Free Republic

Commentary by Daniel T. Zanoza, National Director, RFFM.org Despite an attempted veto by Democratic Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, the state's General Assembly passed legislation requiring public school teachers to call for a "moment of silence" at the start of each school day. The landmark legislation was upheld when the state's General Assembly overrode Blagojevich's attempted veto of the bill by a vast margin. The law went into affect last week, but will not be implemented until the Illinois State Board of Education lays out guidelines for educators to follow. The new Illinois law is seen by many as the first...

A Texas family is suing Gov. Rick Perry and a school district over a state-mandated moment of silence in schools, according to The Dallas Morning News. David Wallace Croft and his wife, Shannon, of Carrollton, Texas, have three children at Rosemeade Elementary and argue that the moment of silence is unconstitutional and amounts to state-sanctioned school prayer. The couple has a history of complaints against religious-affiliated words and images in schools, having previously complained about Boy Scout rallies held during school, fliers sent home about Good News Bible Club meetings and the inclusion of "Silent Night" and a Hanukkah song...

A Texas family is suing Gov. Rick Perry and a school district over a state-mandated moment of silence in schools, according to The Dallas Morning News. David Wallace Croft and his wife, Shannon, of Carrollton, Texas, have three children at Rosemeade Elementary and argue that the moment of silence is unconstitutional and amounts to state-sanctioned school prayer.

While parents may have failed in their moral responsibility to train their children in the faith in the Creator -- the schools cannot look aside and circumvent the issue. If we want the next generation of children to grow up as productive, moral humans, they must be given the opportunity -- during school hours -- to meditate on matters of vital importance -- their purpose in life, and the belief in the Creator and Ruler of the World. Our democratic form of government and the principles of our republic provide for the freedom of religious practice and faith. This basic...

A wholesome breakfast, a signed homework sheet and warm clothes can help your children start each school day right and can set them off in a positive frame of mind. But how will you be guaranteed that your child will become an ethical person? How will your boys and girls relate to the laws of justice and morality? That’s why we're strongly advocating a Moment of Silence each morning, in every classroom across the state of New York. It’s a time when kids of all ages can contemplate – with their parents’ guidance – about their own contribution as responsible...

Bush lets silence fill Ground Zero By Caroline Daniel in New York Last updated: September 10 2006 20:27 President George W. Bush has spoken 22,000 words in the past week in a series of speeches on the “war on terror” but on Sunday he let a carefully posed silence remind Americans of September 11 2001 as he laid a wreath at Ground Zero. Faced with criticism from Democrats that he was politicising the day, the White House said Mr Bush would make no prepared remarks on Monday, as he marks the fifth anniversary of the attacks with a meeting of...

Parents file suit challenging schools' moment of silence 07:15 PM CST on Monday, March 13, 2006 By KATHERINE LEAL UNMUTH / The Dallas Morning News An atheist couple whose children attend a Carrollton-Farmers Branch elementary school have filed a complaint in federal district court arguing that the state’s mandated moment of silence in public schools is unconstitutional. David and Shannon Croft named the school district and Gov. Rick Perry in their complaint, filed Friday. In it, they say one of their children was told by a teacher to be quiet because the minute is a “time for prayer.” “I do...

When Delta Flight 1880 landed late Saturday at Logan International Airport, the pilot went on the intercom to make a request of the passengers preparing to grab their carry-on bags: Sit for a moment and honor a fallen soldier. ''The pilot said, 'We have a hero on this flight and sadly, he isn't with us, but his mother is escorting his remains,' " said Barbara Bell, sister of Sergeant Pierre A. Raymond, 28, an Army reservist from Lawrence who died Tuesday in Germany after being wounded in Iraq. The normal bustle of an emptying airplane immediately ceased, she said. ''He...

Air Force coach Fisher DeBerry will reportedly forgo his customary team prayer before Saturday's game against Washington. The Gazette of Colorado Springs reported that the team will observe a moment of silence in the locker room instead. It's one of the first visible changes brought on by a new policy on public displays of religion. The Air Force issued guidelines Monday that discourage public prayer at official functions and urge commanders to be sensitive about personal expressions of religious faith. DeBerry has led pregame prayers in his previous 21 years as Air Force's coach. Last year, academy officials told DeBerry...

As a young government attorney, John Roberts advised the White House to support congressional efforts to allow school prayer, arguing that a Supreme Court ruling striking down the practice "seems indefensible." In a Nov. 21, 1985 memo released Monday by the National Archives, Roberts was responding to a move by Congress to permit "group silent prayer or reflection in public schools." He said he would not object if Justice Department officials announced that President Reagan had no formal role in passing an amendment to that effect, but said he would support such a move. The Supreme Court's conclusion that "the...

In NYC, hundreds mourn Madrid victims By FRANZISKA CASTILLO THE JOURNAL NEWS (Original publication: March 13, 2004) NEW YORK—Standing under a Spanish flag lowered to half-staff, several hundred Spanish nationals and New Yorkers gathered in midtown Manhattan yesterday to grieve for the victims of Thursday's terrorist attacks in Madrid. At 1 p.m., the demonstrators hoisted aloft sheets of paper bearing printed black ribbons and waved homemade signs denouncing terrorism. The group fell silent for several minutes, interrupted only by the sounds of traffic passing along East 49th Street. Both men and women steeled their jaws to keep tears from flowing,...

I just got this in reply to my email I sent to the Spanish Consulate yesterday The Spanish Consulate is organizing a silent demonstration to take place today at 1pm at the Cervantes Institute, located at Amster Yard, 211-215 East 49th Street, New York City. We hope you will convey your solidarity and support to the victims and their families in this demonstration. Sincerely, Consulate General of Spain in New York.

Hundreds of transplanted Spaniards and sympathetic New Yorkers gathered on a Manhattan street Friday to observe a moment of silence for the victims of the Madrid terrorist attacks that killed 199 people. Teary-eyed and hugging, people along East 49th Street went silent at exactly 1 p.m., coinciding with a similar observance throughout Spain. "A lot of people here are not Spanish, but we are civilized, and whoever did that is an animal," said Lee Nolan, a Manhattan attorney whose wife is from Barcelona. For security reasons, the moment of silence was observed in front of the Cervantes Institute, a Spanish...

Texas family sues over "under God" reference in pledge By The Associated Press (9/17/03 - ABILENE, TX) — An Abilene family is fighting against the Pledge of Allegiance over the phrase "under God." In February, an 11-year-old girl refused to say the pledge with the phrase in class. A substitute teacher told the girl she'd no right to live in America. The girl's father decided to file a lawsuit in Taylor County against the current Abilene school superintendent, the school district, the state of Texas, the US Congress and President Bush. The suit seeks no monetary damages, but does...

Two years ago, as Jason Ritter watched the footage of the crumbling World Trade Center towers, he vowed to spend every Sept. 11 in the classroom helping his students understand and remember the tragedy. Instead, Ritter, 26, an eighth- grade teacher at Falcon Creek Middle School in Arapahoe County, spent the second anniversary of the terrorist attacks alone at home after administrators deemed his lesson plan "inappropriate" and advised him to rethink it. He said he was told not to talk about the tragedy - or else leave for the day. Thursday morning, the educator chose to go home. The...

ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE - President Bush (news - web sites) will attend a prayer service of remembrance and observe a moment of silence to mark the second anniversary of the terrorist attack of Sept. 11, 2001. AP Photo   While Bush will be in Washington, Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) will attend a memorial service at Ground Zero in New York City and Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld will take part in a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. Interior Secretary Gale Norton will attend a ceremony at Shanksville, Pa., the site where one...

The prayer wars have ended and students are the winners. In early February, the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice issued Guidance on Constitutionally Protected Prayer in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools (available at www.ed.gov), a seven-page set of rules that junior high and high schools must follow to receive federal funds. The guidelines clarify that public schools are not religion-free zones, school officials are not prayer police and students of faith are not enemies of the state. Now students will be able to open their school activities with prayer. Out loud. And without fear of punishment by their schools....

The Naval Academy should review its practice of leading students in lunchtime prayer, the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland said yesterday. A federal appeals court decision involving the Virginia Military Institute raises serious legal questions about the practice, the group said. VMI's suppertime grace violated the First Amendment because of a "coercive atmosphere" that gave students little choice about participating, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, whose jurisdiction covers Maryland, Virginia and three other states, ruled Monday. "The logic of the decision applies directly to the Naval Academy practice," said Rebecca Glenberg, legal director of the ACLU of...

<p>The whiskey flowed more freely than anyone wanted yesterday morning when 1,500 gallons of Southern Comfort flooded a portion of the Brown-Forman Corp.'s bottling-supplies warehouse on Garland Avenue, forcing the facility's evacuation.</p> <p>''There are going to be some happy rats tonight,'' said Bud Schardein, executive director of Metropolitan Sewer District, which reported no problems with the water supply downstream of the warehouse after the liquor was washed into the sewers.</p>