14 | Out in the Mountains |June 2000 = opinion = Judge Not continued from pg 10 powerful feeling taking its origin from emo- tion recollected in tranquility.” Anyone who knows the New Testament is familiar with Jesus’s method of teaching by parable — the prodigal son, the loaves and fish- es, the talents, the Good Samaritan. My follow-up experience with Elisa Winter’s letter is a sort of nonsectarian para- ble, leading me to warn gays not to be self- - righteous over their Vermont legislative tri- umph. I am disturbed by what could be.false piety now that gays and lesbians have been. granted rights of civil union. The May 1 Herald, in its front page article recording the Millennium March in Washington, placed on record the possibility that some gays and lesbians may be left out. Here we are celebrating gay and lesbian cou- ples being awarded civil rights that formerly ‘only hetero married couples enjoyed. Elisa Winter’s letter warns hetero couples not to grudge the rights that have been conferred against the will of many bluenose Christians. 1 think we should also warn gays and les- bians not to be so proud as to overlook the fact that, besides the civil union couples, thereare other gays who should not be left out of the celebration. . Mentioning a couple called to witness by the Millennium March reporter, the article recorded that they “criticized the media for using extreme images of the gay community — the flamboyant drag queens or the body pierc- ing — when reporting on stories such as the gay rights march.” “‘If you look around here, everyone here is pretty normal looking, but the media is going to jump on the people that are fringe ele- ments...’’’ ' I’m happy to say that one of the two grouchers was quick to" include the “fringe elements” with faint damns: ‘‘I’m not saying they are necessarily .bad, or right or wrong, but it’s the sensationalism of it.” This is a bit like the bom-again Christian who condemns gays to Hell, then qualifies the damnation by claim- ing he himself loves them. I think we should avoidjudging gays or les- bians of whatever stripe, or we open the door to giving extremist hetero critic VT represen- tative Sheltra and kissin’ cousin out-of-staters Randall Terry and presidential candidate Alan Keyes exactly the weapons they are seeking. Within the gay community, we ought to be charitable enough to include the whole kit and kaboodle of drag queens, bisexuals, and trans- vestites, along with the live-together couples. Let’s not become so pious that we leave out half the ‘gay population in a self-conducted censorious census conducted by the “sudden- ly respectable” middle. Lyle Glazierilives in Bennington, VT 7 m.,_.... A] Ara, Naot, Paul Thomas and Stegmann, to name a few. We are also the area's source for orthopedic E and orthotic footwear, with shoes and sandals from P.W. Minor and Drew. Stop by to see our ‘A professional shoefitters and feel the difference! t time , you had your beet measured? At Main Street Footworks we still measure feet and fit shoes. We carry only properly designed, well made footwear from the best The of Rochester European and American shoemakers - shoes and sandals from 245 Main St., Monday-Satur day 200 rooms and 3 floors of America’s Best H88 IIBIWBW with Coupon $40 Value ¢.- §§t.l3~{‘.‘3é%€§-I‘§?l§£fl n;z;>z.:' ee2-eea»:s ass é'7Efi§'}-84§v§§-Lffild? ‘s-"8" * h"’0A-“of.§i13o;§(!sf§5tHR§$it!‘(f.§§:)!RI ‘§~“k’<{}§..‘{'I€.}"§"'¥', ‘E5’? at «. H88 MDIIBV Willi flflllllllll . 6 months No Payments - No Insterest z a§:i2.er;e.v';_?3;s' ’ ¥‘«;€3£{ I éé{‘it}-éiz§§;_~.i¢‘r's‘ at . ’ Bassett v Spring Air y King Koil v Ber/eline v Lane Action v Ashley v es;ea«aea~se:s? 1» ww'w.§rr.ze;:§