To the editor:

The reader comments section on the South Whidbey Record Web site has become downright nasty, with name-calling and insults hurled by people from all sides of the political fence.

Is it possible to discuss issues calmly, with respect for those with a different opinion? Certainly more would be accomplished. Attaching an identity to a mean-spirited post does not legitimize churlish behavior.

This is an island, and residents are departing to better their situations, leaving those who remain to suffer economically, and with a crumbling infrastructure. The Internet blog-sites are public. Who would want to move here after reading vicious and non-constructive attacks?

Can we just get along?

David Welton

Clinton