Outside View: Form-letter opinions are a threat to democracy

Editor’s note: This commentary from the Kansas City Star is presented in place of the customary Spokesman-Review editorial.

The point of the letter is to oppose health care legislation. Instead, it shines a light on a different issue: The death of real debate in this country.

It’s one of hundreds of letters floating around, manufactured by lobbying groups somewhere, forwarded again and again. All are intended to be personalized by the person who finally sends a letter off to a member of Congress or media outlet.

This particular letter, however, was missing a few things: “One of the ‘yes’ votes for this harmful legislation was cast by our own Rep. XXXXXXX.”

The letter went on to add that the writer “couldn’t be more disappointed with his/her vote.”

And, finally, it said: “We should call Congresswo/man and tell him/her that s/he. …”

This example was anti-health care. There are just as many from the pro camp. We just didn’t have one that hadn’t been personalized.

All are easy to spot. Suddenly, there are a lot of writers who share not only the same general idea, but the exact same phrasing. Now, this would be a disappointing trend by itself. But the phenomenon of letting others dictate our deepest political thoughts is hardly limited to the general public.

During congressional debate on health care, consider the words that slipped from the mouths of Kansan Lynn Jenkins, Texan K. Michael Conaway and Nebraskan Lee Terry, all Republican U.S. representatives. After noting they’d all criticized parts of the bill, echoing “rightfully so,” each added the same words: “I do believe the sections relating to the creation of a market for biosimilar products is one area of the bill that strikes the appropriate balance in providing lower cost options.”

Huh? Well, it is pretty common phrasing. …

The New York Times noted that a single company wrote statements that were used, at least in part, by both Democrats and Republicans.

“Genentech, a subsidiary of the Swiss drug giant Roche, estimates that 42 House members picked up some of its talking points – 22 Republicans and 20 Democrats … Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., a New Jersey Democrat, said: ‘I regret that the language was the same. I did not know it was.’ ”

Ah, well, there’s a great excuse. Haven’t we all tried that one in school, essentially saying, “I know I was cheating, but I didn’t think the teacher was looking.”

Our representative democracy is one of the more wonderful inventions of the past several centuries. It’s a tragedy to leave it in the hands of a few wordsmiths, no matter how clever (or, more likely, milquetoast) their phrasing. Political discourse can last, and poetic, deeply felt discourse can have a life as long as the legislation.

So express that passion or outrage, and do it for or against the prevailing political winds. But do it in your own words.