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Show Mr aw ! jmm M OPINIONS Mtaer hrioa miwwil EglTP: ooc MAUK EDOINGTON " 4 Heads up, all of you conservatives who thought the Clinton scandal marked the end of liberal media bias. Think again. wthe wake of the brutal murder ofMatthew Shepard in Wyoming, lib eral activists and interviewers on the morning news shows teamed up to lay 'blame for the crime on the "hfistian right " That this tactic is faltffiliar does not make it any less outrageous or offensive. jThe facts are these: A college stu- dWllVas abducted, tortured and left fdr"dead (his broken body was tied to a'fence for 18 hours) in Wyoming. He died "several days later. Police say the motive for the crime was robbery. Bet'there was also evidence that the two'thugs who committed this act were able to abduct Shepard by at first posing as gay men. s groups and their sympathizers in the broadcast media seized upon this heinous murder as an opportunity to smear conservative Christians for creating a "climate of Gay-right- hate" If this sounds familiar, it should. Following the bombing of the Murrah building in Oklahoma City by a fiend, the White House blamed talk radio and, with a wink and a nod, all conservatives, for creating a climate of extremism. h A month or two before Matthew Sfoepard'8 murder, some conservative Christian groups had circulated print and television ads suggesting that it impossible to leave gay orientation behind and even marry and have children. According to the Family Research Council, one of the groups tUab sponsored the ads, thousands of men and women have successfully altered their sexual orientation. Mow, it is understandable that gay activists, who want homosexuality to stand on completely equal footing with heterosexuality and who are keen to be accepted and approved just the way they are, find these ads annoying. "Why should we want to change?" they ask. There is no greater morality or greater happiness to be had by converting to hetWaco-obsesse- d a. erosexuality. n,But it is quite simply slanderous to argue, as Elizabeth Birch, president of the Human Rights Campaign, did last week, that those ad are "pumping lies into every cdmmunity in this country. They are dangerous and misguid- The results of this campaign are terfying." Or to suggest, as Katie Cburic seemed to on the "Today Sflo'w" that ads like these "prompt p4qple to say, 'If I meet someone wjjft'fl homosexual, I'm going to take action and try to convince them or tr&to harm them."' ed? WW!' ,v n Mona Charen This is a most cynical use of a tragedy. First, on the matter overeating a climate of hatred," none of those who so glibly suggest that Christian groups incited Matthew Shepard's murderers has produced one iota of evidence that those two creeps ever saw or read the advertisements in question. Further, even if they had seen them, it would be hard to imagine how something as innocuous as suggesting that counseling may help homosexuals become straight could even in the most twisted mind translate into "Go kill gays." In fact, EVERY MUPDER Proposition 5 a bsd idea There are several very good reasons to oppose Proposition 5. First, it is giving up our power to determine what we want in ;overn-meto managers of our wildlife. It is already difficult enough to get an initiative petition on the ballot and passed without stacking the deck further against ourselves. Second, any weapon designed to thwart a particular view can be turned on its creators. What would happen if the state Legislature or wildlife board decided to ban hunting? With this rule incorporated into the Utah Constitution, the hunters would be up agcinst a wall. They would have to pass yet another amendment to the constitution to s revoke the rule, then go through the difficult process of getting any initiative on the ballot. Monsters have a nasty habit of turning on their creators, and this proposition could easily do that. Political sentiment tends to swing back and forth over time, and those who want protection now, may find little comfort should the tables be turned. It is much easier for special interest groups to convince just a little over half of the Legislature than it is to convince the entire electorate. With the public out of the way, the process can be focused on relatively few peont non-electe- it is far from clear that animus played any part in Shepard's murder. It may be that the two killers simply settled on the easiest way to lure an unsuspecting college student into a deserted area. There is no question that bias exists and that it has contributed to violence against gays. But that bias has been declining sharply over the past several years, particularly in the wake of the AIDS epidemic, which has generated sympathy for homosexuals. So if anyone is creating the climate these days, it would seem to be the gay activists, not the Christian right. Homosexuals are perfectly within their rights, of course, to lobby for equal moral, political and legal standing in this society. But it is slimy and disreputable to attempt to tar one's opponents with the "hate" brush. There may be some Christians who hate gays though that was by no means the message of the ads sponsored by Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council and such hatred cannot be read into mere opposition to the agenda. Moreover, baseless hatred is forbidden to Christians and Jews. On the other hand, there are certainly a good many gay activists who and nothhate the Christian right ing in their credo seems to forbid indulging that hatred luxuriously. gay-right- AMP IT MA NOT d two-third- s ple. Third, think of the people to whom we are extending this initiative protection. These are the people that of the Leavitt went on a witch-hun- t over in trout. disease whirling family These are the people who let a population of gila monsters (a fairly rare lizard) be destroyed by the development of the Tuacahn arts complex in southern Utah, rather than let a group remove the population for propagation purposes. Our current wildlife management team is not a group I would insulate from public Mona Charen is a columnist for Creators Syndicate Inc. initiatives. I believe that wildlife agencies exist to promote the will of the people with regard to wildlife, not to dictate to us what is best. We should take our democratic responsibility seriously and keep our power to have initiatives determined by a simple majority vote. Vote no on Proposition 5. as more money for defense, new money for additional schoolteachers, funds for the drug fight, help for farmers and the environment, the and business. The president and Congress got the job done. The federal government is in the black for the first time in three decades and will stay that way if the economy keeps on track. A balanced budget, lower interest rates, a rally on Wall Street. No wonder Republicans were smiling on Capitol Hill and Democrats were basking in the glow of a still masterful president. d Jeff Mitchell Orem Cannon too partisan The Daily Herald recently ran a front-pag- e This editorial appeared recently in the Chicago Tribune. story with the headline, "No Demo rival, but Cannon not alone." As I'm sure you are aware, constituents of Utah's Third Congressional District do have an By Garry Trudeau poonesbury THSTTHfHMJO I MOHB&NT.FVOUGerat I 6netaiuosriwwe PONG! UP UtU, KX MONDAY WAviirru fijt BMI nesawr FOR- - MWIST&S. CMMS Wisdom, intelligence needed LETTCu3 to ti;: EDITOR alternative Boyd J. Petersen of Provo. I find Petersen's candidacy particularly attractive when I contemplate recent statements made by Rep. Chris Cannon regarding the need to impeach both President Clinton and Vice President Gore the latter simply because he happens to be in the proximity of Bill Clinton. Such suggestions suggest a deep partisanship attitude and a lack of understanding by Cannon. I'm confident that Petersen would be an individual who would better represent our district in Congress. I urge those who are unhappy with Chris Cannon to write in Boyd J. Petersen in November. Brian Stuy Lehi Locate horns elsewhere There are some points that need clarification regarding the issue of the group home that 4 the Youth wants to put in on 1200 West in Orem. the Youth administrators constantly downplay the nature and seriousness of the offenses that these youth have committed. While they use terms like "truancy" and "defiance" to describe the offenses of these boys, the reality is that this home would be able to take boys who have 4 up to four felony convictions. This home is not as it was to a us explained lockup unit. The boys will be allowed to leave to work at part-tim- e jobs, will be able to earn privileges and will be allowed to go out for recreational outings within the community. This is a commercial venture for this company. Therefore, there is a great likelihood that financial considerations will weigh heavily into any funds spent on safety devises. Statistics researched by our neighborhood show that youth placed in group homes and other alternative programs in 1997 had an average of 14.1 felony and misdemeanor convictions. About 36 percent of those placed had one or more convictions for felonies. In a 1996 study of 469 youth in community alternative programming, 37 percent of the youth were absent without leave at some time. This equates to one of the twelve boys being AWOL at any given time. As a neighborhood, we agree that these youth need to be loved and helped, but we feel there are more appropriate places for a home like this to be located. Charlene Edwards Orem After suffering through months of media coverage on President Clinton's extramarital affairs, we now find ourselves facing one of the most significant and divisive controversies our nation can face: impeachment proceedings. It is not the first time I've had to observe the impeachment process. Even though I was only a child, I vividly remember how disappointing and confusing President Nixon's resignation was. Nixon was my hero. In my mind he stopped the Vietnam War and saved the lives of many of our young men. It was difficult to make sense out of how a larger-than-lif- e leader could do something bad enough to be impeached. Nixon's crimes were far distant from the experience of me and most average Americans. Clinton's extramarital relationships and dishonesty hit much closer to home. Each of us knows someone who has perpetrated or been the victim of marital infidelity. I have been deeply concerned by the implications of the whole affair. Much of the media coverage has been so emotionally intense that it has exhausted us as a nation of viewers. Many of us would prefer that it never happened and we are fed up with hearing about it We did not choose the affair nor did we choose for it to become a public spectacle. We did not choose impeachment hearings nor the divisive impact those hearings will certainly have on our nation. But each of us must choose to endure it with both eyes wide open. We must choose to think clearly and rationally, letting our own intellect guide our conclusions and reactions. We must also choose to be media savvy citizens, constantly aware that the story is the focus of most televised news reports and truth and central issues some- times are given second priority. Recent national studies vary somewhat on the levels of reported adultery but the trend of it being less : -- By yf JJL 4 ' Adultery has never been an does When event. it hap-- ' insignificant , pen, its consequences are often severe. t Children also suffer when a parent commits adultery. Children of all ages are often found to be suffering from divided loyalties, anger, confusion, blame and ambivalence about intimacy and appropriate relationship that President Clinton's behaviors and 1 impeachment proceedings have had on our national family. , But as we suffer through these things, let's commit ourselves to do so with intelligence and wisdom. ; Ron J. Hammond Springville ( . po tort tmiAR . common is clear. Bruce Tinsleya f-rUA- HOLPI- T1HAT5MY WITH TUB tfc H Mallard Fillmore I Because ambkagnou ONeHU&KUHSBcn&y utff m , vlpu have to hand it to President CRton. Facing impeachment with hj. weakened presidency in disarray, he put on this past week a dazzling display of offensive and defensive skills worthy of Michael Jordan. The result: a behemoth dollar budget bill that gives Democrats as much to crow about as Republicans. However grudgingly, evan GOP leaders would have to admit, the man's still got game. KThat said, this budget is late and contains none of the overarching themes that were hailed as centerpieces of both parties' agendas emember campaign finance reform, he tobacco bill, the patients' bill of rights, the big tax cut? None of that is in there. There is full funding for the finally nternational Monetary Fund, as well TUESDAY. OCTOBER 20. SFo i President Clinton's still got game half-trillio- All THE DAILY HERALD ... -- Wtt!- . i - ' . -- 1 cH |