Community Commentary -- Bob Lunde

I am outraged that you would feature such a demeaning attack on

Newport-Mesa Unified School District trustee Wendy Leece as your Letter

of the Week, “Trustee’s comments are just precious,” Feb. 25.

I have been a reader of the Pilot for decades and cannot understand

why you would feature David Lansing’s comments about a school board

member.

If Leece were a person of color or ethnic minority, would this letter

ever grace the editorial page? Where is your sense of decency?

Many in this community share Leece’s beliefs and are baffled at the

dismissive tone used in some Daily Pilot letters to the editor commenting

on her views.

Has this community slid so far that persons of Christian faith can all

be dismissed as fringe zealots?

I think the Pilot editorial staff owes Wendy Leece an apology.

As for Lansing, I have no quarrel with his opinions, just the tone.

I invite him to the front lines of the culture war. Visit the Shalimar

Learning Center, where 40 members of our church help tutor hundreds of

Latino children so that they might have a bigger piece of the American

dream.

Take a couple Wednesday evenings and see our youth minister, Dave

Rockness, and adult volunteers provide positive alternatives to the

promiscuous sex, alcohol and drugs junior high-aged kids get exposed to

every day.

Or, observe the life-changing results that Teen Challenge of Santa Ana

is having with gang members, drug addicts and alcoholics.

Do not dismiss the Christian community -- many of us take seriously

the walk of faith as followers of Jesus Christ.

I will respect Lansing, disagreeing with his position.

Is it too much to ask the same from him?

* BOB LUNDE is a Costa Mesa resident and an elder at St. Andrews

Presbyterian Church.