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'Bible Jim' should be protected

To the editor,

In response to Alodie Feldhousen's opinion that Bible Jim should not be allowed to preach on the Mall, I completely disagree and would like to express my support for the man's rights.

Although I am the last person to agree with anything Bible Jim says, it would be a crime and a travesty to attempt to stop him from voicing his opinion. We do not have a private campus, and as such must take the good with the bad when it comes to demonstrators on the Mall. If Bible Jim was to be silenced, then why not other Christian groups who hold gatherings on the Mall? It could be argued that the two just have different opinions on the same subject.

Feldhousen says that Bible Jim is "a menace on the verge of inciting riots." But if riots were to ensue, would they really be his fault? Because, as Feldhousen points out, 99.9 percent of his audience are hecklers, I would say it is the fault of those same hecklers who are sucked in by this man's nonsense and are unable to ignore him.

By allowing Bible Jim to speak on the Mall, the university is sending the message that free speech is absolute. Occasionally having to put up with opinions you don't like is a small price to pay for this powerful idea.

Feldhousen, if you are prepared to silence Bible Jim's voice, then be prepared to one day have your own silenced. Your future letter to the editor may not be printed because the opinion expressed within does not conform to societal norms.

Mark Ramirez

Computer science sophomore