My wife and I were privileged to celebrate the re-election of President Barack Obama the evening (and night!) of Nov. 6 in Chicago. As we waited for the First Family to appear, I was struck by the composition of the crowd around us. It looked like America, which is to say it looked like the world. It did not look like the crowd at the Republican National Convention in late August. On election night it felt good to be part of that rich tapestry of diversity.
A gratifying realization I’ve taken away from this latest presidential contest: Money is not king, the people are. Despite the U.S. Supreme Court’s disastrous 2010 Citizens United decision, the people — not the millionaires and billionaires underwriting the attack ads against Obama — have the final say.
In our republic, however, the president is merely one element of the engine. He can’t move the country forward by himself. The Constitution established that it’s a team effort by representatives and senators and, yes, the president. I believe that U.S. presidents historically have gotten more blame than they deserve when things go wrong and more credit than they deserve when things go right.
Economic issues in particular involve much larger forces — and cycles — nationally and globally than any president can control. I like what Frank Martin, local mutual fund manager and author of “A Decade of Delusions,” wrote in September 2011: “Our instinctive response, when faced with a seemingly insurmountable economic challenge, is to look for a leader (president or chairman of the Federal Reserve) who will ‘fix’ it. But we have an exaggerated sense of what leadership can achieve in the unfathomably complex world of economics.”
Let’s support President Obama and Congress in doing what government can do in the face of this nation’s current economic crises.
— Dan Shenk
Goshen
Letters to the Editor
It's time to support President Obama
- Letters to the Editor
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Safety along C.R. 35 is a concern
This letter is meant to bring awareness and hopefully corrections in regard to C.R. 35 in Elkhart County. Something needs to be done immediately to enforce the laws pertaining to the use of C.R. 35.
- Emphasis on gun control makes you wonder
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Goshen should stick with ‘Redskins’
I must respond to the letter to the editor from Mr. Ron Chupp (The Goshen News, May 9). What’s in a name, Mr. Chupp? I too have a Native American heritage, and for some reason, I am not offended by the term Redskins, or brown skins or any other color of skins.
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More important issues than a nickname
I would like to, in the most respectful way possible, respond to Mr. Chupp’s letter (The Goshen News, May 9) regarding the ongoing debate over the term “Redskins” being used as the nickname and mascot for the Goshen school system.
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There is hope through God
May I share what happened to me after praying about the issue of whether to have guns carried by school authorities at Goshen High School. While calling out to God, my question was: Why have we as a nation come to trusting in government agencies, such as Homeland Security, rather than obeying the Constitution in what you have declared through our forefathers?
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Sheriff has this reader's support
This letter is in defense of the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and in response to Shari Mellin’s letter (The Goshen News, May 8) about Sheriff Brad Rogers not obeying the laws related to anti-gun legislation
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‘Redskins’ nickname is offensive
The question posed (in the May 5 edition) was, “What’s in a Name?” In the case of the GHS (Redskins) mascot, it is insult, degradation, racism, and an ongoing slap-in-the face reminder of the disgusting manner in which my Native American ancestors were treated by Europeans.
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Millrace projects threaten a Goshen gem
The city of Goshen is in the 11th hour for the five Redevelopment Commission members to hear the voices of its residents concerning the millrace redevelopment proposals at its next meeting at 4 p.m. on May 14.
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We don’t need a community center
We want to keep this short and to the point. We keep reading articles and letters in the papers about the proposed community center in Goshen. Our question is why?
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Freedom-loving Americans want our country back
We are living in unprecedented times. The “America” of today is not the America that many of us grew up in.
- More Letters to the Editor Headlines
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Safety along C.R. 35 is a concern
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