Councilor Courage

Thanks and applause to Eugene City Councilors Betty Taylor and Emily Semple for their courage and intelligence in voting (“Shame on Semple, Taylor,” Letters, 8/8). Words can have deep and yet harmful meanings when not used accurately.

As demonstrated recently, they chose to defend our rights and freedoms by not endorsing a poorly stated and thus flawed resolution that on the surface was one thing but beneath the text was something else. Words can hurt and in extreme cases even lead to personal harm; they should always be used with care and caution.

Our freedom to speak out must be based on an ethical foundation, which seems to be lacking these days in many sectors of society.

Christine L. Sundt

Eugene