Mention God? Don't you dare

[Snowden]

Mention God? Don't you dare Jun 21, 2006
by Ben Shapiro

Brittany McComb, valedictorian of Foothill High School in Clark County, Nevada, stood up at her graduation and began to speak. A few paragraphs into her speech, school administrators cut off McComb's microphone. She didn't tell a dirty joke. She didn't curse. She didn't insult her classmates or her teachers. Brittany McComb committed the egregious sin of attempting to thank God and Jesus. "I went through four years of school at Foothill and they taught me logic and they taught me freedom of speech," McComb stated. "God's the biggest part of my life. Just like other valedictorians thank their parents, I wanted to thank my lord and savior."

The American Civil Liberties Union, which seems more intent on curtailing important liberties than protecting them, praised the school's decision. Nevada ACLU general counsel Allan Lichtenstein explained, "There should be no controversy here … It's important for people to understand that a student was given a school-sponsored forum by a school, and therefore, in essence, it was a school-sponsored speech." The school district stood by the school's decision, suggesting that McComb's speech entered into the realm of "preaching." "We review the speeches and tell them they may not proselytize," said district legal counsel Bill Hoffman. "We encourage people to talk about religion and the impact on their lives. But when that discussion crosses over to become proselytizing, then we tell students they can't do that."

Welcome to the federal judiciary's America, where simple expressions of thanks to God in commencement speeches are banned for fear of state-sponsored religion. Let's assume McComb's speech offended some attendees at the graduation. Let's even assume McComb proselytized, and wasn't merely expressing her gratitude to God and Jesus. Finally, let's assume the school district, by allowing McComb's speech, would have been promoting her message.

Here's the question: So what?

The Constitution provides no right to be free from public expression of religion. The relevant portion of the First Amendment reads: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The basic idea is this: There should be no national religion, because establishment of a national religion would necessitate shutting down other religions. The idea that the First Amendment bans all public reference to God or Jesus is absurd. As former Chief Justice William Rehnquist famously wrote in his (SET ITAL) Wallace v. Jaffree (END ITAL) dissent (1985), "It seems indisputable from these glimpses of Madison's thinking, as reflected by actions on the floor of the House in 1789, that he saw the Amendment as designed to prohibit the establishment of a national religion, and perhaps to prevent discrimination among sects. He did not see it as requiring neutrality on the part of government between religion and irreligion."

There is no right to be free from public expression of religion, but there (SET ITAL) is (END ITAL) a Constitutionally protected right to free exercise of religion. Brittany McComb was chosen to speak not because she was religious, but because she had a 4.7 grade point average -- and it is none of the school district's business whether she chooses to invoke God, Jesus or Zeus (though history indicates that the ACLU would fight for her right to invoke Zeus).

The federal judiciary is noticeably more open to obscenity than religion. Laws barring public obscenity have been struck down on the grounds that passersby may "effectively avoid further bombardment of their sensibilities simply by averting their eyes." (Cohen v. California, 1971) The very mention of God, by contrast, crushes all resistance, according to the federal judiciary.

In fact, the judiciary is noticeably more open to irreligion than religion; those who propose neutrality between religion and irreligion willfully ignore the fact that state-sponsored irreligion remains the dominant mode of expression in many state-sponsored activities. State schools routinely preach the moral acceptability of sexual promiscuity and homosexuality -- but the ACLU and its buddies on the federal bench are always there to protect schoolchildren from a classroom display of the Ten Commandments.

McComb wasn't the only one disappointed by the school's decision. Four hundred graduates and their families jeered as the school cut the microphone. Aside from the precious few Michael Newdows of the world who feel that the name of God merits complete and total redaction, the rest of the country jeers along with them. Unfortunately, the federal judiciary is averting its eyes.





http://www.townhall.com/opinion/colu...21/202056.html

[Caldric]

God.....

Ops the ACLU will be knocking on my door soon. Soon a person can only pray in church if they allow those to be in public view.

[Caldric]

A little off topic but pretty much Rooney ranting, who can pass up a good Rooney rant?

Andy Rooney said on "60 Minutes" a few weeks back:

I don't think being a minority makes you a victim of anything except numbers. The only things I can think of that are truly discriminatory are things like the United Negro College Fund, Jet Magazine, Black Entertainment Television, and Miss Black America. Try to have things like the UnitedCaucasianCollege Fund, Cloud Magazine, White Entertainment Television, or Miss White America; and see what happens...Jesse Jackson will be knocking down your door. (I could not be that lucky, Caldric)

Guns do not make you a killer. I think killing makes you a killer. You can kill someone with a baseball bat or a car, but no one is trying to ban you from driving to the ball game.

I believe they are called the Boy Scouts for a reason, that is why there are no girls allowed. Girls belong in the Girl Scouts! ARE YOU LISTENING MARTHA BURKE?

I think that if you feel homosexuality is wrong, it is not a phobia, it is an opinion.

I have the right "NOT" to be tolerant of others because they are different, weird, or tick me off.

When 70% of the people who get arrested are black, in cities where 70% of the population is black, that is not racial profiling, it is the Law of Probability.

I believe that if you are selling me a milkshake, a pack of cigarettes, a newspaper or a hotel room, you must do it in English! As a matter of fact, if you want to be an American citizen, you should have to speak English!

My father and grandfather didn't die in vain so you can leave the countries you were born in to come over and disrespect ours.

I think the police should have every right to shoot your sorry ass if you threaten them after they tell you to stop. If you can't understand the word "freeze" or "stop" in English, see the above lines.

I don't think just because you were not born in this country, you are qualified for any special loan programs, government sponsored bank loans or tax breaks, etc., so you can open a hotel, coffee shop, trinket store, or any other business.

We did not go to the aid of certain foreign countries and risk our lives in wars to defend their freedoms, so that decades later they could come over here and tell us our constitution is a living document; and open to their interpretations.

I don't hate the rich I don't pity the poor.

I know pro wrestling is fake, but so are movies and television. That doesn't stop you from watching them.

I think Bill Gates has every right to keep every penny he made and continue to make more. If it ticks you off, go and invent the next operating system that's better, and put your name on the building.

It doesn't take a whole village to raise a child right, but it does take a parent to stand up to the kid; and smack their little behinds when necessary, and say "NO!"

I think tattoos and piercing are fine if you want them, but please don't pretend they are a political statement. And, please, stay home until that new lip ring heals. I don't want to look at your ugly infected mouth as you serve me French fries!

I am sick of "Political Correctness." I know a lot of black people, and not a single one of them was born in Africa; so how can they be "African-Americans"? Besides, Africa is a continent. I don't go around saying I am a European-American because my great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather was from Europe. I am proud to be from America and nowhere else

And if you don't like my point of view, tough...

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG, OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC, FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL!

[Snowden]

Originally Posted by Caldric

God.....

Ops the ACLU will be knocking on my door soon. Soon a person can only pray in church if they allow those to be in public view.

You know, Scott - I figure we must be doing something right for so much fuss to be made against us saying His name in public, or even referring to Him. But what they don't realize is that by removing God from our land is removing the center of our civilization.

Whether it's our Jewish-Christian God or any other, they are removing that Being Who has set forth the rules for a life of peace, of accomplishment, of family life - anything whatsoever.

[Caldric]

The constitution protects a person of any donimination to fall down in public on their knees and pray, cry or curse their government. If they don't like it let them move to Saudi Arabia and they will never have to hear another Christian say a word in public.

[m60-gunner]

All excellent quotes Caldric.
Every single person views religion in a different light. I don't attend church, but I am very spiritual. I beleive God is everywhere, I need no man telling me I,m going to hell if I don't beleive what he beleives.
Now that said, this girl had every right to give her speech. She is at the top at her class and she was telling people how she attained that. The school had no right to censor her speech. This happens more than you would think. Yes we do need to get rid of this polictical correctness, it's killin us. In third grade my youngest was not allowed to say the pledge or have a flag in their class. It might bother someone. ( by the way that changed quickly ). Saying your religous is the same way, it might bother some one. I don't give a hoot if your chatholic, babptist, amish, buddaist, or a klingon. It's your right. It's your freedom of speech.

[dynamic_one]

A man/woman who commits a petty crime and gets caught throws himself at the mercy of the court. He/she begs for lienency of those who are serving. If there was no God, what forces hold the jury to believe in inocence, If there was no God, what forces hold the judge from granting probations. If there was no God, what keeps our prosecutors from throwing the entire book at him/her. It is laws and morals. Most of which comes from our beliefs. The question is... What do most of us believe?