Posted on 10/15/2001 11:26:22 PM PDT by VinnyTex
Edited on 07/12/2004 3:47:49 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
First things first. Let us get the myth about "separation of church and state" out of the way. A thousand dollars in cash to anyone who can find such a provision in the U.S. Constitution.
Two thousand dollars to anyone who can establish a rational connection between "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," and the American Civil Liberties Union's assertion that writing "God bless America" on a high school marquee is unconstitutional.
(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...
In theory, everything works.
It is also relatively recent that countries with a dominant Protestant population tolerate Roman Catholics. Protestants, are to a large extent, responsible for the privatization of religion of which the author disapproves.
No offense, but..... THINK!!
This is NOT just a First Amendment issue. Even if you could wave a magic "cultural-diversity" wand and instantly solve all the First Amendment freedom issues, the Public School system is still an abomination against the Fifth Amendment's property clause.
I am not principally arguing about the "freedom" to send kids to Christian schools, but about the justice (or rather, injustice) of publicly-funded theft. It's about time that American Christians woke up to that fact. In all honesty, it's long past time.
Modern State public schools are viewed as moral poison by Calvinist Covenantalists. How on earth do you rationalize stealing parent's money, and then offering to poison their children, as any kind of "public service"?
What part of "nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation" don't you understand??
I sure wish more conservatives would join with libertarians in attemtping to get rid of these collectivist propaganda factories. If they did, all of these arguments about creationism versus evolution, prayer vs not, homosexual normalization, etc... would simply disappear.
Parents (and not state) should decide what their children are taught, and parents (not state theft) should pay for it.
OWK, I don't agree with your views on religion, but Brother, I'm with you on the proper role of government.
-ksen
Inasmuch as the posted article (dealing with public schools) WAS the subject at hand, I'd suggest you try to pay better attention.
No "shift". If you'll notice, that's what the posted article concerns -- the public schools.
If you wish for your comments to be considered germane, Neb, you might try reading the article in question.
Just a thought.
Here, the author is off base.
What matters is acceptance of American core values as expressed by our Constitution. Hatred for America and religious Holy War, for example, are outside of American core values.
"Customs" is a different kettle of fish. It is as difficult to find common "customs" in the USA as it is difficult to get Texans and Carolinians to agree on what the correct way to Bar-B-Que is.
It should also be pointed out that embracing "the customs" of your local community is not necessarily a good thing. As a Cuban American living in a very Liberal town on the Left Coast, I am bringing up my kids according to the tradinitional Cuban customs I was raised with instead of according to the local customs.
What that means is that my kids do not see Mom and Dad smoking pot at home, Mom does not have hairy legs and armpits, the kids are taught traditional conservative values that a Southerner would be quite at home with but that the local Left Coasters find rather strange and that my daughter goes to her private school wearing a plaid skirt and a Navy blue sweater rather than going to public school school dressed as an 11 year-old Brittany Spears-wannabe.
The examples used were indeed public school examples. But, if you read this article as a thesis in dealing with the public schools, you are interpreting it to your political advantage and not to the author's intent. You might want to reread the article to better understand it.
No man has a natural right to commit aggression on the equal rights of another, and this is all from which the laws ought to restrain him. -Thomas Jefferson
Our problem is that this is a "heads or tails" issue. If we pray, we infringe on YOUR rights. If we don't, you infringe upon OURS.
Dan
No one here has suggested that your prayers infringe on our rights.
The issue is one of compulsory funding (i.e. government funding) of the advancement of your faith.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.