“No moral Utopia”

Press, 30 August 1985, Page 16

“No moral Utopia”

Sir, — To respond to Neville M. Rush’s response to your August 24 editorial “No moral Utopia,” which incidentally stated the case with admirable clarity. I will observe that the “alien and godless philosophy” Mr Rush fears from humanists is, ironically, precisely what humanists fear from the likes of Mr Rush. There is precious little morality in the fundamentalist lobby’s stated aims, and no God either. — Yours, etc., LETITIA B. ONIONS, Wellington. August 28, 1985.

Sir, — You generously allowed that compulsive moralist, Neville M. Rush, 224 words (August 28) to criticise your clear, sensible editorial, “No moral Utopia.” Mr Rush seems to view anyone differing from him as an accomplice in all the dangerous trends he sees in society. Jill Wilcox (August 28) anticipated and answered him effectively. His “750,000 ordinary people” who have signed their opposition to homosexual law reform include many Youngsters. I question their

understanding of this complex issue — and the adult pressure for them to sign. If “2,426,790 New Zealanders identified themselves in 1981 as having some measure of faith in Almighty God and our traditional values” (Mr Rush), that still leaves almost one million who are indifferent or free-thinking. This group comprises almost 30 per cent of our people and they would be, overwhelmingly, not “immoral, subversive, or intending to impose an alien and godless philosophy upon us all” as Mr Rush implies. — Yours, etc., M. T. MOORE. August 28, 1985.

[Neville M. Rush’s letter exceeded the word limit because of a poor estimate of its length and the fact that the correspondent’s handwriting deceived the eye — not because he was given any special consideration. — Editor]