EMOTIONALLY CHARGED PHRASEOLOGY

It is a victory for conscience over compulsion, freedom of thought over thoughtless fiat. The court understood that if bigots [referring to the Boy Scouts] have a First Amendment right to exclude gays, then enlightened institutions have a First Amendment right to exclude bigots [referring to military recruiters]. - E. Joshua Rosenkranz

The article I took this quote from can be found here [Broken link removed --Ed.]. Mr. Rosenkranz is talking about a recent 3rd Circuit decision that gives universities freedom to keep military recruiters away from campus.

Statements like the one above make me mad. I expect Mr. Rosenkranz would put the bigot label on me as well since I would not support the ordination of a homosexual if the issue ever arose at my church. Mr. Rosenkranz's label would be wrong. A bigot is "[o]ne who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ." I take stances on various issues, but the stances I take do not prevent me from listening to others. They also don't prevent me from forming relationships with individuals who do things I do not approve of. And I am always open to conversion. In the past I have changed positions on homosexuality, and I may change my views again in the future. I think I am a tolerant person, and most people that I know are tolerant too. What makes me mad about Mr. Rosenkranz statement is that its emotionally charged phraseology inhibits genuine tolerance and dialogue.