Judy Ducayne is incensed by the possibility of the state of New York legalizing same-sex marriage. That is her prerogative. But in suggesting that same-sex marriage is a factor in the declining birthrates of Japan and Europe, and even to the end of civilizations, she is, as Huck Finn would say, stretching it some.

The declining birthrate in Europe began at the end of World War I and continued after World War II. In Japan it declined particularly after World War II. In none of those (nearly 50 countries) was same-sex marriage even imagined. In fact in most of those societies, for most of that time, homosexual behavior was a criminal offense and punished as such, often very severely.

While Ms. Ducayne is certainly correct in saying that neither two men nor two women can make a baby (at least, not the old-fashioned way) neither can they prevent any number of male-female couples from making as many babies as they like. So perhaps Ms. Ducayne should look elsewhere for the cause of the declining birthrate. There are many reasons but same-same marriage is not one of them, any more than same-sex marriage has ever factored in the internal decay of civilizations. That, too, came about by quite different forces which would, perhaps, be easier to see happening if people weren't being led astray by irrelevancies such as same-sex marriage. After all, the scapegoating of vulnerable groups of people (remember the early Christians?) is an old trick of tyrants wanting to distract the people while stealing their birthright.

Jane Gardiner

Auburn