Brian Johnson’s January 16 column on same-gender marriage made several important arguments, but he really missed the boat on one point. America is not a democracy and never has been one. It is a constitutional republic, which is quite different — and this is a particularly important point in the gay marriage debate. People complain that the judge in Hawaii has gone against “the will of the people,” and we need to recognize that the will of the people is not the highest authority in the land. The Constitution is. The majority can never overrule that.

Our Founding Fathers knew that the majority is not always interested in justice — after all, the majority once believed in slavery — so they did not create a pure democracy. They created safeguards to make sure the majority can never oppress the minority, no matter how unpopular it may be.

Scott Miller

3649 Dunnica Ave.

St. Louis, MO 63116

(314) 773-6526