To the editor: Columnist Jonah Goldberg writes: “Nostalgic defenders of the 1960s college protests wanted Americans to believe that they were heroically successful in stopping the Vietnam War. But what they really helped bring about was the election of Richard Nixon and seven more years of war.”
Goldberg makes it.
No matter where you stand on the protests currently taking place on college campuses, those who oppose them will use the demonstrations as an argument to impose law and order. Those who want that tend to see former President Trump as the solution (except, of course, when they turn out to be the disruptors, like on January 6, 2021).
When Trump is president, what will the protesters do then?
John Goodman, Oak Park
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To the editor: For all of Goldberg's well-made points, he introduces a few that worry me: he vaguely conflates progressives and elites, as if they have conspired to provoke counterproductive and even violent protests, adding that they have “shaped the narratives of… . entertainment.”
I completely agree with Goldberg's implication that for the past 60 years, entertainment's downward spiral has been tied to the devolution of our country's politics. Perhaps the most troubling evidence is seen in the widespread degradation of the gold standard of straight, unbiased news from the Walter Cronkite era.
In recent decades, a host of “alternative news” sources have proliferated, with an emphasis on titillating “infotainment” to supplant impartial news presentations. That sad trend has accompanied the rise of “reality” television shows that cater to the vulgar tastes of those who prefer biased news sources.
Without a doubt, some progressive “elites” have taken advantage of this unfortunate turn. But much more conservative elites have benefited immensely from canonizing the rise to power of a former reality TV entrepreneur who eroded democracy.
Goldberg should admit that his target audience would never think of protesting wars that powerful conservatives are reluctant to condemn.
Fr. Jane Weil, Sacramento
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To the editor: Goldberg trivializes student protests as a trendy rite of passage for college students who are often ignorant of the issues they are protesting about. I beg to differ.
The grave injustice of canceling the valedictorian speech at USC clearly represented how our government and our university institutions have allowed the depraved tragedy of Gaza to continue by silencing dissenting voices.
Students are mobilizing to protest this tragic injustice through peaceful demonstrations. The object of their fury is Zionism, not members of the Jewish community, many of whom are the leaders of this resistance.
I think Goldberg and some politicians are downplaying the passionate determination of our students. We only have to look back to the Vietnam War, when protests helped end that tragedy.
Joseph Tillotson, Redondo Beach
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To the editor: I wish Goldberg had “salted this column with examples of today's protesters revealing how little they know about the issues that supposedly motivate them, or of fawning coverage of mobs siding with terrorists.”
What is so disturbing about these protests is that I imagine most of these students have no idea that Hamas wants to annihilate Jews around the world. Do they understand that Hamas is willing to sacrifice his own people to achieve that goal?
I protested the Vietnam War and fully support the right to assembly, but this is not the same. So, no one was afraid to go to campus or attend classes.
I wish for peace and the release of the hostages. I wish for an end to suffering on both sides. I want a two-state solution, if possible. My mother was a Holocaust survivor. She used to say “never again” but she is again and again and again.
Margie Friedman, Santa Monica
