I have a lot of respect for the New York Times. They have gotten it right most of the time, which is why they are called the newspaper of record.
So how could they have gotten it so wrong this time?
After the New York Times published the anonymous Op-Ed piece, I wasn’t sure what I thought. Was it right to get this information out there of how someone is trying to save the country? Was it wrong because someone feels so strongly about what they are doing, but are too cowardly to own their part in it?
These are the questions and thoughts I’ve had, going back and forth—right or wrong, right or wrong, right or wrong. Finally I realized it was the wrong thing to do.
If the writer of the Op-Ed thinks they are helping to save the country, then go all the way. Write the piece, have it published, own it, then start making the press circuit until the powers that be start listening.
Take it to the people, state the case for why this administration should not be in office, get us to call Congress to tell them to do their jobs—protect the country, uphold the Constitution and check/balance the Executive Branch.
Then we, the electorate, the people, could let Congress know if they don’t do their jobs, if they don’t check the Executive Branch (and Judicial Branch), hold it accountable, if they don’t start hearings to determine the fitness of the administration—all of which is their job. Then let OUR, not the administration’s or oligarch’ s, Representatives and Senators know they will not be getting our vote in November.
The writer of this piece is not a hero to me. They didn’t really say anything we didn’t already know. They aren’t saving the country in my mind; in fact, they may have just made it go further downhill and placed it on a more perilous path. He or she is a coward who could really make a stand, but chose not to do so.
The New York Times made themselves part of the story, which a newspaper should never do. To me, this was a pure sales-driven decision. They wanted to sell more newspapers with a sensationalistic piece.
The New York Times did no one any favors by publishing this Op Ed. For me, the respect I have for them was damaged by publishing it.
They made the wrong decision and it is time for them to own up to it.
I can only hope they figure out a way to make it right.
Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man 