Opinion: In today’s pages: Old people, gay people, McClellan and McCain
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Columnist Joel Stein pens an open letter to ‘old people’ urging them to support gay marriage:
I’m addressing you specifically for two reasons. First of all, you’re the only people who still read the newspaper. Second, this November, your vote on a proposed California constitutional amendment will determine whether the state again bans gay people from getting married. That’s because, according to a Field poll released Tuesday, while the majority of Californians under 50 support same-sex marriage, only 36% of senior citizens do. So your vote could very well overturn the wishes of everyone else because, as with newspaper reading, you’re the only people who vote. When you guys die, we’re going to make all of our political decisions by asking questions of a Magic 8-Ball.
And don’t miss Stein’s list of rap songs that even grandmas will like. Also on the Op-Ed page, author Edward Humes says John McCain’s rhetoric on honoring veterans doesn’t match his voting record.
The editorial board notes that gay marriage is gaining acceptance across the country and even at Macy’s. The board also wonders what the fallout will be for McCain from Scott McClellan’s Bush-bashing new book. And editorial writer Lisa Richardson pens an ‘Out Here’ about the U.N.’s investigation of racism in the U.S., including on L.A.’s Skid Row.
Readers discuss the McClellan book. Phyllis Landis of Ocean Hills says, ‘McClellan could have been remembered as a national hero who exposed the fetid underbelly of a corrupt administration. Instead, he will be remembered as a profit-seeking author who revealed too little, too late.’
*Cartoon by Matt Davies, Journal News