LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
Speak Out |
We are in complete agreement with Andrew Keegan's recent assessment and conclusion regarding Senator Gary Simpson. Senator Simpson may never change his homophobic beliefs, which are based on his religion. It is very important, however, that we send him a clear message that this kind of religious intolerance has no place in the government of Delaware. Contact him now to let him know how you expect him to vote on HB 99 when it moves to the Senate. Office 302-744-4134; home 302-422-3460; e-mail gsimpson@udel.edu; mail Legislative Hall, Dover, DE 19903. Senator Simpson must be held accountable for his actions.
We are not as optimistic about Representative Joe Booth as Mr. Keegan appears to be. We attended Mr. Booth's "Cup of joe with Joe" town meeting and watched him on the House floor during the HB 99 voting. Mr. Booth was not "genuinely interested in doing the right thing" on HB 99. During the town meeting members of the audience gave Mr. Booth example after example of why HB 99 is needed. Representative Booth clearly tried to conceal his position on HB 99 for as long as possible but finally admitted, after being asked point blank, that he would vote "NO" on House Bill 99, stating, "I just have to vote no." That statement became abundantly clear during the House of Representatives proceeding on HB 99. Not only did he vote "NO" on the bill, he also voted in favor of amendments that would have removed protections for heterosexuals and required that only the heterosexual lifestyle be taught in public schools. Mr. Booth did not respond to the many e-mails and letters that were sent by supporters of HB 99. He did not respond to the open letter to the editor that appeared in several papers. Mr. Booth showed me that he did not listen to or learn from the people who elected him. We should not vote for or against a candidate on the basis of one issue. However, until the gay and lesbian community achieves equality we must consider this as our primary issue. We must be vigilant to make sure that our legislators are not basing voting decisions on personal moral or religious beliefs and/or solely on political party affiliations. Legislators must be responsive to their constituents and we must take action to remove them if they are not. Thom Swiger and Steve Sage Rehoboth Beach Main Street, Inc. would like to say a HUGE thanks to all of our wonderful fireworks contributors. You helped make Fireworks 2003 a Blast! The fireworks are funded entirely by private contributions and we thank each and every donor. Thanks also goes to the Fireworks Committee under the leadership of Kathy McGuiness. Coordinating the show is an enormous job and Kathy is the Main Street Fireworks hero. Thanks also to Jack Lingo Realty for use of the field across from Jungle Jim's as our shuttle lot this year and the Kiwanis Club for running the parking operation. Of course, special thanks go to Chuck Snyder and the Rehoboth and other volunteer fire departments, local and state police, the city personnel, Dart Bus coordinators, the Jolly Trolley, the Coast Guard, Rehoboth Beach Patrol, and scads of volunteers. Getting 80,000 people in and out of town is some task and our volunteers and public safety officials did a terrific job. It was truly a community effort. We know that our residents and visitors enjoyed the show. And thanks Mother Nature for holding off on the storms until after the show! Fay Jacobs, Executive Director Rehoboth Beach Main Street, Inc. (The following was sent to MSNBC with a copy to Letters.) So, you fired Michael Savage because he told an openly gay man that he "should only get AIDS and die." How wonderfully egalitarian of you. And now Cathy Renna of GLAAD has praised your heroic action. "To their credit, they backed up their promises to hold Savage accountable." How lovely. How fair-minded. But you'll pardon me if I'm not impressed. Michael Savage had made a long career of saying equally homophobic things, spewing equally hateful, vile, toxic venom for years before you hired him. And yet...you hired him. And I have to wonder why. The cynical side of me has to wonder if you didn't hire him four months ago just so you could score points for firing him today. And I have to ask...what were you thinking of? "His comments were extremely inappropriate and the decision was an easy one," says your spokesmonkey. Good for you. Was the decision to hire this extremely inappropriate man four months ago made with the same lack of thought? Now that your PR machine is spinning out of control, screaming "we're not Fox News, we're not Fox News, we're better than that," I'd ask you to take a little time to reflect on the man who was assaulted by Savage during his last broadcast. "You should only get AIDS and die, you pig. How's that? Why don't you see if you can sue me, you pig. You got nothing better than to put me down, you piece of garbage. You have got nothing to do today, go eat a sausage and choke on it." Before congratulating yourselves on standing up for the little guy by firing mean old Michael Savage, know that at least one person (me) holds you personally accountable for those words. Michael Savage was in MSNBC's employ when he made those comments, and you can't say that you didn't see it coming. GLAAD is giving you "credit." I'm not. You knew that it would happen and you let it happen. That your actions are media manipulation at its worst isn't the best of it. The fact that you still hold yourselves up as a purveyor of journalism, with all of the integrity that the word implies, is the killer. More than making you a hero in the news arena, this episode has only further convinced me that you're not to be trusted, any more than anyone else who claims to deliver facts for profit. Color me disgusted. Eric Peterson |
Letters should be addressed to Editor, Letters from CAMP Rehoboth, 39 Baltimore Ave., Rehoboth, DE 19971, or e-mail: editor@camprehoboth.com. Include your name and phone number for verification. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 13, No. 9 July 11, 2003 |