To the editor,

Live not by lies: And therein we find, neglected by us, the simplest, the most accessible key to our liberation: a personal nonparticipation in lies.

I think Thomas Sowell has much to be admired for, however "Live not by lies" is not his. It was said by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, a Russian dissident during the Cold War in a short paper with a matching title (I recommend anyone to read it in full). Interestingly he himself was exiled from his country for speaking out against tyranny.

He goes on to write about the dangers of the people giving over their power to the state and the results of such a society. His testament is an excellent warning to the ends of the path we are currently on. The path pushed forward by a violent dictator who relies on cronies to do his bidding and executive orders to fulfill his commands.

Solzhenitsyn continues:

"But we lie to ourselves for assurance. And it is not they who are to blame for everything - we ourselves, only we. One can object: Gags have been stuffed into our mouths. Nobody wants to listen to us and nobody asks us. How can we force them to listen? It is impossible to change their minds."

Let's hope he was wrong. It is essential for a free society to engage with one another and be open-minded and willing to change when shown our faults.

Ms. Fuller, you and I have much more in common with each other than either of us does to a tyrannical billionaire who uses violence and force to push his agenda. I am certain there is more that you and I agree with than we disagree with, but division is the tool of our oppressors. This division is amplified by technology and this misinformation continues to disguise itself as news in the form of clicks and likes on our favorite social media platforms.

I am not on the left. It has never been about left or right for me. It is about being a decent American and human to my fellow Americans and fellow human beings.

Jacob Proue

Spring Valley