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As we lose contact with God, we lose contact with our core, our reason for living. A large segment of our society has done just that: lost contact with faith in a God who loves us and gives us freedom, but expects us to respect the rights and dignity of others in exercising that freedom.

We believe that we are worthy of freedom and dignity. Where is the evidence of that in our media and social networking? We have dignity only when we show respect and dignity for others, and we preserve freedom only when we respect the freedom of others.

Late-night comedians and some of the news media seem to have forgotten or never learned this lesson. Will they end up by overstepping the boundaries so often that Big Brother must step in and take over their decision-making, as predicted by George Orwell in his book “1984”?

Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Kathy Griffin and so many other comedians and entertainers overstep these boundaries. I have stopped watching late-night comedy and daytime talk shows. They do not show respect for the freedoms, dignity, and beliefs of others. Their political comedy is repulsive. Sometimes their vile humor becomes full-blown news as with Stephen Colbert and Kathy Griffin recently. The choice is before us. We can work on our shattered world to begin to rebuild it. Or we can continue to make self-centered, disrespectful decisions and become about as free and dignified as a pig.

SHARON NALE

Sandpoint