Brett Regan's My Turn printed on Nov. 28 is based on a false distinction. He claims that Progressives wish for the state to ensure equality of outcome, while Conservatives believe in the power of the individual to ensure the equality of opportunity. This simply isn't true.

I cannot speak for others in the Progressive movement, just as Regan can't speak for the sum of Conservatives. But, this Progressive believes in the statement: We, the people of the United States acting through our elected representatives leveling the playing field to ensure equality of opportunity for all Americans.

Consider an inner-city youth starting out with little money, a substandard education, and little opportunity. Compare that with Mitt Romney (to name a noted Conservative) starting with the finest of schools, a huge trust fund, and many connections. To say that they have equality of opportunity is either blind or a vicious lie. Note, I am not saying that Mr. Regan is either vicious or a conscious liar; he may simply not have thought the matter through.

As an example let's take an incident from Romney's school days. He and a group of boarding school thugs attacked a young man for the hideous crime of having longish hair. That's assault with a deadly weapon (let's say the scissors slipped and pierced the brain). If our inner-city example and a group of his gang buddies were to hold someone down and shave his head, it would call for retaliation either through street justice or criminal punishment.

Oddly, Mr. Regan does recognize that equality of opportunity does not exist under the current state of affairs. He mentions, "... the volume of cash consumed to build an enterprise." We've all heard the story of the family who mortgages their house to set up a Mom and Pop type operation, putting all they've got into the business. They can't learn from experience; it's one shot of capital and that's it.

He then goes off on a diatribe that Liberals (which is not synonymous with Progressive) have not learned the reality that only allowing people to fail helps them to reach their full potential. I would argue that the single mother working two jobs and studying to better herself has learned the lessons of reality better than someone like George W. Bush, who failed at every business he ever was involved with and then failed at managing the American economy.

Mr. Regan then rants about the demon places of every good Conservative - universities, Hollywood (apparently Clint Eastwood failed to get the memo that he's supposed to be a Liberal), and the media. I was watching Fox News the night of the election and thoroughly enjoyed Karl Rove demanding that Ohio be taken out of the Obama states and kept undecided. Speaking of biased media, what balanced medium allows a political operative to be a news reporter?

Comparing political opponents to lifetime bank robbers is standard Conservative rhetoric. Of course Warren Buffett disagrees and by Mr. Regan's standards he knows the nature of reality better than either Mr. Regan or I do. My mother, who built a chain of bowling alleys and succeeded quite well, took on her fair share of the burden of maintaining a civilized society without complaint. Yet according to Mr. Regan, the taxes that pay for police, fire services, roads, education, the legitimately disabled, and the aged are based on nothing more than armed extortion. That truly is wrong.

I do agree with his solution, however. Republicans must give up their obstructionism and allow the Progressive platform to be enacted. We will see then who has the better system of government. I'll remind you of the last year of President Clinton's administration when there was a budget surplus, jobs were up and the economy was running well. Compare that with the last year of President George W. Bush's: Jobs were bleeding off at 800,000 per month, the banks were on the edge of failure and the auto industry was in shreds. Which outcome do you prefer?

Since Mr. Regan is fond of quoting Thomas Paine, perhaps he might agree with this statement from The Rights of Man: "When it shall be said of any country in the world, my poor are happy; neither ignorance nor want to be found among them; my jails are empty of prisoners, my streets of beggars; the aged are not in want, the taxes are not oppressive: the rational world is my friend, because I am a friend of its happiness. When these things can be said, then may the country boast its constitution and its government."

Jeff Bourget is a Coeur d'Alene resident.