To the Editor:
After reading Kevin Walsh's column "Protest Against Foster's Nomination is More Than Righteous," [April 3, 1995] I could not help feeling disappointed. According to Walsh, it seems that there is a special group of "righteous" individuals in the world who know completely what is right and what is wrong. This is a "God complex" which no rational human being should succumb to.
To believe that one's morals are absolute is dangerous. Did Hitler not believe that what he was doing was absolutely right? This man tried to justify his actions by saying that he was only carrying on the same policy which the Catholic Church had adopted for fifteen hundred years ("The Nazi Persecution of Churches" by J.S. Conway). Although this is an extreme example of what absolutist morals are capable of doing, it is still valid.
I believe that universally, murder is considered wrong and punishable by the law. However, abortion is so controversial that no one side can say with authority, "I am right, you are wrong, so damn you." This is childish.
We should not entrench ourselves in rigid morals on every single issue we face. To do so is only to deepen prejudices and prevent any form of progress and understanding. Although to say that we should strive for more communication instead of condemnation and proclamations of righteousness sounds a bit corny, it is something we must do as human beings living with one another.
