This will be my last exchange with Mr. Hill, so I will cut to the chase. If Trump wins the Republican nomination for President I consider a vote for him to be highly unethical, morally repugnant, a dagger into the heart of democracy and a total disregard to the U.S. Constitution. Now Mr. Hill, that is not a hate statement that is speaking truth to power.

In my last letter I said if a Democrat tried to instigate a coup to undermine an election I would be outraged and I would make a public apology to all those whose vote was threatened. Well I don’t expect an apology from Richard. However I got real philosophical joy over Mr. Dennis Perry’s excellent May 5th letter “Trump Should Face Consequences.” Dennis employed the light of reason and said he got conned into voting for Trump and called the Jan. 6 an act of treason and Trump should have been arrested and charged immediately for his Jan. 6 actions. Now I suppose Richard will accuse Mr. Perry of hatred.

Mr. Hill is upset because I said faith claims cannot be proven in a court of law he countered by saying “why is the standard of truth predicated on swearing to tell the truth so help me God.” Well, a lot that did when Trump said “so help me God” when he swore to uphold the U.S. Constitution unless Mr Hill agrees with the National Republican Committee proclamation that the Jan. 6 insurrection was an “legitimate political discourse.” I am curious, does Richard think the insurrection was a harmless morally righteous Christian political discourse?

Well Richard, it is true. I put a huge amount of trust in philosophy because it is a path that is supposed to lead us to reason away from irrationalism. Pascal’s dictum “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it with religious conviction” was simply truth telling of history and Voltaire’s words “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities” was incredibly prophetic. Just witness Trump’s big lie and the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Dogmatism, whether religious or secular, needs to be challenged. Be always on guard against those who try and smother reason, and who enact laws which hide the crimes of history.