Another letter apparently rejected...

[mgc1961]

...by my local paper.

Although I've had success in the past, my letters of late have not been printed. This is my most recent submission.

To the Editor:

Our Vice-President offered a bleak vision of our future while speaking at the World Affairs Council in Los Angeles, California. The administration's vision entails a long, violent, life-draining war against terrorism. A war, mind you, in which thousands, perhaps millions, of people and our liberty will be sacrificed on a greedy altar of profit and growth.

Ultimately, this never-ending war is a fruitless, self-destructive endeavor. World security, and by extension our security, can't be purchased at the end of a gun barrel. The answer lies on a collective path of peaceful resolve in which communities and people come first.

The promise of a secure world, free from terrorism, lies in respecting the cultural integrity of other countries, respecting the right of self-determination, supporting democratically elected governments, signing the Global Nuclear Test Ban treaty, working cooperatively toward saving our environment by signing the Kyoto Accord, contributing our fair share to feeding the hungry and caring for the sick, alleviating our perceived threat to world security by reducing the 250,000 foreign based U.S. troops on 700+ officially recognized military instillations in 130 countries, reallocating some of the $400 billion Pentagon-dollars to educational and social security needs, replacing "free trade" government policies with "fair trade" worker agreements, ensuring everyone fairly contributes according to their financial ability, and agreeing to uphold the Bill of Rights.

The violent road we currently follow, lead by "a blind man in a room of deaf people," will end in misery. The choice is clear. Peaceful resolve is our only hope. Let's start today to turn from the cold insecurity of war and toward the warm embrace of peace. As Congressman and Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich declares, "All young Americans deserve a WORLD without end, not a WAR without end."

I'll not be deterred. Even if they're only read by my sister, the editor, and God, I take solace in the fact they don't go completely unnoticed.

:-)

[pocoloco]

1. Add me to your list of readers!

And kudos for a great letter which is certainly the readers of your paper's loss!

[SheilaT]

2. A lot of newspapers limit letters

to no more than 200 words, and you've got nearly 300. It could be as simple as length. Does your paper have stated guidelines about length?

[mgc1961]

3. I think the limit is 250 words....

...although I'm not certain. The last letter they printed was initially a little long so they sent it back asking me to shorten it a bit, which I did.

I'm thinking they're not printing mine because they think (generally speaking) I've been too provocative so they discourage my submissions by not printing them. I guess it won't hurt to shorten it and resubmit.

What have I got to lose?

:toast:

[SheilaT]

4. Exactly. Nothing to lose.

Also, some newspapers limit how frequently one individual can publish a letter. Once a month is common.

[IowaBiker]

5. Two things

It's too long.

Not just for the newspaper's editorial requirements, but also for any hopes to get a large number of people to read it.

If you enjoy letter writing, and you are coming up against frequency of submission limits, you might consider writing letters for your party's local organization. Often they can find people who will sign your letters for you. You can even have multiple letters running at once!

Republicans have been paying pros to do this for them for years. It's a standard part of their propaganda campaign.

--Brian

[LosAngelesDemocrat]

6. cool! someone from LA also!!! let's network!

join democrat.meetup.com email me for info.

[Why Knot]

7. Perhaps you could try other local papers....

I have links to many papers in my state and I email my letters to each newspaper separately. i generally get published in about half the submissions....

[LWolf]

8. My local paper has printed exactly two

of the letters I've sent them in the last 5 years. And one, which was not lengthy, they edited beyond recognition so that the whole point was lost.

The 3 letters I sent them in 2003 that mentioned Dennis Kucinich were never printed; and I spent lots of time paring them down to be clear, concise, and well under the word limit.

I did send some out to other papers, but don't know if they were printed or not.