Editorial: Conservative voices are welcome here

This should be news to no one: We live in an overwhelmingly liberal Valley. Donald Trump picked up only a few hundred votes in the 2020 election in our region, which presents about as blue as a Serres Ranch blueberry. Almost every precinct was at least 70% in favor of President Joe Biden on Nov. 3, 2020.

So it’s no surprise that our Opinion pages have a bit of a slant, one that is reflective of the community voice. It often stretches from our guest commentaries, to our letters to the editor, to our cartoons. When it comes to our editorials like this, we comment on the issues of the moment as we see them from newsroom, with our front-row seats to the decision makers and community members who make waves in our Valley.

When it comes to our readers, they tend to have progressive concerns to share, whether it be about the environment and climate change, social justice and racial equity, or affordable housing and economic balance. And we happily print their missives, because being a community gathering place for ideas and conversations is kind of our thing.

After all, our goal as a community newspaper is to hold a mirror to society, reflecting the good and the bad of what it has to say.

We seek to foster healthy discourses, where differing opinions can debate the merits of a school board decision or the restriping of Broadway. Disagreements are not intrinsically bad, they can force us to consider information in a new way, expanding our perspective. Unlike social media, which is often a cesspool of misinformation, we keep these pages free from boldfaced lies and baseless attacks.

Lately, we’ve seen a flurry of emails from our more conservative readers, who ask to have their letters printed without a name, citing their fear of public backlash. “Publishing my name would insure retaliation against me but that doesn't matter to you — too bad,” one writer said.

We explain that, unlike Facebook, we do verify identities with names and hometowns, because that helps to foster good conversation. People are less likely to make ugly attacks when they have to sign their name at the end, which is exactly why we require it. We encourage those who seek anonymity to stand by their opinions, because often they have value and merit, but just like anything else we print, someone named needs to champion those views.

Every time, they tell us they don’t feel comfortable standing by their own words. And that is unfortunate.

Too much of anything is a bad idea, and that includes progressive ideas. We are all better off with a balance of perspectives, ones that consider a variety of lived experiences. That includes our Opinion pages.

We hope our conservative readers take this invitation to share their views — even if others in the community may disagree. Community conversations have long found a home here thanks to the readers who can express themselves with thoughtful conviction, and with the integrity to sign their name.