The following letter was sent in response to Mr. Lizee's letter regarding graduation ceremonies and religion (Coast Reporter, June 26)
Editor:
First and foremost, your comment of "it was difficult to read such ignorance" shows an utter lack of tolerance for Mr. Wildeman's point of view. Personally, I don't judge you for it, as we are what we are and no more. I pity the outlook that justifies your ad hominem attack on someone voicing their thoughts on something you seem to take for granted without any rational justification.
Personally, I wholly disagree with your point of view, but does that make it acceptable for me to launch a diatribe against your opinion? Of course not, at least not to me
I politely suggest that perhaps your obvious passion for your own belief structure be applied in analyzing why beliefs similar to your own have lead to so many immoral and obviously contradictory acts in the past. It is out of tolerance that our beloved nation is secular in nature, so to chastise any individual for voicing an opinion dissenting from your own shows a deep personal betrayal of that hard-won tolerance.
Isn't it the moral responsibility of every parent to give their children the tools they need to make important moral decisions on their own without actually biasing them one way or another? That, sir, is the real challenge of parenting.
In short, no I don't think any religion has a place in any facet of the school system whatsoever. Consideration for others is something that isn't taught in any book; it comes from within. We need to give our children the eyes to see that for themselves and not handicap them with the blinders of any dogma.
Brian Walten
Gibsons
