28th February 2003, 11:22 PM
For that matter, why should we be forced to spend money with the phrase "in God we trust" printed on it? /sarcasm
My main issue with the pledge is that you are forcing people to take a pledge. That should be something people choose to do freely, or there is no meaning behind it.
Just to clarify, the seperation of church and state doesn't mean religion isn't allowed to influence those in power so much as that those in power aren't allowed to force the religion on the masses. A public official who publicly supports one religion is NOT a bad thing. A public official who derides those who don't support that religion is. Oh, and don't get into some huge stupidity about how one person supporting something is making someone feel bad for not agreeing with it, because that's quite possibly the stupidest thing in the world. Hey, I never once had a single interest in any sports teams or pep rallies when I was a kid, but at the same time I never once felt like I was being persecuted just because they HAD pep rallies. "Left out of the group"? Sure, that's a fact, but why on Earth should I be pandered to for something like that? It's not persecution just because a large number of people happen to be in a group that I by my own choice have left myself out of.
My main issue with the pledge is that you are forcing people to take a pledge. That should be something people choose to do freely, or there is no meaning behind it.
Just to clarify, the seperation of church and state doesn't mean religion isn't allowed to influence those in power so much as that those in power aren't allowed to force the religion on the masses. A public official who publicly supports one religion is NOT a bad thing. A public official who derides those who don't support that religion is. Oh, and don't get into some huge stupidity about how one person supporting something is making someone feel bad for not agreeing with it, because that's quite possibly the stupidest thing in the world. Hey, I never once had a single interest in any sports teams or pep rallies when I was a kid, but at the same time I never once felt like I was being persecuted just because they HAD pep rallies. "Left out of the group"? Sure, that's a fact, but why on Earth should I be pandered to for something like that? It's not persecution just because a large number of people happen to be in a group that I by my own choice have left myself out of.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)