Editorial
The Kelsey Fisher file: Strident letter stirs trouble
Fisher's letter did
violate ODE policy
When I hr (In'finti l).nl\ r.nwmld published ,i srnrs
< i i , til it Irs about sun it1 tin relat ionslt tps during (lav ,md
1.1'slil.m I’lldr Week two weeks age V\t* expected i! to
lii controversial Imlrrd. we htiprtl proplr would I,ilk
.ihtml llir series ,iiid debate tin* still unset!It'd matter ol
:a\ and lesbian rights
Htd we must admit wr were a little unprepared lot
the response that we got horn one reader. Kelsev I tsh
ei and the fiiroi she would t arise
In the last week, there has been a ((instant, ever
■■welling outi rv over the I'mri.ihl's belters to the bditnr
I a 11 u \ bet arise of I is tier's submission "We hic moral
w 11it h appeared Mar t
lit bet letlei lislier responded to comments made
In Robin Madell and Maureen Htirke in an April .! i
I niri.ild artit li I he article was a feature about Madell
and llmki s upcoming wedding and plans to start a
lumik I ishei in no uncertain terms tier.lared her op
position Iwhith stems from religious reasons] to
Madell and liurke entering into sin h .1 relationship.
Hut I ishei didn't stop at staling opposition She
went on to describe Madell. Murke anti all lesbians as
bavin.; "psychological and sexual problems I-ishei
said that Madell and Murke would pass these problems
on to am children the\ had and so were unfit to be
patents At this point, her letter moved trout the realm
ol tree speet h toward defamatory personal attack
Mam I'nwiiild readers went incensed at the attack
Ur n-icivctl almost it) responses to lusher decrying
her loi bigotn Mam questioned the i'mnraltl's judg
men! lit pritiling the letter
Met arise the l.ma.ilil betters set lion is designed to
be an open forum, we try to print all letters we receive
Out polir \ for publication is simple A letter must be
’ m words or less and refrain bom personal att.it k. At.
lions beliels. det larations; these are suitable debatable
matters tor the bettors set tion Simple t harat ter assas
sination through untrue or ilefantatorv t hunts is not.
We admit parts of Fisher's letter t an he seen as de
lamatorv and the /mera/d should have asked l islier to
remove those lines The first amendment guarantees
the right of free speet h. but doesn't give one the op
poilunitv to libel someone
II we had to do it again, we would still have print -
• -11 l-isher s letter, sans peisonal attack The i'mri.ihl
I i tteis section should be a place where students and
inembeis ol the conimimitv tan ait their views Then
should be ,is little editing ol letters as possible It is not
out |ob to tamper with or pass judgment on the opfn
nms ol submitted letters
I- is In-i had the right to express her views on homo
sexualiU 1 In* m.im p*•<«jiIt• who responded to her I• • I
lei .ilso have tin1 s.nnr right Xu matter him vou per
-.onallv 11• I about lisher s words her opinion docs
tunc sonic backing on this campus ['here are people
u ho sliaii a < onimon view point u illi I ishei. and those
people should not he denied the opportunity to speak
\nu attei stating how nun h we want Letters to he
an open tonmi we have to rinse the I isher matter \s
vou will iiot11 e. ill the letters in toda\ s section are
lepiesru'ativi iespouses to 1 isher s lettei [ here were
main more submitted than appear here, hut we cannot
print all of tin 'll l’o do su would tie up the 1 filers set
turn to! tin m \t tun weeks easily, and would prevent
nthf i auth. i ■■ ami siihjei Is from appearing
\iuI mme importantly 1 isher seems to have real
.-ed hei ''ll she was possiblv over the line Last Lridav
w t re i eiv ed a ms ond letter from her. this one an a polo
,v ' • : i Mav 1 sti icli-iu v Tills apology appears at the
end ..I '...i.n s 1 etleis section
\\c ; ■ this will end the argument We apologise
0 ad.'is who submitted letters that will not run We
deist.uni tin lime vou spent was valuable, and we
. , !■• alt vour response Hut we feel it’s time to put
" .t'.'is m'i tint! bin k on track rather than to root in
■ i. mnd tdlinger-pointing and name-calling
,\i age evervone to continue to use the Letters
1 f ommeataiv sections as wavs to present an opin
the i ampus The I'mrruhl hopes that the prnb
is t last week will not keep students and com muni
tv members from submitting letters We also appieciate
the opportiinitv to remind readers of our Letters pi>1 u \
and to i emi ml them that ad herein e to it u ill lesult in a
lev el plav mg field for all
L
.Letters
Speaking for us
Who .1 rt* you !< i spuak foi
us huisuv }• ishn (()/J/ Mav
i). ditti wh.il w«- hrni rnorallv
ottoirsivo ' YtU) »I«» not spuak tot
mu or tins of m\ friends it s
hard u trough In find happiness
in this world without you
s< reaming .ilmul vum narrow
minded moralitv
Y ou spunk ot destroying “the
idu ill a i hild us well as your
ou n I’ll miu h rather see the
< hi Id run ot loving ga\ parents
than neglei ted and or abused
t hildteii of straight parents
And isii ! it \ • nil ( »od that
teat lies looking past peoples
differences'* Or d you still
don’t agree with people's right
to live then own lives (whit h is
certaudv vour right), doesn’t
your (aid teach looking past
penple’-s sins and letting Him
judgef
1 han't ever speak tor "us
again
\\ emlv Hi uric h
Inglisfi
Open your mind
kelstn lasher speak tui
\ ourself w lii'ti talking about
th.it we .in' .i moral. (,od lu\
mg six iet\ |()Dl- Mav I)
Who ate vihi I• > clci nil' w ii.it the
rest ut sin let\ thinks .ilioilt
issues and same-sex lovemak
ing7
\nd w ho gives \ till the right
In label even meiilbei ui this
society »ts taid laving‘ it you
.in- mi k and tired ut listening to
issues that l ulu urn vour fellow
humans then don't listen I
cannot see anything disgusting
in am two consenting adults'
lovemaking, no matter what
their gender might be
What I do find disgusting is
the intolerance shown hv peo
ple who i anno! see lievond
then limited horizon .iful pm
sun tin' environment with hate
1 .dsn didn t know tli.it tlien- is
.1 ioiistitiitioii.il right tor people
ot the opposite st■ \ to sleep to
nether is \ou imph m vour
As toi destroy ing ,i i hilil's
tile In being raised in a homo
sexual partnership A hetero
sexual tainiK doesn't ensure a
healthv upbringing Just think
about phvslia]. sexual and
emotional t hlid abuse. or being
exposed to spouse abuse or
poverty Divorce tloesn t really
ilelp a child. either
Non might tiiul it interesting
to learn that other sot ieties are
more open minded about same
sex relationships At the end ot
last yeai Denmark passed a
law to legalize same sex mar
liages. And since foreign legal
marriages have to he recog
iit/ed in this i nuntn it is onh
a matter ot time before the tirst
same sex marriages here will
enjoy tile same privileges heter
osexual man iages do.
( hristianc \1m/rh
Biology
Love is love
to txelsev I Islier (01)1 Ylay
1 | Please do not he so pre
sumptuous to speak tor tin
iest of Its '| oil do in it Von
have not been granted the an
thorilv nor the t ight to do so
Neither have vnu been given
the right to define loving tin
anyone hut vourselt No one
person Is m the position to de
i lare what love is or is not 1
loiniil vour letter and the opin
urns expressed tar uglier than
aiH exi hange I have witnessed
between truly loving couples
w hetllei female female, female
male in male male
Perhaps il you allowed love
to (low truly and honestly from
and into votjt heart, vou would
not be so quit k us to deuv or
jUilJ4«* it in others. Love is love
und tin moiv this tired planet
tins tin better
Susan kjellberg
I ugene
Look it up
\\ till legard to fxelsev I ish
er s letter [01)1 May 1 •
though it is not in tin1 ( oustitu
lion. perhaps vou remembei
another i|iiotution pul down h\
our Iminding lathers "We un
endowed In tlii* i nsitor with
i ertain unalienable rights and
among these an: lilt', libertv
and thu pm suit i it huppiui'ss
Forgive mi- it I misinterpret
but would not living your bit'
as soli set1 lit (given that others
arc not hint bv voui so living)
lull under the heading ot pur
suit ot happiness
I’ruv tell where is it written
that Maureen Burke (or anyone
else) does not have the eight
to sleep with members of the
same sex:1" Mereh because
such a right is not explicitly 1 is
ten in the Const it ut ion (that oh
so-hoh and sn< rosani t ot docu
ments), does not mean it
doesn't exist Maybe vou had
best read it again. |Usl to be
sure vou have the right to
breathe
It it seems that \ on are being
inundated b\ demands toi ga\
rights" everv time you turn
around, perhaps vou should
t.ike .i i loser look at these de
mands Are they all that difler
ent from the civil lights de
m.mils of earlier deludes' He
lieve me, gays anil lesbians are
not demanding spet ial rights
thex are demanding equal
rights Is that so iliffii ult to
deal with?
There is a phrase that goes
well u ith this suhjet t and it
Inn m none (In look it up
lames Drew
( aiuuiuter si iem e