Readers write for Oct. 14, 2010

In her Oct. 9 commentary "Kids can't survive bullies on their own," Janelle Holmvig blatantly misrepresented my position on the prevention of bullying. She asserts that I claim that "neutrality" is the key. Nothing could be further from the truth. There should be no neutrality regarding the bullying of any student for any reason, including gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students.

We're calling on parents to encourage their children to stand up for the victims of bullying and to confront the bullies, an approach that has been shown to work. What we object to is using curricula that, under the guise of opposing bullying, actually promote homosexual "marriage" and behavior. These curricula are anything but neutral.

Let's join together to stop bullying. But let's not turn around and "bully" parents and students who object to school curricula that attack their beliefs and promote homosexual marriage and behavior.

TOM PRICHARD,

PRESIDENT, MINNESOTA FAMILY COUNCIL

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Dear straight America,

Welcome to the life of a gay teenager.

It's no wonder so many such teenagers have considered or committed suicide. Please stop the hate. Write to your legislator about making changes in Washington, and please reach out to those who might need your help.

SEAN SIMONSON, EDINA

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During a KMSP-TV debate on Oct. 9, the following question was asked of the three major-party candidates for governor: How would you address suicides by high school and college students that result from antigay bullying, and would you support tough legislation on this issue?

Dayton continued: "For the next year, there was a communitywide education program making citizens in Rochester aware of the importance of diversity, of respecting differences, of honoring differences -- and that's integral to all the major faiths of our society, as well as the Constitution of the United States of America and the founding principles of this country. And as a leader of this state, as governor, I will go anywhere there's that kind of prejudice or bigotry and say: Not in our state. Not in our state. This is not going to be allowed in Minnesota. We're better than that; we're bigger than that, and I believe almost every single Minnesotan will stand and applaud that effort, and will stand with all of our young people and honor their God-given creation, as they are, and support them in their undertakings."

The next time you recite the Pledge of Allegiance, pay attention to the closing words "with liberty and justice for all." That is the kind of Minnesota that Dayton will work for.

SUSAN REGO, ST. MICHAEL, MINN.

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How can we expect young people to stop bullying one another when they hear it all the time on TV? Political ads are a prime example. Politicians, you should be ashamed: Set an example, stick to facts and stop bullying your opponents.

"049."

Those three numbers could change a life. They stand for "zero alcohol for nine months." That remains the simple yet clear message of the Minnesota Organization for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (MOFAS) for all women who are pregnant or who plan to become pregnant.

You may have heard about the recent study released in the Journal of Epidemiology and Behavior Health suggesting that a little alcohol during pregnancy might be fine.

MOFAS, as the statewide organization working on behalf of families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), feels compelled to remind women that despite this report, alcohol still can have devastating effects on a developing baby throughout pregnancy.

Most people wouldn't serve alcohol to their 3-year-old, so why would anyone think it is OK to serve it to an unborn child?

That is more than Down syndrome and autism combined.

While there is absolutely no way of knowing exactly what amount of alcohol will negatively affect a growing baby, there is abundant, incontrovertible evidence of the physical and cognitive harm caused to babies whose mothers drank an unsafe amount of alcohol before they were born.

So much, in fact, that in 2005, the U.S. surgeon general stated that FASD is a serious health problem and that there is "no safe amount, no safe time, and no safe kind of alcohol during pregnancy."

Today, MOFAS and American health authorities remain united in their advice that no amount of alcohol is safe during pregnancy, and we encourage moms-to-be to find a different way to relax.

Whatever benefits there may be to a few drinks during the short nine months that one is pregnant, they could not possibly be worth a lifetime of challenges of raising a child with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders that could have been 100 percent preventable.