Jeff Bezos posted a note on X that he shared with the Washington Post this morning. He appears to be doing a 180 on freedom and free markets, which is very good news. Obviously, we canโt trust him, and all of these companies suddenly doing an about face canโt be trusted, but letโs take what we can get when we can get it.
However, please donโt assume we have become naรฏve at the Sentinel.
The Bezos Message
โI shared this note with the Washington Post team this morning: Iโm writing to let you know about a change coming to our opinion pages. We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets.
โWeโll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others. There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the readerโs doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views. Today, the internet does that job.
[What a feeble excuse for what they have done.]
โI am of America and for America and proud to be so. Our country did not get here by being typical. And a big part of Americaโs success has been freedom in the economic realm and everywhere else.
โFreedom is ethical โ it minimizes coercion โ and practical โ it drives creativity, invention, and prosperity. I offered David Shipley, whom I greatly admire, the opportunity to lead this new chapter. I suggested to him that if the answer wasnโt โhell yes,โ then it had to be โno.โ After careful consideration, David decided to step away. This is a significant shift; it wonโt be easy, and it will require 100% commitment โ I respect his decision.
โWeโll be searching for a new Opinion Editor to own this new direction. Iโm confident that free markets and personal liberties are right for America. I also believe these viewpoints are underserved in the current market of ideas and news opinions. Iโm excited for us together to fill that void.โ
โJeffโ
It is amazing how fast oneโs values and ideologies can shift when youโre not grounded. No one could get most of us to betray freedom and free markets.
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