Atheists sue N.J. school over ‘under God’ in Pledge of Allegiance

[TheSiege]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/apr/21/atheists-sue-nj-school-over-under-god-pledge-alleg/

While I think these lawsuits are sometimes petty, 'under god' should have never been added in 1954 in the first place. So I agree with the plaintiffs but only because adding religious overtones for no reason is just as stupid as as removing them for no reason.

 

[Strk]

But we need to fight those commies!

 

[Jaepheth]

No reason?

NO REASON!?


Soviet sleeper agents aren't going to out themselves!

 

[Kadarin]

The phrase should be removed from the Pledge.

 

[Londo_Jowo]

Atheists should throw away all their US money and refuse to accept/use it as it has "In God We Trust" on it.

 

[Retro Rob]

The phrase should be removed from the Pledge.

I agree, personally. However, why are they trying to force their views onto others?

Why not fight to exclude, for instance, the children of atheist parents from saying the "under God" part?

A much simpler case, IMO, where both parties can win.

 

[TheSiege]

I agree, personally. However, why are they trying to force their views onto others?

Why not fight to exclude, for instance, the children of atheist parents from saying the "under God" part?

A much simpler case, IMO, where both parties can win.

That would make them Pariahs

 

[Retro Rob]

That would make them Pariahs

Bull****, and so what? The JW's, decades ago, won a case so that their kids could not be obligated to say the Pledge at all. Guess what? They got what they wanted, regardless of the social consequences, and schools weren't forced to abandon it.

Being an outcast is simply a consequence of being in the minority. Too bad.

 

[TheSiege]

Bull****, and so what? The JW's, decades ago, won a case so that their kids could not be obligated to say the Pledge at all. Guess what? They got what they wanted, regardless of the social consequences, and schools weren't forced to abandon it.

Being an outcast is simply a consequence of being in the minority. Too bad.

The last thing that should happen is to make kids a target in a place where they are there to learn, especially when it comes to something that shouldn't be there in the first place. Kids have enough to deal with in HS

 

[Atomic Playboy]

I always thought it was a little odd to require students to recite a loyalty oath when I was in school, but even though I was a raging atheist, it never bothered me that the words "under God" appeared in the pledge. Honestly, if your faith (or lack of) is so tenuous that just hearing the word "God" will cause you to completely change your beliefs, the pledge of allegiance should not be your biggest concern.

 

[TheSiege]

Actually why are people saying the pledge in the first place? Doesn't the pledge kind of contradict the idea of states being separate from the central government.

 

[ivwshane]

This should be going to the Supreme Court where all mention of god will be removed from money.

The religious right has been complaining about a non existent war on religion for years and now they will actually be getting one

 

[IronWing]

Sounds great in German.
"Ich gelobe Treue auf die Fahne der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, auf die Republik, die eine Nation unter Gott ist, vereinigt durch Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit fur alle."

 

[ch33zw1z]

Hope they win, and "Under God" is removed from the pledge. Removal from money is next.

 

[Fanatical Meat]

**I believe** it was established in the early 80s that schools cannot force students to recite the pledge or make them stand during it. I wonder how this will shake out

 

[Victorian Gray]

I agree, personally. However, why are they trying to force their views onto others?

Why not fight to exclude, for instance, the children of atheist parents from saying the "under God" part?

A much simpler case, IMO, where both parties can win.

You mean like the fair sized portion of the American Christian population that continues to insist that the U.S. is a 'Christian Nation' and insists on pushing their particular brand of Christianity on the rest of the country?

 

[Jaskalas]

Which religion does the Pledge endorse?

Is the Pledge itself heavily centered on "under god", or are those two words auxiliary to its primary purpose?

 

[Victorian Gray]

Bull****, and so what? The JW's, decades ago, won a case so that their kids could not be obligated to say the Pledge at all. Guess what? They got what they wanted, regardless of the social consequences, and schools weren't forced to abandon it.

Being an outcast is simply a consequence of being in the minority. Too bad.

Tyranny of the majority? Isn't that one of the things your 'founding fathers' were allegedly rebelling against and why they founded the U.S. as a democratic republic?

 

[Matt1970]

This should be going to the Supreme Court where all mention of god will be removed from money.

The religious right has been complaining about a non existent war on religion for years and now they will actually be getting one

Good luck. The house voted 396-9 in 2011 to reaffirm ‘In God We Trust’ as our national motto. The Senate did it in 2006.

According to a 2003 joint poll by USA Today, CNN, and Gallup, 90% of Americans support the inscription "In God We Trust" on U.S. coins. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_God_we_trust

Sorry but this goes beyond the religious right. And this suit is just plain stupid. It is just some kid being ‘subjected to hearing the words “under God”’ Nobody is forcing anyone to say anything. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Virginia_State_Board_of_Education_v._Barnette Close your fucking ears if you don't like it.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Sorry but this goes beyond the religious right. And this suit is just plain stupid. It is just some kid being ‘subjected to hearing the words “under God”’ Nobody os forcing anyone to say anything. Close your fucking ears if you don't like it.

And, let's face it, at some point the kid is probably going to meet someone with a different take on God than him (or his parents). If the parents do a good job raising him to believe what they believe, he should be able to defend his beliefs when confronted with contradictory information. These parents are just pussing out on the "teaching" part of their responsibility and trying to hide competing information from their child. That's a lazy abdication of responsibility on their part, not some greater cause that mentioning God is somehow destroying fragile little minds. It's the exact same way I feel about people who are against gay marriage because they don't want to deal with their children coming home and asking them about someone they met with two daddies. Just because an idea makes the parents uncomfortable doesn't mean they should try to remove any chance that their child is ever exposed to it; it's the parents' own personal cowardice masquerading as concern.

 

[JEDIYoda]

You mean like the fair sized portion of the American Christian population that continues to insist that the U.S. is a 'Christian Nation' and insists on pushing their particular brand of Christianity on the rest of the country?

You actually know nothing about what the majority of Christians believe. But you evidently were brainwashed into your current bogus understanding of what the majority of Christians believe!!

 

[Victorian Gray]

Quote: Originally Posted by Victorian Gray View Post You mean like the fair sized portion of the American Christian population that continues to insist that the U.S. is a 'Christian Nation' and insists on pushing their particular brand of Christianity on the rest of the country?



You actually know nothing about what the majority of Christians believe. But you evidently were brainwashed into your current bogus understanding of what the majority of Christians believe!!

Would you like to point out just where I said majority of Christians?

 

[Retro Rob]

Tyranny of the majority? Isn't that one of the things your 'founding fathers' were allegedly rebelling against and why they founded the U.S. as a democratic republic?

Tyranny of the minority. We don't want God spoken so to offend our crybaby eardrums, so we're gonna force you to stop saying it.

 

[Victorian Gray]

Tyranny of the minority. We don't want God spoken so to offend our crybaby eardrums, so we're gonna force you to stop saying it.

So, tyranny is someone objecting to the state forcing them to hear about a god that they do not believe in and that the majority is forcing them to listen to on a daily basis.

Yep, makes sense to me...

 

[senseamp]

One nation, indivisible.
Get over it.