nutjobs

this is (slightly re-edited) e-mail text i sent to usnews.com last year—was it december? but who's counting?:

i noticed the article on phobias doesn't mention homophobia. maybe that's because you focused on phobias as anxiety disorders, or because—though the word was coined by a psychologist—it's not recognized as a psychiatric term.

nevertheless, the phenomenon exists, and the meaning of the word fits some dictionaries' definitions of phobia as intense and illogical fear, dread, dislike, aversion, or hatred.

racism, sexism, religious prejudice, and extreme intolerance toward immigrants, environmentalists, or liberals can also be described by those definitions and perhaps should be called phobias.

even if none of those fear-based behaviors ever gets recognized for clinical purposes, they should be matters of concern in our society, particularly when they are institutionalized, as has happened historically and most egregiously through slavery and genocide and—both in the past and more recently—with voting rights, educational and job opportunities, use of public accommodations, marriage, and military service.

the latter rises to the level of a national security issue, because people with something to hide are vulnerable to blackmail, so gays in our military are potential targets for recruitment by foreign agents as long as pentagon policy makes them fear getting outed.

banning same-sex marriage may not rise to that threat level, but it's bound to alienate many individuals, who may react in ways we can't predict.

frankly, we don't need that. i say let's get rid of institutionalized phobias and return to liberty and justice for all.