Reply #20: READ FIRST: EDITED LETTER [View All]

[LeftPeopleFinishFirst]

I was compelled to write a response to Mr. James Patrick of South Glens Falls, whose letter was published in Tuesday’s Post Star. He illustrates his apparent hatred of the homosexual lifestyle with a colourful story about cannibalism. I fail to recognize this ludicrous comparison between a loving couple and a savage act of destruction of human life as valid. They are both "lifestyles", yes, but their effects are radically different. Being gay isn't a choice, cannabalism is. One would acquire the taste for human flesh. People don't acquire their homosexuality. They're born with it. In a society that has become increasingly cold, we should welcome any couples dedicated to providing a nurturing and caring environment.

If we are going to compare homosexuality to cannibalism as Mr. Patrick has done, why are we not comparing the scores of marriages gone awry or the destruction of family done by heterosexuals as well? To me, Mr. Patrick’s argument is senseless; he says that he personally feels homosexual sex is “disgusting”… what if I should think the opposite? Why would the government reward the heterosexual with the institution of marriage if I personally found it disgusting?

Obviously, Mr. Patrick’s religious morality dictates his opinion on same-gender sex, but this religious morality should not dictate state or national law. If we allow fundamentalists to influence our laws regarding the union of two people, then we are furthering the intrusion of church and state. This continuing oppression of a group of people (homosexuals) takes our country backward. Once, our laws opposed to interracial marriage. Once, our laws opposed minorities and women. With time, these problems have vanished and instead we have progressed forward. It is time now to grant these same rights to homosexuals. We as a society should not be so quick to judge, but more in tune with each other.

Being straight and raised Christian has taught me something Mr. Patrick has yet to learn. Though the Bible expresses a view on perverted homosexuality, it doesn't say anything about regular loving relationships between same sex couples. Christians believe our god is a selfless god, who looks over the defenseless and oppressed. Like the Jews were oppressed, so are the people of the GLBT community. Like the poor, the leper, the beggar, and the blind man… they are oppressed by those opposed to change. If God is indeed the merciful god she is believed to be, she is looking down onto our current fundamentalists and moralists, shaking her head in astonishment at the lack of compassion they display for their fellow man.