The recent column, “Why has hate become so profitable?” (Oct. 11) by Armstrong Williams, strikes a resonant chord with this reader. I, more often than not, am in opposition to the views of The Baltimore Sun’s co-owner, but on this one I must agree for the most part.
Hate speech has almost become the norm no matter the medium. Traditional media tends to focus on it because it causes newsworthy reactions. Social media is full of it because the perpetrators can remain mostly anonymous and spew their venom to others of their ilk, gaining “likes” and “forwards” which only embolden them more.
To be sure, such messaging comes from the entire spectrum of social and political viewpoints. None is blameless in this regard, much to my dismay, since anyone who puts this garbage out deserves all of the blame that can be heaped upon them.
One thing Williams didn’t mention, however, is that one of the major perpetrators and, sadly, one of the major beneficiaries of much of this hate speech is one Donald J. Trump who spews vitriol about his perceived enemies seemingly around the clock. His derogatory nicknames for those with whom he is in opposition, although childish and churlish, only serve to incite those who blindly follow him, as well as those in total visceral opposition, to more serious actions such as assassination attempts, rioting and other illegal actions.
Trump needs to rise above the fray and act more presidential and the media needs to stop pandering to the various factions by not overreacting to the hateful words of those who would use violence to achieve whatever their goals might be.
May our republic recover from what may go down as one of the bleakest eras in our history.
— Bill Kennedy, Taneytown
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