I find the hypocrisy on display on the editorial page of the Oct. 11 edition of the Kirkland Reporter stunning.

Your editorial comment on ending the (partial) government shutdown includes the sentence “[T]his mess (the government shutdown) never should have happened in the first place.”

This is an observation everyone could agree on; however, you then proceed to place the blame for the stalemate solely on the shoulders of “some House Republicans,” leaving the implication that any efforts to rein in the out-of-control spending binge that has put the country on an unsustainable trajectory are “a disservice to the American public.”

You then proceed to characterize the actions of those members of Congress who have voiced a legitimate concern about the excesses in government spending as “the unseemly conduct of a few House Republicans.”

You proceed to ask, “Will House Republicans next target Medicare? How about Social Security?” Well – how about Social Security? It is no secret that failure to “target” Social Security will result in a bankrupt system unable to pay benefits to qualified recipients.

You then have the temerity to publish, on the same page, a political cartoon depicting Monsanto, DuPont, et al. as evil corporate entities attempting to deceive and poison the public with food from genetically-modified crops (GMOs).

Have you not read the actual text of Initiative 522? You apparently believe that scare-mongering is more effective than truthful and accurate reporting based on sound scientific research.

The letter by Ms. Bastien, which appears on the same page, says it all. You could do your readers a real service by attempting to educate, rather than mischaracterize efforts by others to actually inform the public on the issue.

Apparently, although you are clearly supportive of President Obama and the Democrat Party (of which he is the leader), you seem to have forgotten his words at the University of Arizona following the tragic shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords: that it was time to “pause for a moment, and to make sure that we are talking to each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds. We need to sharpen our instincts for empathy.” “We can question each other’s ideas without questioning each other’s love of country.”

Please cancel immediately my subscription to the Kirkland Reporter. I have no time or interest in biased reporting that passes for “journalism.” Oh, I forgot, I never actually subscribed. It just occasionally appears in my driveway without invitation.

Mike Main, Kirkland