Re: Allan Wall's column Don’t Expect “Hispanic Family Values” To Counter Gay Agenda

From: Graham Seibert [Email him]

In-your-face gay activism is an annoyance. Moreover, it is clearly a threat to my traditional values. It is a challenge which spurs me to articulate those values.

On the surface, it is simply a matter of taste. I was brought up in a world in which we all knew the seven naughty words that George Carlin could not say on TV, and we used them liberally in what we thought were the right contexts, but we took it as an affront to public dignity when they were used right out in the open. If we had seen what was coming, I think we might have defended that double standard with more vigor.

The society into which I was born offered me an environment in which I was protected from uncouth people and was reasonably free to pursue private pleasures, faith, and a livelihood of my choosing.

I felt I was expected to perpetuate that society by maintaining its values, and contributing to its upkeep, defense and perpetuation. My rights were not absolute: I owed that society my loyalty and support, and a well-reared next generation.

This is where my values clash with those of "progressive" interests in society. They believe that society owes them rights, but they owe it no obligations in return. This includes everybody from gays to AARP members demanding that we bankrupt our children to buy them an additional year of life.

When Alan Wall writes about values, I think he needs to articulate a vision of society that transcends the individual: something of a lamp unto the world.  Otherwise, we are nothing more than a bunch of discontented curmudgeons crying in our beer about the good old days.