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Posted on 11/10/2006 8:44:34 AM PST by FreedomNeocon
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Student leaders at a California college have touched off a furor by banning the Pledge of Allegiance at their meetings, saying they see no reason to publicly swear loyalty to God and the U.S. government.
The move by Orange Coast College student trustees, the latest clash over patriotism and religion in American schools, has infuriated some of their classmates -- prompting one young woman to loudly recite the pledge in front of the board on Wednesday night in defiance of the rule.
"America is the one thing I'm passionate about and I can't let them take that away from me," 18-year-old political science major Christine Zoldos told Reuters.
"The fact that they have enough power to ban one of the most valued traditions in America is just horrible," Zoldos said, adding she would attend every board meeting to salute the flag.
The move was lead by three recently elected student trustees, who ran for office wearing revolutionary-style berets and said they do not believe in publicly swearing an oath to the American flag and government at their school. One student trustee voted against the measure, which does not apply to other student groups or campus meetings.
The ban follows a 2002 ruling by a federal appeals court in San Francisco that said forcing school children to recite the pledge was unconstitutional because of the phrase "under God." The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the ruling on procedural grounds but left the door open for another challenge.
"That ('under God') part is sort of offensive to me," student trustee Jason Bell, who proposed the ban, told Reuters. "I am an atheist and a socialist, and if you know your history, you know that 'under God' was inserted during the McCarthy era and was directly designed to destroy my ideology."
Bell said the ban largely came about because the trustees didn't want to publicly vow loyalty to the American government before their meetings. "Loyalty ought to be something the government earns through performance, not through reciting a pledge," he said.
Martha Parham, a spokeswoman for the Coast Community College District, said her office had no standing on the student board and took no position on the flag salute ban.
"If their personal belief is that they don't want to say the Pledge of Allegiance, the district certainly isn't going to dictate what they do," she said.
More than 28,000 students attend the community college, located in conservative Orange County, California, south of Los Angeles.
BTTT
They won't say the Pledge, but they sure as he!! will grab dollars from us. I guess "In God we Trust" isn't quite as offensive to them. They should have to barter for everything with sticks and shells from now on. Then see how much they really believe in their current stance.
That would be cause this ideology is directly responsible for 100+ million deaths through the 20th Century.
Some ideologies need to be destroyed outright.
Well I think it is offensive that I have to follow your religion of atheism. These Socialist (another word for DemocRATS)must be stop. BRING BACK McCarthy.
Ah, public education is reaching its desired goals.
For a great speech on the Pledge of Allegiance by Red Skelton, go here: http://www.otrsite.com/memoriam/index.html
Scroll down to the section on Red and click on the vintage radio icon to hear him. He ends with this comment:
"Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country, and two words have been added to the Pledge of Allegiance: Under God. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer, and that would be eliminated from schools, too?" -Red Skelton
Deport the little pus brains.
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Thank you devolve, I'm speechless!
Looks good on a black BG
100%x768 - should fill your PC screen
that is StarsYellow.gif
100x100 - animated
It more than fills my screen, it's beautiful and I just tried to take two pictures of it. I don't know how well they will turn out as I can't use the flash because of reflection.
1024x768 is the largest screen setting I think
I used 100%x768 so I guess it is taller than your setting
Your width is over 900 width I think
I made up a new TP .gif with flashing stars on it that must be used over <Body or <Table bgcolor="black" or an image black BG with stars, etc on it
I've got it on my profile page now at the bottom
544250
NightLightsTP.gif
Your post is just slightly higher than my computer screen and the width is perfect, fits just right with no scrolling.
Did you think for one minute that I hadn't seen what you did on your profile page?? LOL
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