Editorial Board intolerant of other opinions
Dear Editorial Board,
Your recent article against Proposition 8 (“Marriage should be available to everyone,” Oct. 9) is outrageous. “Chastised and humiliated?” Seriously? Didn’t you just call for “foundation of equality, tolerance and fairness of the nation?” Or was that just tolerance for your viewpoint and intolerance for mine?
Proposition 8 represents the majority opinion of U.S. voters. This has passed in around two dozen states. In fact, 61 percent of voters in California already voiced their support of marriage being defined as between one man and one woman. Proposition 8 uses identical wording as Proposition 22, which passed in 2000. If you feel so strongly about the issue, I certainly hope you don’t support Obama and Biden or McCain and Palin for president, as both have unequivocally stated they do not support redefining marriage to include same-sex marriage.
I am baffled by your assertion that marriage is a fundamental right. Do men have the fundamental right to marry 12-year-old girls? Do men have the fundamental right to marry as many women as they want? Does a woman have the fundamental right to marry her son? Isn’t it the voters who decide what the “fundamental rights” are?
I don’t believe four judges (who weren’t elected by the voice of the people) should be able to overturn the voice of the people. Doesn’t this concern you at all? Should we really have to vote again on something California already overwhelmingly passed?
Proposition 8 is not an anti-gay campaign. I don’t see this proposed constitutional amendment as an attack or a denial of rights to anyone. Same-sex couples will still have the same legal rights as traditional couples, as already required by law. The proposition does, however, deal with several broader issues, from school curriculum to requirements of religious organizations. Should elementary children really be required to learn about same-sex relationships? Should churches be required to perform same-sex marriages when it is against their religious doctrine? Should religious adoption agencies be forced to close because they will only place children in a home with both a father and a mother?
I have carefully studied the issue. I have many close friends who are gay and disagree with me and I respect their opinion. I certainly will not demand they be “chastised and humiliated,” but I will assert my right to voice my opinion and to vote for what I believe is best for the future of my country and my children. In November, I will vote yes on Proposition 8.
Brian Asbury
Graduate student, UCLA School of Dentistry