Readers write: Post-coronavirus values, views of Trump, and more

Post-coronavirus values

I just spent 30 minutes analyzing Peter Grier’s cover story “5 ways COVID-19 will change America” from the April 27 & May 4 Monitor Weekly, and I must say, I came away impressed.

I have an antagonistic relationship with news sources. I assume they have a hidden agenda, and read articles attempting to uncover it. On many major news sites, this is evident as they introduce an argument or topic in the first paragraph, and then reveal in the final paragraphs details related to the topic but irrelevant to the declared argument or understanding of the event. The details are often published in related articles in a similar fashion and work to establish the site’s narrative or agenda. I find that critical reading like this helps me avoid “fake news.”

In Mr. Grier’s article, I failed to uncover a hidden agenda, despite the fact that I believe an in-depth piece is a great place to hide one. The conclusion was stated up front and the rest of the article supported it, using language of appropriate strength. So thank you. This is why I continue to support the Monitor – although I don’t plan to let my guard down anytime soon!

Matt McGrath
Paris

I found the cover story “5 ways COVID-19 will change America” puzzlingly inconclusive, until I realized that my expectations were formed by the title and cover art. 

The cover graphic and accompanying headline (“What a post-virus America will look like”) seem to suggest that our current physical isolation and internet dependency will become permanent. But the actual content of the article is merely a discussion of possible long- and short-term effects, with no definite conclusions reached.

For me, the takeaway is that there are significant trends to watch, but that they could lead in a variety of directions. This more nuanced view seems like a wise approach, but I do wish the presentation had more accurately reflected the content.

Jennifer Quinn
Gate City, Virginia

The call of the hen

I enjoy reading your magazine and consider it one of the best for accuracy and decency in reporting. I always enjoy Melissa Mohr’s columns on word definitions, derivations, etc., because I too am a language fanatic. I am concerned that we are giving up literacy along with clear thinking and decency in this country.

Her column “Animal noises sound different in other languages” in the May 25 Monitor Weekly addresses an interest of mine because I am also a farmer, born and raised. I recall learning in a Spanish class, to my surprise, that roosters crow “quiquiriqui.”

An aspect of animal sounds that Ms. Mohr did not mention – and that is very important – is that animals and birds themselves do not make only one sound. Most of them make clearly different noises in reaction to different situations. As a child I learned the language of hens with chicks and could mimic them. I once used that skill to call a lost chick to me, and boy, was he surprised to see he had run to a human rather than a hen.

Ken Kauffman
Hubbard, Oregon

Views of Trump

Regarding the article “For some seniors, virus is shifting their views of Trump” in the June 1 Monitor Weekly: I can understand why many might dislike President Donald Trump for his controversial tweets, but not because of his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, I am in favor of opening the economy. It is the younger generations, not we seniors, who have lost the jobs and businesses that they worked so hard for.

Muriel Horacek
Altadena, California