to THE AUSTRALIAN
The marriage debate is getting ugly, as Bill Shorten and others predicted it would, but the ugliness seems to be largely coming from fanatical ‘yes’ advocates. Vilification of defenders of traditional marriage appears to be widespread and intense (‘Pastors threatened after false claim’, 31/8) and corporate and professional bodies are misusing their status to the detriment of dissenting members (‘Law dean demands retreat on Yes vote’, 31/8).
The unattractive nature of ‘Mardi Gras’ marches in recent years was a forewarning of this sort of behaviour. One is reminded of ancient advice about keeping evil genies bottled up and not opening Pandora’s boxes. The biblical saying ‘by their fruit shall ye know them’ is also relevant. If the plebiscite goes ahead, let us hope there will be sufficient Australians who see that ‘same sex marriage’ is a bridge too far.
NJ, Belgrave, Vic