The "comments" link below provides my take on the current email petition to re-instate "God" In the Public Schools. You will find I am in favor of the desired outcome, but not the method of the petition.
I have the sentiment but I think this method is ineffective. I wish people would do the following: Write your congressman and senator about your concerns. Bush already believes in prayer in schools. It is legal issues that disallow it. Only congress can change the law. Only the Supreme Court can interpret the constitutionality of the law. TV programs (in America) are successful because they draw an audience that commercial entities desire to reach. "Touched by An Angel" had to fail on other reasons than the mention of "God".
One thing we need to "get over" in our current public mindset that drives the law of the land and the makeup of the Supreme Court and its interpretation of the constitution is the sense that "God" in language and display is a part of the culture of the land. The culture of the land - where there is no disrespect of others - should not be written out of public life. Therefore, the mention of the Ten Commandments, or the teachings of Jesus, or even the laws of Confucius or the observations of Buddha should be welcomed in government and public discourse as a part of the fabric of our culture. If Confucius' thoughts or The Ten Commandments are an affront to someone because they do not believe in a "God" - or a particular philosophy - it is NOT the government that must show intolerance to religious thought by removing the offending words ... it is the individual who must learn to become more tolerant of his neighbor. America is built on tolerance. The current stream of constitutional interpretation has warped the meaning of tolerance to mean those with no belief system must be presented with no words in public or government that will offend them. In other words, they must be allowed to be intolerant of all others and they must not be offended. The result is that there is a strong level of intolerance against the public display of words or images that represent a heritage of the Christian or Jewish faiths. The Christian faith takes the hardest hit because it is a dominant historical culture within the fabric of American society. The correct constitutional approach, in my opinion, is that all beliefs must be honored. Individuals who express their belief, or moral code within a context of their religion through various public or governmental expression are not to be discouraged, but encouraged AS LONG AS the context of the message does not promote the intolerance of other beliefs.
So, I encourage people to express their opinions to their lawmakers and to the public in letters "to the editor" and every other means available. I do not think a petition (especially by email) to President Bush will have any impact at all. In fact, such an email petition, sent by a system of "chain mail" over the internet, becomes of itself most valuable as a tool for SPAM marketers to harvest "GOOD" email addresses for future spam.
And that is where I stand on this. This is copied to www.myemailstuff.blogspot.com for those who wish to find the message later. Vic www.incountry.blogspot.com
1 comment:
I have the sentiment but I think this method is ineffective. I wish people would do the following:
Write your congressman and senator about your concerns. Bush already believes in prayer in schools. It is legal issues that disallow it. Only congress can change the law. Only the Supreme Court can interpret the constitutionality of the law. TV programs (in America) are successful because they draw an audience that commercial entities desire to reach. "Touched by An Angel" had to fail on other reasons than the mention of "God".
One thing we need to "get over" in our current public mindset that drives the law of the land and the makeup of the Supreme Court and its interpretation of the constitution is the sense that "God" in language and display is a part of the culture of the land. The culture of the land - where there is no disrespect of others - should not be written out of public life. Therefore, the mention of the Ten Commandments, or the teachings of Jesus, or even the laws of Confucius or the observations of Buddha should be welcomed in government and public discourse as a part of the fabric of our culture. If Confucius' thoughts or The Ten Commandments are an affront to someone because they do not believe in a "God" - or a particular philosophy - it is NOT the government that must show intolerance to religious thought by removing the offending words ... it is the individual who must learn to become more tolerant of his neighbor. America is built on tolerance. The current stream of constitutional interpretation has warped the meaning of tolerance to mean those with no belief system must be presented with no words in public or government that will offend them. In other words, they must be allowed to be intolerant of all others and they must not be offended. The result is that there is a strong level of intolerance against the public display of words or images that represent a heritage of the Christian or Jewish faiths. The Christian faith takes the hardest hit because it is a dominant historical culture within the fabric of American society. The correct constitutional approach, in my opinion, is that all beliefs must be honored. Individuals who express their belief, or moral code within a context of their religion through various public or governmental expression are not to be discouraged, but encouraged AS LONG AS the context of the message does not promote the intolerance of other beliefs.
So,
I encourage people to express their opinions to their lawmakers and to the public in letters "to the editor" and every other means available. I do not think a petition (especially by email) to President Bush will have any impact at all. In fact, such an email petition, sent by a system of "chain mail" over the internet, becomes of itself most valuable as a tool for SPAM marketers to harvest "GOOD" email addresses for future spam.
And that is where I stand on this.
This is copied to www.myemailstuff.blogspot.com for those who wish to find the message later.
Vic
www.incountry.blogspot.com
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