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How heartening to read the editorial by Dennis Meredith concerning the hypocritical behavior of the United States government. Why heartening? It is most unusual that a student who has gone through this system has managed to arrive at this conclusion. That a graduate of Flathead High School is aware of the School of the Americas is worth a letter to the editor.
Many U.S. history / government classes are filled with patriotic pap under the general belief that this is preparing an informed citizenry. And we wonder why there is a prevailing distrust of our government? It is simply because people are tired of lies.
We are taught the good-guy / bad-guy viewpoint and the United States is always cast as the good-guy. Unfortunately real life isn’t that simple. Our government is composed of fallible human beings. And yes, it makes mistakes. Yes — your taxes pay to train dictators y perpetrators of human rights abuses! Yes — your government lies to you regularly! But is this a reason to give up and just mumble to your friends and neighbors?
Our oft-quoted Constitution was based on the premise of an informed electorate. Now more than ever the information is available to those who seek it. Read! Listen to those who disagree with you! Inform yourselves of the issues. Search the Inter net for divergent views. Vote! But don’t waste that vote if you truly do not know for what the candidate stands. Locally, we are suffering from the results of uninformed voters. Thank you, Mr. Meredith for bringing a small bit of information to Flathead High School and the readership of The Arrow.
Stephanie Baca
FHS Spanish Teacher
bacas@sd5.k12.mt.us
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