Politics and paranoia

Dear Editor:

In Douglas Lyon's recent letter to the editor (COURIER, Sept. 23), he states or implies political opinions which are presumably sincere and which also serve to confirm his status as a proud political outlier who enjoys the fringe.  That is fine, and it is clearly allowed by the Constitution as well as the COURIER.  However, Mr. Lyons' misrepresentations of political reality require comment.

Mr Lyons' repeated use of the phrase "nationalized health care," in reference to current proposals for health care reform, indicates either a conscious attempt to distort what is actually going on, or some degree of paranoia.  The truth is that no one in a position of authority is promoting nationalized health care.  Unfortunately, distortion, exaggeration and paranoia have been rampant in recent weeks.  Mr. Lyons' letters may be viewed as part of this phenomenon, although, to his credit, he has refrained from using the terms "treason" and "Socialism."

Veering off into state politics, Mr. Lyons blames our state budget crisis on "the Democrat controlled California legislature."  A more objective observer would recognize that there is plenty of blame to go around on both sides of the aisle, and also that a significant cause  of the budget crisis is the state constitution.  Our unusual and increasingly dysfunctional rules in California allow a small minority of legislators to overrule the will of the majority on revenue issues.  It is possible that this flaw will be addressed over the next few years by  a constitutional convention.  Would Mr. Lyons welcome new rules which could result in balanced budgets funded by higher taxes?  Or, in the end, is the tax rate the only issue which truly matters?

Finally, as an indicator of Mr. Lyons' placement on the political spectrum, his opinion regarding the purview of the federal government is illuminating: "The government has the 'right' to do any particular thing only if the Constitution grants it specific authority to do it."  So, it would appear that Yosemite National Park, for example, is unconstitutional.  Wow.

Mr. Lyons might be right that "way too many people just are not paying attention," but the perspectives from the fringe usually don't hold up under close scrutiny.  There are people who sincerely believe that the Earth is flat, or Barack Obama is a Muslim, or health care reform is unconstitutional.  So, yes, paying attention is important, and doing it responsibly involves careful consideration of the sources of information and opinions.

Dave Nemer
Claremont