Seeking thoughtful Trump supporters

I read with interest the Valley News’s coverage of Donald Trump’s “harsh” Claremont rally. The subsequent letters to the editor and John Campbell’s analysis of how Trump supporters viewed their candidate revealed two very different worlds. It is easy to pick people out of a crowd and ask them questions, selecting only particularly outrageous clips to demonstrate how clueless the group appears. While the tactic has been used by both ends of the political spectrum, it has found especially fertile ground in supporters of the former president.

This leads me to wonder if there are thoughtful, rational individuals who are Trump supporters. Given recent polls there seems to be a large number of people who find him attractive or, perhaps, detest the current president so much as to select his opponent. In the hope of opening a rational discussion I would like to hear from Trump supporters who can articulate a positive argument for their position. What did Trump do in his four years — did the world respect the US more, was crime lower, did he fulfill his campaign promises? As to the current administration, how is it “destroying America.” How would the country look different if Trump had won a second term?

Provide facts and evidence, not political talking points or wild promises from the candidate. I’d like to believe that we all choose our positions after a thoughtful review of all information. In reality, we find facts to justify our long-held beliefs. I look forward to hearing yours.

Michael Hillinger

Etna

A humbling moment at DHMC

I thought I’d take a moment to share something that profoundly impacted me recently. My mom needed to be seen at the Emergency Department (she is doing just fine now.) I retrieved a wheelchair and was trying to look for a button to shake it out like a stroller. Not how it works. When I had pulled in, I had noticed a couple (around my parents’ ages) sitting on a bench. They looked solemn and tired as most do around the ED. The gentleman kindly offered to help get my mom settled into the wheelchair. I got her inside and exited to go move the car.

As I walked out, I saw the same couple embrace, sobbing, unraveling into one another. Other family members were approaching from the parking lot. They came together to form a circle and hold each other in what I could only presume was a tragedy unfolding. I can’t even begin to describe how humbling and awakening it was to see someone, obviously in one of the most painful experiences of their lifetime, selflessly put that aside to aid another. I am still overwhelmed by such an altruistic act. What a powerful experience for me to have been a part of. To the family at DHMC, the morning of Nov. 20, as your world changed, you changed mine. In your moment of darkness, you radiated love that we can easily question exists when our world is inundated with the demoralizing human behavior. Thank you for being such incredibly beautiful humans in our community, in our world.

Kristina E. Chase

Grantham

Hamas must be destroyed

Pro-Palestinian supporters shout “From the river to the sea Palestine will be free.” I agree, but with one important stipulation — Hamas must first be expunged from the territory. Only then can a pathway open for a responsible governing body to step in and join with Israeli counterparts in pursuit of the elusive Two State Solution.

Since 2007, when Hamas staged a coup violently ousting the democratically elected governance of Gaza by the Palestinian Authority, it steadfastly pursued its sole mission, the destruction of Israel. Such a modus operandi is incompatible with creation of a future Palestinian State peacefully coexisting alongside Israel.

In the ensuing years Hamas continued doing what it does best: indiscriminately launching rockets into Israel and staging periodic cross border attacks. It did not work establishing institutions to administer the civil society under its control. Additionally, it siphoned funds the international community poured into Gaza intended for assembling infrastructure. It used those funds to build and fortify underground tunnels, literally creating a city below ground. Despite whatever deprivations the joint Egyptian-Israeli blockade may have presented, Hamas managed to amass stockpiles of weapons of war and sufficient fuel and food to withstand a lengthy siege. That cache was withheld as Gazans struggled after Israel launched its post-Oct. 7 counterattack.

When all of the hostages Hamas grabbed during that barbaric attack are returned to their families, the IDF must continue its mission to destroy Hamas. Perhaps then will Palestinians in conjunction with their brethren in neighboring Arab lands be enabled to elect new leaders “of the people and for the people.” Their mission statement can then be reset to one achieving a state peacefully living alongside Israel. At that point, “from the river to the sea Palestine will be free.”

David Greenfield

Grantham