Letters to the Editor: Two reading recommendations if you’re ‘sickened’ by the political divide
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- Readers recommend pairing two L.A. Times articles as antidotes to frustration over deep political divisions plaguing the nation.
- One letter highlights how party strangleholds force “lesser of two evils” voting, while another praises an alternative leadership model.
- Letters praise politicians like San José Mayor Matt Mahan who prioritize problem-solving over party loyalty and political point-scoring.
To the editor: For those who, like me, have been sickened by the deep political divide that now plagues our nation, I highly recommend reading together two articles from the Los Angeles Times’ Oct. 1 edition.
The first, by columnist Jonah Goldberg, highlights how the excessive politics of our two major parties, coupled with their stranglehold over our primary processes, have forced many, if not most of us, to engage in “lesser of two evils” voting — or not voting at all (“Why everyone is rushing to label themselves an ‘independent,’” Sept. 30). The practical result is that we now have numerous “leaders” of both parties (albeit currently more overtly on the Republican side) who have eschewed common decency and common sense as pillars of their office in favor of blind party allegiance and a “win at all costs” ethos.
The second, columnist Mark Z. Barabak’s article profiling the alternative leadership model presented by the current mayor of San José, Matt Mahan, suggests a potential path out of this morass (“He’s a real pain for Gavin Newsom. And a rising Democratic star,” Oct. 1). Just imagine electing leaders who will criticize others of their own party when appropriate, who are prepared to push back on the excesses of monied interests and who are more focused on solving tough problems than scoring points against the other side.
Getting there won’t be easy, but not trying no longer seems like a viable option.
Russ Swartz, Granada Hills
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To the editor: Matt Mahan is a breath of fresh air as a politician. He seems focused on realistic solutions rather than the same old political demagoguery. He’s not afraid to call out the Democratic establishment as “a club of insiders who take care of each other” and who, as Barabak paraphrases, “mostly go along to get along.”
According to Mahan, “political success and policy success comes from offering better ideas and demonstrating impact,” not just telling “people things that test well” and then blaming the other side. You don’t hear that too often from politicians.
David Waldowski, Laguna Woods
