Readers deserve opposing views

Why does Robyn Lydick not present a balanced view of the issues in her articles on politics? Instead, we are treated to the partisan and singular comments of Mike Coffman every week in the Highlands Ranch Herald.

Opinions and comments from Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, who also represent us, are conspicuously absent. In fact, on most occasions, Ms. Lydick allows Congressman Coffman’s particular view on an issue to go entirely unchallenged.

For example, in the March 26 edition of the Herald, Mr. Coffman is quoted as saying that the blame for the AIG fiasco lies entirely with, “the Democrats in Washington.” Ms. Lydick provides no opinion to counter this distorted view of the facts. Unless her memory is as short as Mr. Coffman’s, she will recall that both parties approved the bailout of $700 billion for Wall Street, and that President Bush and his Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson, imposed virtually no controls over how the money was to be used: no restrictions on payment of corporate bonuses, and no oversight.

In the following edition of the Herald, Ms. Lydick quotes Mr. Coffman’s strongly worded criticism of President Obama’s plan to deploy additional troops to Afghanistan, in which Coffman characterizes the administration as “irresponsible…for throwing additional personnel and resources into Afghanistan without having fully developed the necessary planning first.” Perhaps the congressman would like President Obama to follow the excellent strategic model used by President Bush on his project to invade and exit Iraq.

The point is that, again, Ms. Lydick delivers a grossly unbalanced message to the reader by printing only Mr. Coffman’s partisan version of the facts.

It would be refreshing, indeed, to see the Herald publish a version of events other than that promoted by Mr. Coffman.

Jon Bowers

Highlands Ranch