Gaines' well-reasoned opinion

In his January 19, 2018 letter to the editor "Back from the brink", Gary L. Gaines displays the lost art of critical thinking. He is able to put aside ideology and see things as they are instead of perceiving them in such a way as to reinforce personal prejudices.

When running for the 147th House District seat in 2014 he was seeking an audience with the Cape County Tea Party. I was impressed with his presentation, his honesty about his platform and his personal and moral courage for soliciting our support. Of course there was very little that we could agree with, but I left the meeting with much respect for him as a person and a candidate for political office.

His letter indicates that he has indeed been paying attention during the last four years, and he has taken note of how different presidents, Obama and Trump, operate. Some of his deductions are really common sense even if you have only a cursory knowledge of our constitution (which unfortunately many people today do not). However, the significant point is that he set aside his own party line when it obscured the truth. That's becoming an exceedingly rare quality today.

Mr. Gaines deserves our respect, and I challenge others to open their eyes (and minds) as well.

ESTHER H. BOHNERT, Jackson