Editor:

In the space of his recent letter (“Patton is ignorant,” Nov. 21), David Alder, dripping with contempt, condescension and moral indignation, managed to insult pretty much all of Utah, thus contributing to the worst stereotypes of liberals as whiny elitist know-it-alls. I wonder, when he wrote that letter, did Alder actually give any thought to persuading Matt Patton to see things differently? Or did he read Patton’s editorial (“No offense, but…: You can’t worry about EVERYONE’S feelings”) and, steeped in his own sanctimoniousness, write a zealous response that won’t actually be heard by anyone who doesn’t already agree with him?

I think this letter is symptomatic of a much bigger problem. It’s not just this school or this state-it’s the entire country. As a nation, we seem to have forgotten common ground. If you celebrate diversity in ethnicity, forget diversity of opinion; some topics are just too offensive to be discussed at all unless you’re on the same side. If you disagree, you’re obligated to lower the dialogue to antipathic ad homonym. It doesn’t take any courage to attack someone with whom you disagree. All you do is contribute to the growing divide in this already over-polarized country. If we, the people, don’t start working some of these issues out ourselves, we’ll wake up one of these days to find they’ve been worked out for us.

Alanna RowleyFreshman, English Education