SATURDAY, MAY 7 , 2022. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE A
Free For AllASTRID RIECKEN FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
A vigil is held in front of the Supreme Court building o n April 29 to honor Wynn Bruce.It is hard to conceive of a greater
reportorial blunder than the one made
in the April 28 Metro article “D.C. AG
hopefuls jockey over job fitness,”
which stated that “D.C. does not have a
state court system.” Tell that to the 120
judges a nd more than 1,5 00 o ther assort-
ed staff who serve on the D.C. Superior
Court and the D.C. Court of Appeals, the
two courts that make up the D.C. court
system that supposedly does not exist.
I have friends who maintain that one
cannot trust mainstream media. It’s
hard to quarrel with that when a major
newspaper misstates the facts and then
compounds its error by positing a theory
— federal prosecutors handle adult
criminal cases because of the alleged
absence of a local court system — that is
another misstatement. Federal, rather
than local, officials prosecute most ma-
jor crimes in the District of Columbia,
not because D.C. has no local courts but
because that division of authority was
part of a compromise reached in 1973 to
ensure passage of the Home Rule Act,
which gave D.C. limited authority to
conduct its own affairs. The statement
that D.C. lacks the requisite authority
because it has no court system is pure
fabrication, nothing more and nothing
less.
Nancy Stanley, WashingtonFailing thecourt ofopinionI enjoy reading Neil Greenberg’s
sports analysis as a rule, but I
found his May 1 discussion of
National Hockey League goal-scor-
ing, “The great goal frenzy is sure
to subside,” lacking in a couple of
areas.
In arguing that goal-scoring
should decline in the playoffs,
Greenberg pointed out that the
save percentage of the teams in the
playoffs is significantly higher than
that of the teams not in the
playoffs. However, the shooting
percentages of the teams in the
playoffs are also higher than those
of the teams not in the playoffs.
Perhaps the effects are not compa-
rable, but there was no discussion
of that. Also, if the point of the
article was to discuss scoring, why
was there no discussion of average
goals allowed or scored by playoff
vs. non-playoff teams? There is
more to allowing goals than goalie
save percentage; some teams
might give up vastly more shots.
Additionally, in discussion of
longer-term goal-scoring trends,
Greenberg did not mention the
effects of the changing regular-sea-
son overtime rules, which changed
from four-on-four skaters to three-
on-three skaters in 20 15. Even if
the effect was not significant, that
was still worth pointing out.
Jim Gaarder,
ColumbiaThis analysisclanks offthe postI really enjoyed the April 24 Arts & Style article about Jon
Stewart, “Jon Stewart has more to say,” b ut as a New Yorker of
a certain vintage, I feel compelled to correct the statement
that a picture of the 197 2 New York Knicks championship
team is in his home office. As Stewart would likely tell you
himself, the Knicks team mentioned in the article defeated
the Lakers in the NBA Finals in May 1973 and is considered
the 1973 champions. The Knicks lost to the Lakers in the
finals the previous y ear.
David Biderman, AlexandriaIt’s hard to forgive Jon Stewart for leaving “The Daily
Show” after nearly 17 years — all I got for being a dedicated
watcher was a lousy T-shirt! But then he handed the show
into the capable hands of Trevor Noah. Unfortunately, I
tired of Noah by the time the pandemic hit, as the color of
his daily hoodies was drawing more attention than theshow’s material i tself.
Sometimes I wonder whether Stewart’s biting humor and
political savvy could have stopped Donald Tr ump from
winning the presidency in 20 16. But then, they didn’t stop
George W. B ush’s win i n 2004. So, the influence of comedians
on political outcomes is overrated, as Stewart’s dear friend
and brilliant comedian Stephen Colbert would undoubtedly
agree.
I haven’t seen “The Problem With Jon Stewart” because I
don’t w ant to pay for yet another streaming service. That’s my
problem with Stewart — first a lousy T-shirt for 17 years of
watching and now he expects us to cough u p money to laugh.
It’s t oo much to ask from fans i n these times of high inflation
and low expectations. Nonetheless, I wish Stewart well and
congratulate him on the Mark Twain Prize for American
Humor. It i s well deserved and more than a l ong time coming.
Jack Nargundkar, Cary, N.C.More to say about Jon StewartKEVIN WOLF/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Jon Stewart is introduced at the start of the 23rd annual ceremony for the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at
the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on A pril 24 in D.C.We appreciated the April 20 Metro article on the
reopening of the Washington D.C. Temple of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [“ ‘Not secret, but sacred’:
Mormon temple to offer first public tours in nearly 50
years”]. We thought the article was thorough, thoughtful
and generally respectful. We do wish, however, that
The Post had adhered to guidelines from the church to themedia concerning the proper use of the church’s name.
When much focus is on identity and referencing according
to one’s — whether an individual’s or an organization’s —
preferences, failure to honor those preferences sends a
message that is inconsistent with The Post’s v alues of being
fair-minded, unbiased and respectful to all.
Jay and Mary Whaley, RestonShowing respect is always worth the effortMATT MCCLAIN/THE WASHINGTON POST
The Washington D.C. Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Kensington, Md., on April 18.The Twitter account “Libs of TikTok”
espouses vile views and directs harass-
ment at private citizens. The April 21
Style article “The mystery and history
of Libs of TikTok” explicitly told read-
ers how to find the cellphone number
of the account’s owner. Using the
technique described, I found the own-
er’s phone number and a mailing
address in a matter of seconds. Count-
less others will do the same. Some will
send threats, using contact informa-
tion that the article told them how to
find. Why was it important to explain
precisely how the woman was identi-
fied? Could the article have described
the unmasking process in more general
terms?
It has been noted that this informa-
tion was publicly available to those who
knew where to look. But does the fact
that someone’s personal information is
technically “public” automatically jus-
tify a newspaper’s decision to point its
millions of readers to that information?
This article will inevitably lead to
online harassment. Is it okay in this
case because the person who will be
harassed is dishonorable?
I’m also curious whether there was
any discussion before publication
about the value in naming this woman
at all. The reporter tweeted that “the
*point* of the story is actually a nu-
anced look at radicalization & how
right wing outrage cycle functions.”
Would that element — the story’s main
point — have suffered if the account
owner’s name had been omitted?
Stephen Snowder, New YorkA decision that couldhave facilitatedharassmentAs a society, we often make assumptions about the
actions, particularly those left unexplained, that people
take to end their lives.
The world might never know all — or, for that matter,
any — of the reasons Wynn Bruce chose to immolate
himself on the steps of the Supreme Court last month.
However, any lingering questions will not be for a lack of
reporting or effort by Ellie Silverman and Ian Shapira in
their April 27 front-page article, “A life of purpose and
pain ends in flames.”
Their teamwork tracking down answers left readers
with a richly reported obituary that combined deeply
personal interviews, the history of immolation as protest,
a primer on climate policy and science, and jarring
on-the-scene details. Rather than looking away from a
difficult scene, they tried to make some sense of it inreportage that was at once tender, informative and
difficult to read.
Whatever his reasoning might have been on April 22 ,
Bruce’s final moments are an important reminder of our
common humanity and fragile existence. We would be
well served to remember that like every human being in
history, t here is only one Earth and we must take care of it
— and one another.
Peter Gartrell, WashingtonI wept when I read “A life of purpose and pain ends in
flames.” After a decade of local climate activism and
seeing the little progress that has been made, I believe it’s
time for The Post to give the most important news on the
planet at least the same status, every day, as sports news.
Joni Grady, Rockingham, Va.Climate action and reporting are neededThe otherwise fine obituary for former senator
Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), “Senator made history with
influence, service” [front page, April 24 ], glaringly
omitted that he was chief architect of the Dietary
Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA),
which severely limited the Food and Drug Adminis-
tration’s oversight of dietary supplements. DSHEA
was passed in 1994 following a massive disinforma-
tion campaign funded by the dietary supplement
industry (one of the largest industries in Utah —
surprise!) in which consumers were falsely told that
the FDA was going to “take away” their vitamins and
other supplements.
Thanks to Hatch, scientific evidence that dietary
supplements are safe and effective is not required
before marketing, and countless people have been
ripped off by purchasing worthless products or have
become severely ill from toxic ingredients. Some
have died after taking a dietary supplement contain-
ing ephedra.
Just about every major medical and public health
organization had opposed DSHEA. Of course, the
political and financial benefits of DSHEA to Hatch
and the dietary supplement industry were nothing
short of astounding.
Mark A. Kantor, Rockville
A supplement to Hatch’s legacy
I took umbrage at “The source of Russian litera-
ture,” Walter Uhler’s A pril 23 Free for All criticism of
Timothy Snyder’s April 10 Outlook essay, “By deny-
ing a Ukrainian culture, Putin flattens his own.”
U hler based his criticism on Snyder’s reference to
one of the most famous — if likely apocryphal —
sayings about Russian literature. To wit: “We all
came out of Gogol’s ‘Overcoat.’ ” The saying is
attributed to Fyodor Dostoevsky, meaning that
Gogol was the great source of the Russian novel.
I certainly do not differ with Uhler’s praise of
Alexander Pushkin as the great source of Russian
literature in virtually all genres. Nor do I quibble
with his high regard for Nikolay K aramzin’s role in
creating the modern Russian literary language.
However, Snyder is a student and professor of
Russian and Eastern European history, n ot a literary
scholar, and it is understandable that he is familiar
with the saying. He was making a point using the
Ukrainian Gogol as an example.
Snyder is a preeminent historian of the region. If
one doubts Snyder’s credibility, I suggest reading
“Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin,” a
most remarkable and riveting history.
David Osborne, Falls Church
No one should doubt this expert
Regarding the April 26 front-page article “Biden
hits road to drive midterm message home” and
Molly Roberts’s April 26 op-ed, “Young voters never
really loved Biden anyway”:
I have valued The Post for news since the
Watergate reporting. I am now concerned that The
Post, among other mainstream media, is doing
serious harm to our democracy at this challenging
and turbulent time.
To b e sure, truth in reporting is vital, but The Post
must at least report to the same degree the accom-
plishments of the current administration. President
Biden might not have the charisma and appeal to the
younger generation that President Barack Obama
did, but he has achieved a great many positive
outcomes, despite the obstructionism of almost all
Republicans and two Democrats in the Senate. The
media is not giving our president nearly enough
credit for the hard work he is doing.
Please start giving more space to positive articles.
Please do not skew us away from efforts to maintain
and improve our democracy.
Sally Jenks Roth, Bristol, Vt.
No harm in sharing good news
When I read the word “existential” in an article or
column, such as in the headline on Candace Buck-
ner’s April 17 Sports column, “Sports Twitter as we
know it faces an existential threat,” I wonder what
the writer meant. It’s often difficult to determine
from the context.
This reader needs help. (Perhaps I’m not the only
one.)
W.N. Butler, Frederick
Existential question
In the fine April 25 news article “A flower was
named for its own extinction — and then it was
rediscovered” about the rediscovery of the flower
Gasteranthus extinctus, a botanist was quoted as
saying that he did not know of any other plant
species whose name contained the word “extinct.”
The word “extinct” has been frequently used as a
base for animal names — “extinctus” has been used
at least 30 times for animal species names (mostly
for insects, but also including a few spiders, a
scorpion and even a tropical bird), and “extincta”
has been used even more often in the animal
kingdom for naming new species.
At least one of these species, the wasp named Mis-
chocyttarus extinctus in 1935, is now known to be
alive in Brazil and is widely studied.
Alan R. Kabat, Washington
‘Extinctus’ jumped the gun
Many t hanks to David Von Drehle for more beauty
and poetry, this time in his April 13 op-ed on our
living legend, Tiger Woods, “Tiger Woods’s Masters
wasn’t perfect. But it was profound.”
Pamela Brennan, Fairfax
A perfect ode to a living legend
RILEY FORTIER/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCKThe Gasteranthus extinctus plant in Santo
Domingo, Ecuador, on A pril 20.