Winchester's 'Hate Has No Place In This Home' Signs Need to Go: Letter to the Editor

The following letter to the editor was submitted to Winchester Patch by John Natale. Want to get in on the conversation? Email mike.carraggi@patch.com:

What are those lawn signs popping up about town with the provocative message: ”Hate has no place in this home” all about? Of course, hate has no place in our homes; so why proclaim it with a lawn sign? It is a truism like the “Black Lives Matter” signs.

All lives matter, no more, no less than any other race. The Hate sign message begs many important questions, such as: 1- Who are the haters that you, the sign owner , are referring to? 2- What, or whom, do the haters hate? 3- What is the evidence there is significant hate in our community? 4- Obviously, you are so morally superior that you may declare everyone who disagrees with you as a hater! Where, when and how did you become the Lord High Decider of Morality? How self- righteous, how divisive!

Your Hate sign is totally uncalled for because it says that Winchester has a hate problem. Where is it? It is offensive to imply that the rest of us - who don’t have a sign and who don’t think the way you think we should- are haters. That’s insulting. It’s still a free country and I am free to think for myself. But full disclosure, I do hate, figuratively, politicians who support policies, laws and regulations that I consider unpatriotic, immoral or limit my liberties. And I also hate, figuratively, people who subliminally suggest that I am a hater.

Please do yourself and the rest of us a favor. Pull up your sign and hang it in your living room where you and your family alone may stare at it and love it. And spare the rest of us the annoyance of looking at it.

Speaking of hate, it is relevant to know that in the 6 weeks preceding the Presidential election, my car with its external Trump sign was vandalized 5 times ( including a door keyed and a green hardening material poured on the hood ), twice my Trump lawn signs were tossed into the street and twice they were stolen. I believe that all those acts were committed by the same one or two individuals. Still, I do not make a sweeping indictment that all Hillary voters are intolerant haters. However, I believe the “Hate has no place in this home” lawn signs are self- righteous, exhibit snow-flake sensitivity and they achieve nothing.