State fascism?

I HEAR the tramp of Jesus in jackboots whenever I listen to the likes of former leader Gordon Wilson comparing the SNP’s support for gay marriage to “state ­fascism”, or Lord Carey when he compared ­anti-gay campaigners to Jews in Nazi Germany.

Religious fanatics have ­always found their home in the heart of religion and marched with “Gott mit uns” on their belts. Tempted by a world of total certainty and control, they displayed contempt for the mind and uncritical acceptance of authority from above. Their words betrayed a ­belief that the world is decaying and must be rescued from nihilism and rootlessness. Their words portray an appeal for tradition and an emphasis on inequality, stern laws, and warfare against ­decadence.

In such a world, security and stability is a currency that is easily exchanged for freedom and justice.

Garry Otton, Secular Scotland