In regard to the Aug. 1 American Roundup item “City suspends ban on hiring illegal immigrants”: Can someone explain to me the rationale behind the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska and the Mexican American Legal Defense & Educational Fund defending the so-called rights of illegal immigrants?
According to the ACLU’s website, “The Constitution guarantees the fundamental rights and civil liberties of every person in this country. Upholding the rights of the politically disenfranchised is vital; when the government has the power to deny legal rights and due process to one group of people, it puts all our rights in danger.”
The ACLU and other organizations do not have a leg to stand on.
The key word here is “illegal.” If you are not immigrating legally, you are breaking the law! Illegal immigrants do not have any rights. It does not matter what race or nationality or creed you are. Your civil liberties cannot be violated. You do not have any.
Our Statue of Liberty proclaims: “Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Enter the United States legally, and our lamp will be raised beside the golden door — the entrance into liberty and freedom from oppression. That is the promise of America — a land, a people, a way of life.
Dr. Joseph E. Brown
Camp Humphreys, South Korea
Preserve the family dynamic
Repealing “don’t ask, don’t tell” cuts at the heart of what makes the military unique in our culture. We are unique because we are a family: a large, often-unwieldy, traditional family. We are a family that bridges economic and social divides, that instills in its members honor and tradition and values that most of society has lost. We are a family with rank and discipline and a self-worth that most would almost kill to have. Most of all, we are a family that loves its members enough to literally “take a bullet” for each other. These are the things at risk.
Why do I say this? Simply put, it is impossible for a family that embraces homosexuality to function normally. Among other things, if both parents in a household are the same gender, it will be impossible to procreate normally, build a normal authoritative structure, or create the social dynamics of a heterosexual relationship. The unit ceases to be a family in the traditional sense of the word.
If I am correct in saying that the military is a family and that it is impossible for a family that openly embraces homosexuality to function normally, then it must be true that the familial elements of the military will cease to function normally if it repeals “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
The family dynamics of the military are already under severe attack, as the continued spike in suicides amply attests. Recent Stars and Stripes articles have pointed to things like lack of discipline and ignoring warning signs as contributors to suicide. These are things that a family might endure during periods of dysfunctionality.
I submit that allowing open homosexuality in the military will further erode an already-tenuous family dynamic, resulting in a reduction in combat effectiveness.
First Lt. (Chaplain) David D. Wooten
Camp Buehring, Kuwait
Not in the military’s purview
I am very much disturbed that a military chaplain is claiming religious persecution at the possibility of homosexuals being allowed to serve openly (“Withstand forced immorality,” letter, July 27). What about fornication and adultery? Aren’t these activities also immoral in Christianity? And yet, a vast number of servicemembers engage in those activities on a regular basis. Have they prevented Christians and/or chaplains from being able to freely exercise their religious beliefs? I think not. And neither will homosexuality.
It seems those in favor of continued discrimination against homosexuals are under the impression that it is the military’s place to enforce religious morality. We must not forget that the services are a direct reflection of the United States of America, which guarantees the rights of all individuals to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” There’s no caveat that says, “so long as they adhere to a Judeo-Christian based code of ethics.”
Whether the anti-repeal crowd likes it or not, homosexuals are as much a part of society as anybody else. Nobody is forcing public acceptance; it is the public’s acceptance that is forcing the military to change!
The government has the duty to respect the freedom of all Americans. You don’t have to like it or accept it in your personal life, but you cannot force the rest of the country to adhere to your beliefs, either.
Mary Bellomo
MacDill Air Force Base, Fla.