The opposite of hate is tolerance

I read with amusement the letter from Ms. Wickline of Lorain, Ohio, who wags her finger at us for “harboring and promoting a racist for county elected official” [sic].

Until moving to North Idaho two years ago, I spent almost my entire life in New Jersey, and I can tell you that there is far more hate in the politically correct bastions of the East than here in Bonner County. Espouse an opinion outside the boundaries of liberal group-think (read: traditional values), and you will feel the hate. Get lost and walk down the wrong street in Newark, Paterson, Camden, and surely Cleveland as well, and you will feel the hate. Become the target of a union mob, and you will feel the hate.

Ms. Wickline’s use of the word “harboring” is informative. The implication is that merely allowing people with an unpopular opinion to exercise their right of free speech without silencing them by force makes one guilty by association. Liberals will tell you that the opposite of hate is tolerance. Well, Ms. Wickline, here in North Idaho, we tolerate people with unpopular views. The candidate in question will get no more than a handful of votes because the overwhelming majority of my neighbors find his views reprehensible, but we will not silence him with the hateful thuggery with which you may be familiar.

As for your boycott of our products, I doubt you can be bothered to identify them, but congratulations on your moral superiority nonetheless.

MIKE DUNN

Sagle