The “Reverend” Gary Horton joined the ranks of the Rev. David Hegg this morning (Commentary, Nov. 5). Horton’s “sermon” was on human dignity, the fine line between authority and liberty, order and chaos, immigrants, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and of course, lessons in human behavior.
My first reaction to Horton’s “lecture” was a simple, “Thanks, Dad.”
People like Gary Horton think they’re onto something new here regarding the enforcement of laws while treating people with dignity and respect. No, Gary, there’s nothing new here. In Paul Johnson’s “A History of the American People,” John Winthrop, the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, was grappling with this exact same problem during his tenure in the 1630s-40s. From the book:
“But how to define liberty? When does the exercise of liberty become lawlessness? At what point does freedom of conscience degenerate into anarchy? … He [Winthrop] wrote in his journal that he feared rule by the rabble, an actual democracy, ‘the meanest and worst of all forms of government’ … Where does freedom end and authority begin? … Man is lawless and struggling with his human nature. So sometimes magistrates have to exercise mercy and forgiveness. But equally, final impenitence and stiff-necked obstinacy in lawlessness must be dealt with ruthlessly.”
My only advice to Gary Horton is this: Unless you intend on becoming an ordained minister and starting your own church, then please, please, stop preaching to us like you’re our parent and we’re your children. And just so you know, nothing you say is ever going to have any effect on how people treat each other. You must somehow find the courage to abandon us to our fates.
Arthur Saginian
Santa Clarita
