Mom just sent me the "One nation under GOD" email

[Sentath]

The text goes:

"I was asked to send this on if I agree or delete if I don't.  
What do you think about this?

Forward if U agree, if not, delete

(image of two caucasian children praying against a flag background)

It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore I have a very
 hard time understanding why there is such a mess about having "In God 
We Trust" on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why
 don't we just tell the 14% to Sit Down and SHUT UP!!!

If you agree, pass this on, if not delete. . ."

And I'm wondering how on earth do I respond to this?

[MissMillie]

1. Send her a copy of the Bill of Rights (nt/)

.

[Rabrrrrrr]

3. and that our founders felt it was important to make sure that the

majority couldn't tyrranize the few.

What a stupid email; what a stupid, toddler-like answer to a non-problem. How O'Reilly! "Shut up! Just shut up! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"

[jono]

4. Agree - send the Bill of Rights (nt)

[onebigbadwulf]

2. Yeah

That's what the Nazi party said to the jews

[MercutioATC]

5. I doubt the the majority of voting Americans wanted to let women vote.

If it was all about "majority rule", your mother wouldn't be voting...

[GainesT1958]

6. Sounds a lot like that chain e-mail...

Came straight off of Bill "O'Really's" desk!:eyes:

B-)

[Barad Simith]

26. YEAH!!!

What a great answer. Thank you.

[judge_smales]

7. And wether or not

children belive in God has nothing to do with the issue. It's the separation of Church and State and our adherence to the Constitution that is at issue.

[DBoon]

21. Santa Claus, too

Some large portion of children believe in santa claus, too.

Why not add that to the pledge?

[VelmaD]

8. Well, my basic response...

would be "Suck My Ass!" but then my mom wouldn't send something like that unless it was part of a story about how someone sent it to her and she told them to Suck Her Ass!

So you're probably better off sending a copy of teh Bill of Rights. :-)

[Screaming Lord Byron]

9. Let's have refresher courses in democracy

sounds like these people could use it.

[acmavm]

10. Just think about it. What is the picture that you described on that e-mail

Two caucasian children praying in front of an American flag. Now, if that isn't the poster for fundamental propaganda, there isn't one. Secondly, belief in God is not the problem. Pushing the particular belief of the people who sponsor these e-mails is. Third, the founding father's of this country had a profound belief in God. They also had first-hand experience of the grief and problems and hardships suffered by people because of religious discrimination. The English had gone through a terrible civil war because of the establishment of a state religion. Read up on Oliver Cromwell.

The e-mail you got is bogus. It's not the issue of "in God we trust" or "under God" in the Pledge of Allegance. It's the inescapable fact that the people who are so damn interested in cramming religion down everyone's throats right now have a very strange concept of the human relationship of man and God. They are judgemental, arrogant, unforgiving, mean-spirited, petty, and bigoted.

[Demobrat]

11. There's this little thing our founders called

separation of church and state. Believe whatever you want, but don't use the government to force it on me.

[a_random_joel]

12. Send her the original Pledge (and info on Bellamy - who wrote it)

Be sure to Reply to all, so you can CC all the idiots who keep forwarding such trash.

The origianl Pledge was written by a Socialist(gasp!), Baptist minister and never had the words "under God" in it.

If interested, read more about it here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/cgi-bin/duforum/duboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=10801&forum=DCForumID38&archive=

[Nailzberg]

13. That is unAmerican thought.

The reason the separation of church and state exists is to protect the minority belief from the majority.

Under the Constitution, that 14% have every right to not believe in God. Further, it is a basic tenet of American thought that not only should that 14% be allowed their belief, but that they should not be hassled for having such a belief.
That is why a wall of separation exists. Because we should not look down upon the minority belief, nor extend any different treatment to a minority belief that we would not accept applied to ourselves.
To put the majority rule in perspective - If a predominately Muslim community wanted to make the school children recite "One Nation Under Allah" how would the Christians in the community feel about it then.

Further, the 86% figure is a poor figure to use. 86% may believe in a higher deity, but not everyone's God is the same god. The God of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity is the same deity. However there are other religions in the world, and other religions represented here in the US. While that western God may be the prominent God in the US, to state 86% believe in God makes an assumption that 86% believe in the same God.


Or you could just tell Mom to shove it, but that might make Thanksgiving uncomfortable.

[david_vincent]

14. Send her this quote

"The government of the United States of America is not in any way founded on the principles of the Christian religion."
JOHN ADAMS

[Wwagsthedog]

15. God? What God? Mars?

n/t

[Screaming Lord Byron]

17. Always thought it was Dionysius myself.

Though I'd settle for Bacchus.

[Az]

27. Hail Eris!

Goddess of Discord! Fnord!!!

Or how bout Cthulhu, the old net standbye. What about Bob (Church of the SubGenius)? And please never forget the Invisible Pink Unicorn (IPU to her friends).

[Kamika]

16. easy answer

"sit down and SHUT UP"

[stopbush]

18. I wonder how many of the 86% would chose to die for their

belief in god as many Xtians and others have throughout history. Put a gun to their head - renounce your god or I shoot.

In America, at least, I think you'd be lucky to get 14% to say they were still believers.

On the other hand, put a gun to a parent's head - it's you or your children - and 98% of parents will take the bullet.

I know, it's a stupid analogy, but I think religious belief in this country is a mile wide and an inch deep - sort of like support for shrub.

The original e-mail is simply another divide-and-conquer ploy by the right wing.

[izzie]

19. Tell her a socialist wrote the pledge

(We know all those people should be in Cuba.)It had not one thing to do with God it was a thing for national feeling only.Like raising your arm and swearing to the flag and what other country did that? This is not founding father's stuff.What is wrong with these people?

[TXlib]

20. Senders of email like that just need a good Cleveland Steamer.

[BlueJazz]

22. Tell her that many parts of Europe...

....lived under a State Religion at one time.

It was called the Dark Ages.

[Az]

23. Ask her what the first thing in the first ammendment is

Think about that for a second. The very first thing in the very first ammendment they make a point to mention is freedom of religion. Must be pretty important.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Take a look at it. Freedom of religion comes before speech, before the press, before guns, before anything else. Freedom of religion means freedom of mind. If your mind isn't free then nothing else is.

[damnraddem]

24. We aint sitting down.

We aint shutting up.

It's no one else's business whether or not we're among the 14% who don't believe in God.

[HEyHEY]

25. try this

"Mom, I love you, but din't send me this crap again"

[Sentath]

28. Thank You All

My reply this evening was:

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

One nation under God.
One nation under Jehova.
One nation under Allah.
One nation under Mars.
One nation under Baal.

I don't think so. If any other religion tried this we'd be saying "This is a nation of laws, please keep your religion out of it."