"Open Letter to My Teenage Son, An" by Victor Lundberg

Dear son 
You ask my reaction to long hair or beards on young people. 
Some great men have worn long hair and beards...George
Washington 
and Abraham Lincoln. If to you long hair or a beard is a
symbol of 
independence, if you believe in your heart that the
principles 
of this country, our heritage, is worthy of this display of
pride, 
that all men shall remain free, that free men at all times
will not 
inflict their personal limitations of achievement on others,
that 
demands your own rights as well as the rights of others, and
be 
willing to fight for this right, you have my blessing. 
You ask that I not judge you merely as a teenager, to judge 
you on your own personal habits, abilities and goals. This
is a 
fair request and I promise that I will not judge any person
only as 
a teenager if you will constantly remind yourself that some
of my 
generation judge people by their race, their belief or the
color 
of their skin and that this is no more right than saying all

teenagers are drunken dope addicts or glue sniffers. If you
will 
judge every human being on his own individual potential, I
will 
do the same. 
You ask me if God is dead. This is a question each
individual 
must answer within himself. But a warm summer day with all
its 
brightness, all its sound, all its exhilarating breathiness 
just happened? God is love. Remember that God is a guide and
not 
a storm trooper. Realize that many of the past and present 
generation because of a well intended but unjustifiable 
misconception, have attempted to legislate morality. This
created 
part of the basis for your generations need to rebel against

our society. With this knowledge perhaps your children will
never ask Is 
God dead?. I sometimes think much of mankind is attempting
to work Him to 
death. 
You ask my opinion of draft card burners. I would answer
this way. All 
past wars have been dirty, unfair, immoral, bloody and
second-guessed. 
However, history has shown most of them necessary. If you
doubt that our 
free enterprise system in the United States is worth
protecting, if you 
doubt the principles upon which this country was founded,
that we remain 
free to choose our religion, our individual endeavors, our
method of 
government, if you doubt that each free individual in this
great country 
should reap rewards commensurate only with his own efforts,
than it is 
doubtful you belong here. If you doubt that people who
govern us should be 
selected by their desire to allow us to strive for any goal
we feel 
capable of obtaining than its doubtful you should
participate in their 
selection. If you are not grateful to a country that gave
your father the 
opportunity to work for his family to give you the things
you have and you 
do not feel pride enough to fight for your right to continue
in this 
manner than I assume the blame for your failure to recognize
the true 
value of our birthright. And I will remind you that your
mother will love 
you no matter what you do, because she is a woman. And I
love you too, 
son. But I also love our country and the principles for
which we stand. 
And if you decide to burn your draft card, then burn your
birth 
certificate at the same time. 
From that moment on, I have no son!