"In May, U.S. District Court Judge Gordon Thompson, Jr., ordered the city to take down the 29-foot cross before Aug. 2 or pay daily fines of $5,000."
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OK, question.
IF these daily fines were imposed, which of the many government agencies would get the money? Who in the goverment are the beneficiaries of this windfall profit (tax)? How would it have been spent? On education programs touting the evils of white crosses, or on the evils of patriotic war memorials?
Actually, it would be paid into the black hole of the miscellaneous receipts account of the United States Treasury. Given the trillion dollar budget deficit, the money wouldn't be available for anything. The judge might just as well have ordered the city to set fire to 250 twenty dollar bills a day.