Letters to the Editor
jebldmm
Published Letters: 933 Editor's Choice: 164
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This is a tough one
[Read the article: Pedophile blogger leaving California]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This man, according to every report I've read, hasn't actually broken any laws. I don't know what he is posting on the internet, but apparently it isn't crossing the line between legal and illegal. How can we punish somebody who claims to have an urge we find repulsive, but who also claims to have no intention of acting on that urge, and is in fact working to ensure that he doesn't act on it. Is it illegal to want to kill somebody if you have no intention of doing so? Is it illegal to want to rob a bank if you don't plan on doing it? How can it be illegal to want to molest a child, if you know that urge is wrong and refuse to even consider acting on it?
If he crosses a line, then he should be prosecuted an punished. But this doesn't seem likely. He would not draw so much attention to himself if he actually wanted to molest children. Those people tend to hide in the shadows. In my mind, this falls into the "ku klux klan" category of activity. It's okay to feel things that aren't socially acceptable, as long as you don't hurt more than feelings in the process. We should shun people like this, not punish them.
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The bump is a badge
[Read the article: A good hard bump]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I don't think that the bump is universally applied as Garrison would have it. My experience has been that the things that give you a bump (low lintels, overhangs, being laid off due to off shoring, etc) are rarely experienced by those who live in an environment where they can afford high lintels, 20 foot ceilings, 5 draft deferments, etc. Those bumps that we experience, and live through, are badges of honor that remind us that we have a responsibility to ourselves, our families, our nation and our world, to watch where we are going, and to recover gracefully when we suffer misfortune. They remind us to spell-check because we can do so, and stand taller for the ability. They remind us that doing the right thing is the right thing to do, and that we should feel sorry for spoiled brats when we aren't feeling angry or disappointed in them. I have a little dent in my bald head left over from when I hit a pole-mounted fireman's box while riding my bike as a kid. It taught me to look where I was riding instead of lolly-gagging. It taught me that I was human and that I was lucky to be alive, let alone have a concussion. It taught me that my mortality was an opportunity to take responsibility and do the right thing. Badges are given to those in authority, and those who work for them. They are emblems of honor and responsibility. Bumps are good. Pity those who don't have them.
ejb
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Her answer isn't wrong
[Read the article: Miss dumb blond USA?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It's just nonsensical. The words do not flow together in any way that seems to mean anything, right or wrong. Obviously, the girl was nervous and simply blurted out a bunch of nonsense. I suspect we've all had this happen at some point. I know I have. Sometimes, when we're nervous, we stammer out half-formed ideas instead of composing a rational statement. Then we look back at what we just said and think to ourselves "that made no sense, and I just blew this job interview" or whatever high-pressure situation we were in. Fortunately, most of us don't have our gaffe publicized around the world and repeated on youtube for days.
I suspect at least part of this is simply jealousy. People saying "Well, she may be beautiful, but look how dumb she is". It feeds a deep need we all have to look down on privileged people. Regardless, I'm not going to fell too sorry for her. I'm reserving my sympathy for all of the girls who nailed the interview question, but didn't win 3rd place because they didn't look as good in a swimsuit as Ms. Upton. Or, better yet, I'll feel sorry for all of the girls who will never have the same opportunities as any of the contestants simply because nature has not gifted them with faces and bodies that are considered beautiful by society's standards.
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Does anybody else think this is just sad?
[Read the article: Craig to cop: "I'm a respectable person"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]It's sad on so many levels. A man's career is ruined because he has desires that he can't acknowledge because society (or at least his part of society) considers his desires sinful. The media are celebrating his downfall as if he had actually committed a serious crime. Millions of people are getting the message that "homosexuality is a crime".
I know, he's a hypocrite. So what? He's probably ruined politically, socially, and possibly even economically. Can we stop tearing him down? He can't help what he believes any more than he can help feeling the sexual desires that drove him to that bathroom. His whole world tells him that he can't be what he is. I can't imagine the walls he must have put up, and the effect that breaking them down must be having on him. Eventually, he will come to terms with what he is. He doesn't have much of a choice, now that it is exposed. Hopefully, he will be happy with himself in his new world. And, hopefully, the thousands of gay people who live in conservative areas will someday be able to be what they really are without fear of persecution.