Read our lips: No establishment of religion
The Supreme Court ruled today that (1) the 10 Commandments can be posted on a historical monument in on the grounds of the Texas state Capitol, but (2) the 10 Commandments cannot be posted in a Kentucky courthouse to honor its citizens' Judeo-Christian roots. The Court was right on both counts.
We do not want the government in the business of religion. Imagine a state where snake-handling was the official religion. If I find myself in court there, I want zero pressure to conform. But by the same token, there is a line that should not be crossed in outlawing religious references, too. (Note that the "under God" in the pledge of allegiance does not violate the U.S. Constitution, but did cause a problem with California state law.)
In other Court news, Grokster and Streamcast cannot feign innocence when their customers violate copyright laws by sharing files.
Watch for this: The next cool case will be when someone uses Grokster to share a webcast of the Texas 10 Commandments monument onto a computer kiosk in a Kentucky courthouse. Who's up for it?
We do not want the government in the business of religion. Imagine a state where snake-handling was the official religion. If I find myself in court there, I want zero pressure to conform. But by the same token, there is a line that should not be crossed in outlawing religious references, too. (Note that the "under God" in the pledge of allegiance does not violate the U.S. Constitution, but did cause a problem with California state law.)
In other Court news, Grokster and Streamcast cannot feign innocence when their customers violate copyright laws by sharing files.
Watch for this: The next cool case will be when someone uses Grokster to share a webcast of the Texas 10 Commandments monument onto a computer kiosk in a Kentucky courthouse. Who's up for it?
posted by Derek the Great at 1:33 PM
1 Comments:
I, too, am thinking that SCOTUS got this one right. However, at the risk of being a drama queen - I fear that if religion continues to be a viable force in our national identity, our self-definition as a Christian nation may lead us as far as civil war. In matters of belief, there is no room for compromise. Hence the bright line.
P.S. I think "under God" does violate the establishment clause, but we all just ignored it because for the most part we were just different kinds of Protestants.
Post a Comment
<< Home