It’s nice to know people here in Maine are so fair-minded. In the past week, we’ve been treated to letters saying gay people don’t need protecting because they are getting better on their own, so since it’s getting better for other groups why don’t we remove their protections, too?

Another opinion says that gays can’t be discriminated against because they make more money than everyone else. I, for one, don’t make all that much money, and I can honestly tell you I don’t know a single gay person who isn’t living paycheck to paycheck, like me.

And yet another said there is no proof of any discrimination, yet a recent study documents 63 recent cases, over half of which are cases of workplace harassment, firings and the like.

The most common argument is that the new law gives homosexuals special rights. The argument I’ve heard for this is rather silly. Some people say this law is giving gay people a right straight people don’t have. That’s just not true. The law simply says a person can’t be fired or denied service because of sexual orientation. That applies to heterosexuals, too.

The fact that most straight people wouldn’t need to use this right doesn’t invalidate it. Does the fact that certain religions aren’t discriminated against mean religion should be removed from the protections, too?

Tim McNeal, Livermore Falls