Letter: Whatever happened to respect of traditions and beliefs of others?

A high-school football coach in Bremerton was sued for praying after games, whether by himself or with students who choose to join him. However, an assistant coach who recites Buddhist chants received no disciplinary action.

In Johnson County, Kentucky, an elementary school had to remove any biblical references from the Charlie Brown Christmas play and another school replaced “Silent Night” with a “Whip/Nae Nae” rap video.

All these actions and more — sometimes I get impolite stares when I wish salespeople “Merry Christmas” — because one person feels offended and unilaterally decides that his or her rights supersede any or all of mine.

I’m not sure if we’ve lost our minds or our courage. When did we surrender ourselves to the whims of a minority of one? Last I looked we were a democracy and it requires an oppositional majority to change the norm. Are our institutions so scared of the lawyers that they meekly submit to the one person wishing to impose their doctrines on the rest of us?

Whatever happened to just being respectful of the traditions and beliefs of others — like the coach reciting Buddhist chants?

This story was originally published March 5, 2016 at 6:34 PM with the headline "Letter: Whatever happened to respect of traditions and beliefs of others?."