I get letters …
For the better part of a decade, I’ve written (my estimate) 448 political and non-political columns that have filled this space. I’m sure nobody does a word count, but each of those columns contains exactly 700 words.
I’m guessing I’ve used 316,600 words that could never confuse anybody about support for liberal politicians and their policies. That’s why I’m always surprised when somebody sends me a letter trying to convince me just how “wrong” I am. (“Wrong,” I suppose, means I’m a liberal.)
Don’t waste your time. Especially if you send me an anonymous letter. I hardly ever read them. I derive even more pleasure ignoring correspondences that have nothing whatsoever to do with anything I’ve written. By spending your time to tell me how much you believe I’m the spawn of Satan, you’re wasting your stamp. On that rare occasion when I read one of those strange letters, I’m always reassured that I can proudly proclaim — I am a liberal.
“So tell us Mr. Owens. After reading the facts in the enclosed article by distinguished professor of economics, Walter Williams (He’s African-American, by the way), do you have the courage to address these issues in your columns? It would be interesting to see what convoluted logic you use to blame George Bush, the Republicans or the Tea Party.” What?
Here’s why I find that particular letter worthy of comment. “Do you have the courage to address these issues?” they asked. Did they say “courage”? It takes no courage to write an anonymous letter, does it?
Every one of those 316,600 words I’ve written were accompanied by my email address (freedoms@bellatlantic.net), my picture and (for this purpose) my name. And I don’t even think that’s particularly courageous.
Here’s more about that letter that’s peculiar. The parenthetical in the letter telling me is he African American is the stuff of guffaws.
Walter Williams is black. So what? The letter writer seems to think that because Williams is black and (I know this is going to shock you) I’m black, I should defer to his judgment.
Does that letter writer think that since a black conservative columnist who lists Ayn Rand as one of his influences, who fills-in for Rush Limbaugh when Limbaugh is off doing whatever Limbaugh does, and who was mentioned (briefly) as a 2008 presidential candidate, is able to sway me? Fat chance.
Even if I had been tempted to read that column and “reflect” on it, it’s titled “Black self-sabotage.” There’s probably a fair argument that Professor Williams engages in a little “black self-sabotage” himself.
Do conservatives have nothing better to do than to glorify black conservatives as some malformed counterbalance to President Obama? There’s Walter Williams, Herman Cain, Michael Steele and you might even remember the name, Dr. Ben Carson.
Dr. Carson gained national attention — especially on Fox News and Rush Limbaugh’s radio program — earlier this year, because he made provocative political statements at the National Prayer Breakfast, with Obama sitting nearby.
Carson was hailed as some kind of Great Black Political Hope until he publicly compared homosexuals to pedophiles, and he realized he’d have to put any political career on hold.
And I haven’t even gotten to the anonymous letter I got trumpeting Alan Keyes.
“Al, I believe you are a misguided person who is educated but don’t care about the Constitution you took an oath to …” That was the entire handwritten note. I don’t think I’ve taken that oath lately. But I wouldn’t mind taking one.
That letter came with an eight-page diatribe written by Keyes about the need to impeach Obama. That’s the same Dr. Alan Keyes who ran for president in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008. I haven’t counted, but I think Keyes may have gotten three votes, combined, in those four presidential races.
His obvious desire to have Obama removed from office probably stems from the fact that Keyes moved to Illinois so that he could run for the U.S. Senate in 2004, but he lost by 53 percentage points to some guy named Barack Obama. Talk about a sore loser.
Uniontown native Edward A. Owens is a three-time Emmy Award winner and 20-year veteran of television news. Email him at freedoms@bellatlantic.net.