At Least They Were From A Northern Culture

Welcome to the Express and Echo Letters Page review, as this blog is becoming.

Letter writing in the Echo is much like a slightly damped swinging pendulum, to use a boring engineering analogy. The initial force is a dumbass, misinformed letter, such as Claude's homophobic example. We then see a deluge of letters comdemning Claude as the idiot he is. This is followed by the backlash backlash of letters supporting the original, which in turn are backlashed against. This continues until the friction of general boredom with the subject means the letters dry up and the pendulum rests till it is once again swung a few months later.

Now with Claude's letter, I was afraid that he would be on his own. However, thankfully another fundamentalist has crawled out of the probverbial woodwork to post this letter of support for Claude. Hoorah!


GAY WARNING A CHRISTIAN DUTY

I thought Claude Treeby's letter, Homosexuality is condemned, Points of view, March 14, would set him up for a storm of abuse, and so it has proved. It is a very strange thing that while smokers, drinkers and the overweight can be subject to the sharpest of criticism, it appears that no one is to be permitted to utter any critical word concerning the homosexual lifestyle.

I speak as one who had a very dear cousin who died from an Aids-related disease at the age of 48.

Christians need to remember that homosexuality is not the only sin in the world, nor is it the worst sin; but nevertheless, the Bible describes it as a sin. It is therefore the duty of those who think of themselves as Christians not only to abstain from homosexuality but to warn others of its consequences.

So good for you, Mr Treeby, you have more support than you think. To warn people against a destructive lifestyle is not an act of hatred but an act of love.

Stephen Owen

Broadmead, Woodbury

(by email)

Of course, the problem with the analogy to smokers, drinkers and overweight people is that there is no equivilant of patches, Kestrel lager or weight-watchers to help the homosexual to give up. Damn, if members of the same sex weren't so flipping addictive - listen to Steve and Claude, kids, just say no.


Now anyone who made it all the way through LT Sargent's epic ramble last week, may have been concerned at a blaring mistake that the letter contained. But fear not, because LT returns to clear up any misunderstanding.


CONFUSION OVER NAME'S SPELLING

12:00 - 20 March 2006
In my letter about the Maddern surname, Points of view March 15, Mardon was printed as a variant form. This was either my error or a misprint. It should have been Madron, as in G Pawley White's A Handbook of Cornish Surnames. Madron, or St Madron, is a parish and village, one and a half miles north-west from Penzance.

L T Sargent

Cowick Hill, Exeter

(by post)


LT, I love your style and total lack of appreciation for what is worth writing to a local newspaper about. Sir, I salute you.