I see in some foreign news outlet headlines that President Mohamed Morsi of Egypt is to shortly go on trial for breaking out of jail.

He’d been a political prisoner of the Mubarak regime. Then he was elected president in internationally approved elections. Then he was overthrown by the military. I assume the jailbreak came between the first and second events.

I wonder if the Portland Press Herald would consider this a challenge to its conscience and whether it would offer an editorial expressing its views on the crisis.

If U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, wife of the newspaper’s majority share owner, is still studying the question of whether the military takeover that overthrew President Morsi was a military takeover, she might appreciate some public consultation on this issue. So might he.

As John Stuart Mill wrote, discussion is like a disinfectant for bad political ideas, perhaps like sunshine and open windows in a musty room. A little spring cleaning might be in order on this issue (not to rush Mother Nature in the depths of winter).

Christopher Rushlau

Portland