Dear Sir:
I was one of the 175 residents of Terrace who attended the federal election all candidates forum held at the R.E. M. Lee Theatre on April 20.
Having heard and seen the candidates, some for the first time, I would say that all of them have the welfare of our society at heart and for that they should be congratulated and thanked for putting their names forward as potential representatives of our riding in Ottawa.
Having said this, I would think that there are certain absolutes that the candidates and society must respect.
Firstly, that all human beings should be allotted the dignity and respect that is ours by virtue of our being created in the very image and likeness of God.
Secondly, animal rights and the environment need our respect, too.
Consequently to protest the mistreatment of animals and to protest the mistreatment of the environment and then to call men selfish and to describe some women as the “back end of a bus” takes the wind out of the sail in regards to the former.
Secondly, if it is a matter of ‘choice’ when it comes to the dignity of human life then to be consistent, the same ‘choice’ should be allotted to the treatment of animals and the environment.
(Fr.) Terry Brock,
Terrace, BC
