"The Herald-Sun - It s possible for us to live in harmony"

I started to read this editorial today with the hope that the text would reinforce the headline, but, sadly, it did not. The writer often expresses his strong opinions in this space and, equally sadly, I am not surprised.

This morning, I watched a commentary by Ben STEIN, the often labeled "conservative" commentator, among other things. He talked about how an osprey, I believe, had nested on a bridge that often shook when trains passed over it. (If not trains, then cars...) He marveled at the ability of the bird to focus on the important things.

The important thing about the President's remarks Friday night is that our President has forcefully reinforced a core principle that we need to embrace, and remind ourselves to embrace, every day. It is that we are a land of many different people who think many different thoughts (as is usually the case in comparing my own thinking to that of the writer of the piece in the Herald-Sun), and we are stronger as a country when we not only accept that, but celebrate it.

So I salute this fellow for writing what he thinks, and my ability to write as well, with a different perspective - one that says let us follow the President's lead and focus on the important thing in this discussion. It is - quite simply - our dedication to the principle that we do not discriminate between and among people of different faiths.

Let normal zoning and building regulation handle the matter, but let's applaud the President's "important" point - that there should be no issue here of which religion is practiced in any building otherwise approved. That principle is in the First Amendment to the US Consitution, and it is surely our President's responsibilty to support and defend it whenever and however he can.