The mouthpiece for the Southern Poverty Law Center made the same argument that you do, on Fox News. But notice where that argument leads.
First we had hate crimes, which I thought should have been declared unconstitutional. Murder is murder, and whenevr has there been a "love" murder (O.J. Simpson excluded). But now, in this argument, we have hate thoughts. The Ten Commandments becomes unconstitutional because of the thoughts in the mind of the person who commissioned the statute?
It is hard for me, as a First Amendment lawyer, to imagine a clearer violation of that Amendment. What was in the mind of the Chief Justice of the United States who commissioned the two (or three -- see other posts on the third one) memorial of the Ten Commandments placed on and in the Supreme Court building?
How shall we try that case? Have a reliable medium (played by Whoopi Goldberg) channel his spirit and testify as to his intent?
I am not arguing for the truth of every word spoken by Chief Judge Moore. I AM arguing that the First Amendment, as written, does not forbid the display of the Ten Commandments -- not in Alabama, not in D.C., not anywhere else in the nation. Moore's rhetoric is simply and clearly irrelevant to the constitutional question presented.
Whenever I see any lawyer in any case pounding the table over a part of the case that is irrelevant to the logical outcome, I know that lawyer is engaging in what we call "poisoning the well." Such lawyers are trying to trick the judge, or jury, into a false decision. By their very tactics, such lawyers are tacitly admitting that their case is weak and that their clients deserve to lose, on a fair understanding of the facts and the law.
Don't buy into such an argument, my friend. You are much to bright and able to be had by such a cheap trick.
Billybob / John
Not only that, but in my post to you, I discussed the relevancy of the Judge's words and actions as the Head Justice in Alabama, and as those words and actions apply to the Alabama State Constitution, not the Federal Constitution; article 3 of the Alabama State Constitution of 1901 (the current constitution) to be specific. Moore was suspended by his own Court, not the Feds.
There is no need for a medium to figure out Judge Moore's intent, it's clearly stated in his speech dedicating the monument, I provided the quote.
Thanks,
LG