Credit for free thinking

Re “Whose Net gain is it?” Opinion, Aug. 21

It is always amusing when conservative pundits attempt to downplay the inevitable. According to Jonah Goldberg, “Liberalism is having a nice moment. . . . The energy is on liberalism’s side.” Need I remind him that history is on our side as well? From emancipation to giving women the right to vote, from defeating Nazism to defeating segregation, conservatives have repeatedly stood in the way of the challenges our evolving country has faced. Although each party at one time adhered to one theory or the other, it was liberal thought, not conservative, that allowed these struggles to be won. We were right 150 years ago, and we are right today.

It certainly has been quite a “moment.” Thank you for the kudos, Mr. Goldberg.

David Goodstein

Los Angeles

Again Goldberg plunges into absurdity, challenging Joe Trippi’s remark that the Web is “a medium that abhors command and control.” Goldberg’s response? “Feh.” Feh? He further opines that progressives dominate the Web (or think they do) because it’s all about “hangin’ loose, letting your freak fly, and stickin’ it to the Man.” The ‘60s are over, man. Literally anyone has a voice on the Internet, even the unsavory. That stems from another archaic tradition: free speech.

Luan Gaines

Dana Point