Time to afford all a 'fair chance'

For much of this election campaign, and during two previous two-term presidencies, I, like letter writer Alan Walden ("A stranger in his own land," Nov. 9), felt like a stranger in my own land. I have found myself asking, "Am I really this out of touch with what most Americans believe?" Faced with the apparent popularity of presidents and presidential aspirants espousing agendas rooted in fear, superstition, a rejection or ignorance of American history and science, and a blind faith in "business" as a cure-all for the nation's problems, I have felt dismayed. Where is the tyranny Mr. Walden mentions? Is it true that we have been following a path to an "abyss of mediocrity?" Is our unity, our "greatness" as a nation, threatened by "tribes at cross purposes?" Why am I now reassured and confident about our path while Mr. Walden and so many others are filled with dread?

November 12, 2012