Family mass hierarchy from universal seesaw mechanism

The ``universal seesaw mechanism,'' which accounts for mₑ,u,d{}mW, predicts m_νLm_νRmₑ². Combined with an axial-vector symmetry principle, this mechanism allows for the coeexistence of heavy ({}mW) families without appeal to a hierarchy in Yukawa couplings and without introduction of additional mass scales. It then follows that (i) the physical right-handed heavy (light) ordinary fermions are mostly SU(2)R singlets (doublets), (ii) there is no analogous neutrino mass hierarchy, and (iii) m_PQm_νLmW² sets the Peccei-Quinn mass scale.