Opinion: In the era of Trump, liberals must resist calls for civility

To the editor: Calls for civility in the wake of the shooting in Alexandria, Va., are beside the point. The deranged will always be with us. What is more to the point is to deny the deranged the means of carrying out their mayhem. (“A shooting in Alexandria brings gun violence directly to those best situated to act,” editorial, June 14)

It would be inappropriate to describe the Republican healthcare bill and their devious and dishonest way of avoiding scrutiny in anything but the most uncivil terms. Giving President Trump the courtesy of civility would obfuscate the true nature of his contempt for democracy.

Now is not the time for timidity in our discourse.

Charles Berezin, Los Angeles

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To the editor: While gun violence is a legitimate concern, the serious issue here is hatred — hatred fueled by politicians and, yes, media coverage that accentuates the extremes.

The slain gunman could have just as easily tossed a bomb over the park fence. In that event, The Times would have had to discuss hatred and how the media perpetrate it instead of its tired anti-gun rhetoric.

Mike Post, Winnetka

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To the editor: House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) rightly said about the victims, “These were our sisters and brothers in the line of fire.”

Yet on the same day as the shooting in Virginia, four people were shot dead in San Francisco.They were also our sisters and brothers, yet they were treated as simply more casualties caused by the availability of guns in our country.

The National Rifle Assn. is currently pushing two bills to legalize silencers and push down state concealed carry laws to the lowest common denominator. Perhaps it is time for the American people, in the face of this unfolding daily horror, to call on the Republican Congress to distance itself from the NRA.

Alfred Sils, Woodland Hills

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