Letter: Anti-Trump merchants are hypocrites

In July 5's opinion page, Louis S. Guagenti writes about hypocrisy by referencing the ejection of Sarah Huckabee-Sanders from a restaurant because she works for Trump. Somehow, this is akin to the various stories of merchants refusing to provide their products or services for the purpose of celebrating same-sex weddings.

Unfortunately, the merchants weren't refusing service based on who the customers were. No. They were refused because of a particular request made by those customers.

In almost each case, those merchants knowingly served homosexuals prior. In the case of florist Baronelle Stutzman, she not only sold flowers routinely to the man whose wedding request she could not in good conscience fulfill, she actually had a gay employee or two. One could easily say that each of these merchants would have refused the same request had they been made by heterosexuals on behalf of the same-sex couples getting married. Would that be refusing the couple, or the heterosexuals (parents or friends, let's say) who ordered and paid for the product or service?

Sanders, and others who have been denied service because they worked for or supported Trump, are victims of the type of discrimination the Christian bakers did not at all visit upon LGBT customers. Thus, the true hypocrisy is on those merchants who denied service to Trump people, especially given the left-wing accusations against the Christian merchants. By doing that which they've accused (falsely) the Christians of, they've become the true hypocrites.

Here's one more point for Mr. Guagenti: My "agenda" is indeed informed by my religion and my sense of patriotism. Why shouldn't it be? What informs yours?

Art Casper

Palatine