November 8, 2012Dear Sir,I found One Bermuda Alliance leader Craig Cannonier’s admonishment of local internet bloggers and their pointed criticism of Premier Paula Cox (The Royal Gazette November 8) both amateurish and pedantic. While he appears to have spoken as a private individual, he is still a public figure and potentially the leader of the next government. To voice his displeasure at these offensive utterances is commendable, but telling people what they can and cannot say in an open public forum rings of the patronising arrogance we all had to endure under the previous Progressive Labour Party administration.Politics is a rough sport and the internet has allowed people to play a greater role in it, but the democratic process has never been a genteel playing field to begin with. Sure, some of things written on these websites are clearly over the top — the other day, on your website, there was a person stating that 99.9 percent of white people still wanted to own slaves — but however ridiculous or offensive these outbursts may be, the internet really only occupies a small, albeit noisy corner of Bermuda’s public discourse. I have actually heard far worse on the local radio shows.In the whole scheme of things I do not think most of this really matters, as you will never change the polarised opinions of those people on the fringes of this discourse. US President Obama’s recent election victory and more importantly his ability to prevail in the convincing manner that he did, is a good case in point. Despite the unprecedented and unsubstantiated criticism that this President has constantly been subjected to, not only via the internet but also through various mainstream media outlets, the electorate was still capable of seeing through that noise. Whether or not the OBA is as successful in the upcoming election, Mr Cannonier would still be wise to grow a thicker skin and just get on with the more serious business of governing.KEES VAN BEELENNew York