Boorishness
Re: “Uncivil behaviour,” Editorial, April 10.
Herald editorial writers display a short memory and ignorance of the facts in protesting the reaction of some Brits to Margaret Thatcher’s passing. When Pierre Trudeau died in 2000, Black Diamond town councillor Greg Gomersall applauded Trudeau’s death at a public meeting and also refused to take off his cowboy hat during a moment of silence for Trudeau. So, it seems we in Alberta have ignorant people in our midst also. The Herald correctly points out this sort of behaviour is despicable. That said, Thatcher had an unparalleled ability to berate her opponents that now comes back to haunt her. Even her own party eventually tired of her antics and unceremoniously dumped her as leader.
As for the credit she and Ronald Reagan are given for propagating the arms buildup which led to the end of the Cold War, their policies were also responsible, at least in part, for events which followed, including both Gulf Wars, 9/11, Afghanistan, Syria, the Arab Spring, the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea, and the 2008 world economic crisis.
If Thatcher was a wonderful person, it’s fine to say so. But the Herald, in the face of Thatcher’s political style and legacy, should take its own advice and focus on the woman and not the politician.
R.W. Shepherd, Calgary