This letter was published in The Record, 11/23/2017
Judge Ray Moore of Alabama calls himself a Constitutionalist; if so, his copy of it doesn't resemble the one I have in front of me as I write this. Where is the government granted power to decide who can fall in love and be married or what substances you may put into your body? Like most "social conservatives," Moore has disdain for personal civil liberties that he doesn't approve of.
The First Amendment guarantees religious freedom but doesn't specify any particular faith, so his anti-Muslim rants don't square with the Constitution, either. Moore only helps prove that conservatives play the "pick and choose game" just as liberals do when it comes to the Bill of Rights. Voters in Alabama do have a real choice, however, Ron Bishop is the Libertarian Party candidate for U.S. Senate. So any readers who have friends or family in Alabama, please let them know about Bishop.
In our recent election in New Jersey, more than 10,000 people voted for the Libertarian Party candidates for governor and lieutenant governor, Peter Rohrman and Karese Laguerre. The Libertarian Party is organized in every state, so Alabamians can do what New Jerseyans just did and vote for principle and reason instead of demagogic hysteria.
Mark Richards
West Milford