Published: September 05, 2008 10:34 am      

Memorials should remind all of us to drive with care

I read with interest your article of Aug. 31, in reference to the Maryland State Highway administration removing memorials to traffic accident victims. (“State Highway Administration confirms that roadside memorials to traffic victims are illegal,” Page 1A)

The mother’s question of “who comes up with this stuff,” is not the main journalistic question here, but why do they went to take the memorials down?

The idea that these memorials are a traffic hazard is absurd. If anything it is my opinion that they improve traffic safety in that they are a silent reminder that a person lost their life there one day and if we are not careful and prudent in our driving that we may be the next one to die.

That silent reminder of our mortality I believe is the main offense that some people find with these memorials. They do not want to be reminded that one day they shall also die and they well may not be spiritually ready for that day.

The conviction that memorials provide is more than they care to bear. This in my opinion goes to the heart of their motivation to remove the memorials.

I happen to have one of those memorials in my front yard, where a young girl as a pedestrian was hit and killed and died in my front yard. I saw a grieving father build the memorial with his own hands.

If anyone from the state of Maryland dares to remove this memorial from my yard I will have them arrested for illegal trespass and destruction of property.

I will sue the state of Maryland for denying my civil liberties of freedom of expression, freedom of speech, and since there is a religious symbol there also violation of my freedom of religion.

Maryland was called the Free State. It is now a communist state where our civil liberties of freedom of expression, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and now it appears freedom to mourn has been denied for us.

So I call for these memorials to stay and that we use them as reminders as we go down the highway to drive more slowly, safely and carefully so that we will not also become another unnecessary death and another memorial along the side of the road.

Also as we go down the highway of life let us find Jesus Christ as our Savior so that when that final time comes for all of us we then can go to heaven to meet our Savior, and through our Savior we also may that we will be a little more understanding, a little more caring of those in their time of loss and grief.

It was once said that a person is always with us as long as one person remembers them. Let these poor families remember their loved ones in the manner that they see best.

Dr. Ronel R. Williams

Mountain Lake Park