…because the Letters to the Editor section sometimes contains material like this:
Salt Lake Tribune – A woman's place
I think it is a serious mistake to assign Brig. Gen. Kathleen Close as the commander of the Ogden Air Logistics Center ("Change of guard at Hill," Tribune, May 17). I believe it's contrary to social, military and Christian strengths and values (Proverbs 31:3; 1 Cor. 11:3).
For obvious reasons, I can't imagine a woman coaching the Dallas Cowboys or the Chicago Bulls. I feel the same about a military leadership position. I adore womanhood, but I also respect manhood, and I feel they each have their place, especially in leadership and combat roles in certain fields.
Merlin Ross
Sandy
That name seems familiar; I'm almost positive this is the same guy whose letters to the editor used to make my blood pressure spike on my occasional visits back to SLC after leaving for college.
I'm not the only one to blog about this letter, or some boneheaded thing or another that on which this gentleman has pontificated before. He's also not above using the letters column to evangelize, or cheerlead for the local domininant faith.
He's really got a problem with women being in charge of anything… not to mention some very odd ideas about controlling women, weak men, God's wives and how none of them should be charge of anything, either. He also seems to have a minor obsession with the pants and the proper wearing or not wearing of same. Way to drink the Kool-aid, buddy!
For obvious reasons, I can't imagine Merlin Ross has a happy home life, and is probably not invited to many work-related social events. Most likely, Merlin Ross has or has had a female boss. He can keep his no doubt solitary adoration of womenhood to himself, too.
I can actually imagine a woman coaching the Cowboys or the Bulls someday – not real soon, but someday. It's more likely to happen in the basketball world first, because of the success of women's basketball.
He's an avid letter-to-the-editor writer, as you can find his letters online going back for years. He's probably the same guy that dreamed of selling a million copies of his book "The Power of Positive Emotions" so he could buy Bridal Veil Falls. Either that, or saying so was a good way to get his name in the paper and an actual quote in an actual article.
Sadly, I can find no reference to a book by that name, so Mr. Ross will have to content himself with sending letters to the editor in order to see his name in print in the forseeable future.
I should probably stop reading the Trib's letters to the editor column via Bloglines, as it's bad for my health. But then I would have run across this little gem anyway, because OneUtah had it.