“Ignorance and misinformation, if allowed to prevail in foreign policy, handicaps the country’s security. In a world of complex and continuing problems, in a world full of frustrations and irritations, America’s leadership must be guided by the lights of learning and reason or else those who confuse rhetoric with reality and the plausible with the possible, will gain the ascendency with their swift and seemingly simple solutions to every world problem.”

— John Fitzgerald Kennedy, November 22, 1963 

To the Editor,

With the advent of the current executive administration in Washington, I believe that this is a quotation that should be resurrected and remembered. We, as a people, are frustrated with world and domestic events. But we should not, we cannot, allow these frustrations to overrule our reason, logic, and learning to allow “ignorance and misinformation” to become paramount in both our foreign and domestic policy. 

There is no room for “alternative facts” in our political system. We must rely on the truth, the true facts, as proven by evidence, not as accepted by belief only. I realize that people with differing views may interpret the proven facts in far different ways, but that is a difference of opinion, not a difference of the facts.  

If a fact cannot be vetted as true by evidence and empirical examination, then it is either an unfounded rumor or an outright falsehood (let’s define that as a lie). In either case, if not vetted as truth, then it does not belong in governmental policy or in tweets from the Oval Office.  

Mr. Trump, please refrain from lying to the American people and expecting us to accept and believe the lies. Many of us may be smarter than you think.

Luther Jones

Sylva