Letter: Making assumptions about politics

In your Wednesday, Aug. 24 edition, you published a letter from a Mr. Tom Dillivan who bemoaned the fact that he did not have the courage to confront an individual at the Flight 93 Memorial and Museum in Shanksvile, Pennsylvania.

Apparently, this man was telling others in the museum that Flight 93 was shot down by the government "to cover up the truth." Mr. Dillivan went on to call the man "one of the many right-wing conspiracy nuts who are destroying the country, one lie at a time."

I have a question for Mr. Dillivan. Since he didn't have the nerve to talk to the man and inquire as to his political leaning, how did Mr. Dilivan determine that the man was in fact a right wing nut? Did the man have a tattoo on his forehead saying, "I'm a right-wing nut?" Perhaps he was carrying a sign. How do we know that in fact, this person might well have been a left-wing conspiracy nut?

There certainly have been more than a few left-wing conspiracies, see the 2½ year Russian collusion investigation, or the Hunter Biden laptop coverup for reference.

So, with no basis for his conclusion, Mr. Dillivan summarized by essentially saying that anyone who doesn't lean left is "a purveyor of deceit and dishonesty." Another comment totally without factual basis.

James Osterhout

Bartlett