D.A. Nieburg's otherwise excellent letter in the Feb. 16 edition of the Leader missed one subtle point in Mr. Crawford's screed against marriage equality.

Mr. Crawford's seeming non sequitur about HIV/AIDS rates wasn't a random argument. Rather it sought to help support the idea held by many on his side of the debate that GLBT persons, and gay men in particular, are disease-bearing vermin, unfit for even rough equality with regular human beings. The dehumanizing language, from supposedly Christian pulpits or in a newspaper, that has been too often used and too little commented upon must be called out for what it is: Small minded and aimed to harm. Dehumanizing arguments not only help justify the denial of rights for some persons, it also condones, if not outright recommends, violence to keep people "safe" from the contagion.

John Robison

Laurel