20th century. Similarly, subsidized health care for workers who don’t make enough to pay for it assures a healthy, stable and more productive work force.

The Republicans say the Democrats will take away our guns (in the future of course). In the past, the Obama administration passed all of two gun laws. Both lifted restrictions on the carrying of weapons by law abiding citizens; restrictions by the way, that had been put in place by Republican presidents.

The Democrats only want to keep guns out of the hands of criminals. The Republicans say study is needed to understand how to do this, but a Republican congress effectively made it illegal for the CDC to study gun-related deaths. By its past actions, the Republican Party demonstrates a preference for keeping the gun issue alive over keeping people alive.

KEITH SELBO

Warrenton

Looking deeper at President Donald Trump’s record

In his Oct. 7 letter, Aubrey Smith (Fauquier Times, “NY Times lists president’s accomplishments”) summarizes a few snippets from a NY Times article on Donald Trump’s accomplishments thus far. While some are true, others are misleading or have been eliminated as a result of the ongoing pandemic.

Crude oil production, DOJ dismantling the dark net site (BackPage), an improving economy and job growth were all in progress before Trump took office.

What else can we credit President Trump with? NPR calls his presidency “The most corrupt in history.” Donald Trump promised to drain the Washington swamp and instead has surrounded himself with family members, appointees and advisers who’ve been accused of conflicts of interest, misuse of public funds, influence peddling, self-enrichment, working for foreign governments, failure to disclose information and violating ethics rules. Some are under investigation or facing lawsuits, others have resigned and six have either been convicted or pled guilty, including three for lying to government officials.

What about job growth? According to Forbes, Obama created 1.6 million more jobs than Trump did over a three-year period. On average, Obama created 43,000 more jobs per month than Trump. This is remarkable when you consider that Obama started his presidency amidst the Great Recession and Trump inherited a stabilized and improving economy.

Now, let’s address the elephant in the room: the coronavirus pandemic. Smith never really focuses on this while he is touting Trump’s alleged accomplishments. Why? Because Donald Trump blew his own claim on economic and job gains, by his self-serving and deadly decision to first ignore and then downplay the pandemic. He is responsible for the level of suffering and death we are now reckoning with. The U.S. currently has over 214,000 deaths, with an average of 1,000 deaths per day. 7.6 million are infected. He is still mismanaging pandemic mitigation.

Finally, the very same news publication Smith quotes has endorsed Joe Biden for president. Their reason is a fitting conclusion for this letter, "Mr. Biden has ... vowed to 'restore the soul of America.' It is a painful reminder that the country is weaker, angrier, less hopeful and more divided than it was four years ago. With this promise, Mr. Biden is assuring the public that he recognizes the magnitude of what the next president is being called upon to do.”

KATHY KADILAK

The Plains

Writer urges voters to vote Republican to preserve democracy and constitution

Preserving the great experiment of the United States is the most critical decision factor in the 2020 elections. The individual rights we enjoy are envied by freedom-loving individuals worldwide, but these rights are threatened.

Democrats have been attacking our two-party system since their investigation of the opposing party's presidential candidate during the 2016 election, based on false information paid for by the Hillary Clinton 2016 campaign.

These false claims of Trump-Russia collusion during the 2016 presidential election campaign have now been disproven by four separate investigations.

These false claims were also used as a basis to abandon the national history of peaceful transfer of power to a newly elected president. Instead, the democrats denounced the election results, called for resistance to the new administration by government employees and average citizens, and their imbedded partisans continued a baseless investigation of the newly elected president for two and a half years.

In 2018, when a constitutional conservative judge was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Democrats went crazy at the thought of approving a Supreme Court Justice committed to following the Constitution and laws as written. The outlandish behavior of Democrat senators and supporters in their attempt to prevent consent of this appointment, flew in the face of tradition and significantly heightened the sense of conflict and division in the nation.

Disappointed with the findings of multiple investigations and Supreme Court appointments, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives ignored the constitutional criteria for presidential impeachment, and in 2019 voted to impeach the president based on unfounded allegations.

With no due process for the president in the House of Representatives inquiry or factual grounds for impeachment, the Democrats rushed to conduct political theater in an effort to disrupt the constitutional foundation of our nation.

Now in late 2020, another constitutional conservative judge is nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Democrats seem panicked over another Supreme Court Justice, committed to following the constitution and laws as written, being consented to by the Senate.

Democrat politicians openly discuss ending the American experiment by creating a one-party state under their control. They seek to achieve this by packing the Supreme Court with activist liberal judges to change the meaning of the constitution and existing laws to support liberal agendas. They discuss packing the Senate and House by turning territories and the District of Columbia into states with reliably liberal and progressive elected politicians, effectively eliminating the two-party system. They want to eliminate the electoral college to establish mob rule by a few high-population areas over the

Letters to the Editor

The Fauquier Times welcomes letters to the editor from its readers as a forum for discussion of local public affairs subjects. WRITE: Letters to the Editor 41 Culpeper Street Warrenton, VA 20188 FAX: Editor 540-349-8676 EMAIL: news@fauquier.com entire nation.

The Democrat leader in the Senate has clearly stated that "nothing is off the table" if the Democrats win the presidency, Senate and House. The Democrat presidential and vice-presidential nominees refuse to state their views on packing the Supreme Court, or other democrat party expressed intentions, because their answer would become "the headline."

If you want to preserve our constitution, and continue the great American experiment, vote Republican on Nov. 3, or in on-going early voting.

CHUCK MEDVITZ

Warrenton

Letters must be signed by the writer. Messages sent via email must say “Letter to the Editor” to distinguish them from other messages not meant for publication. Include address and phone for verification (Not to be published.) Letters are subject to editing for clarity and length. Personal attacks will not be published. Long letters from those with special authority on a current issue may be treated as a guest column (with photo requested). Due to volume, letters cannot be acknowledged. All letters are appreciated. Letters must be received by 5 p.m. Monday to be considered for Wednesday publication.