George Terhaar’s letter claims that I use “word salads” sprinkled with superlative croutons and an acerbic vinaigrette (“Cannon critic should take his own advice”, published July 6). While I did use several of those words with no reference to supporting evidence, I feel that I have gained the insight to make those claims through my years of seeking the facts on an ongoing basis – but so as to set George’s mind at ease that I may know what I’m talking about, here are some sources for him.

The Marshall Project reports that officers state that they feel demoralized by the increased scrutiny placed on them. Now this part is opinion; decent officers might not be that concerned about the extra scrutiny. Again, The Marshall Project, “Ex-military Who Become Police Officers are More Likely to Shoot.” Reuters this time, “White Supremacists in Law Enforcement a Concern of the FBI For at Least 10 Years.”

Referring to transgender being a choice, PubMed.gov, “A Sex Difference in the Human Brain and its Relation to Transgender.”

Let’s move on to my claims regarding liberals. The Institute for Family Studies, “Liberals Actually Support Family Values More Than Conservatives Claim to.” Now from The Tennessean, “Liberals and Conservatives Love America Differently.” I think that difference is conservatives say, “Love it or Leave it,” while liberals know there are things wrong and want to fix them.

And George, David Cannon didn’t refer to himself as the “Smartest Man in the Room”. He claimed to talk about “The Right Stuff” – I assume he meant how the “far” right felt about things. As far as my not being sad he chose to leave the area, I think it’s a shame that he felt so threatened by the liberals that may be his neighbors that he chose to leave.

“The Smartest Man in the Room” is what Dan Shannon chose to call himself, and just so you may understand me a little better, I wouldn’t have the hubris to call myself the “Smartest Man in the Room” even if I was the only man in the room.

I actually have attended the last two “Brewskies With a Newsie” and I am looking forward to seeing George there in the future and we could perhaps discuss our political differences and maybe find common ground on more issues than he might think. You see George, both David and Dan frequently started out with facts in their columns but then in many cases drew conclusions based only on their biases, most of the time with no basis in logic or facts. Just sayin’.

Larry Benson

Enumclaw