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Posted on 12/11/2006 10:13:29 PM PST by TheBigB
SEATAC, Wash. — The Christmas trees are going back up at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Port of Seattle officials had ordered the trees taken down over the weekend after a local rabbi threatened a lawsuit if a menorah wasn't also displayed at the airport.
Airport officials say they took that action out of concern that if they allowed the addition of a menorah, they would also have to display symbols of other religions and cultures, which was not something airport workers had time for during the busiest travel season of the year.
Rabbi Elazar Bogomilsky says he never asked that the trees be taken down, and the threat of a lawsuit was withdrawn.
With the threat of the lawsuit gone, airport spokesman Bob Parker says all 14 trees will go back up -- hopefully by tomorrow morning.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Have a nice day.
No Sorry, can't have that!
Use of the word "Day" implies sun worshippers, ie followers of Ra, Apollo or Amaterasu, and would exclude those that worship the Night of Shiva, amongst others....
This is clearly a devisive and imflammatory statement..
Welcome aboard! And thanks for the first hand account...and more importantly, thank you for serving in the Military!!
Merry Christmas!
I don't do any "suggesting", I'm not presuming anything or reaching any conclusions. His words are clear and misunderstandable.
A creche, menorah, or crucifix's display has to be done in a way that makes it clear it is not done to endorse a religion, by law.
Not a decorated tree.
I don't know what they'll do next year, they say they're going to discuss it with the rabbi and others- so I guess he had success.
If the court reviews Lemon- even with the current members- they'll be able to display about whatever they want.
Might this be the birth of the death of Political Correctness?
So far.
No; I was drawing a comparison to the empty, legalistic definition of National Holiday with regard to Christmas as only connoting a day off from work.
Ho Ho Ho! Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday once again- to the world's greatest Jew!
It's a long decision. You left out the preceding paragraph, which sets the stage for your quote
Accordingly, the relevant question for Establishment Clause purposes is whether the combined display of the tree, the sign, and the menorah has the effect of endorsing both Christian and Jewish faiths, or rather simply recognizes that both Christmas and Chanukah are part of the same winter-holiday season, which has attained a secular status in our society. Of the two interpretations of this particular display, the latter seems far more plausible and is also in line with Lynch
While the tree on it's own is not a religious symbol, in the context of it's display with a Menorah, it serves the purpose of recognizing Christianity. If it didn't the court would have ordered the Menorahs removal, as it did with the Creche, not because it was a religious symbol, because it stood alone with no symbols of other religions, thus constituted an endorsement.
However the Sea-Tac situation differs in a significant way. In Allegheny the ACLU was suing to have the displays removed. Had there been a suit here, it would have been to require a display. At this point it's academic.
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How long until someone else makes the threat? It apparently only takes one idiot to make SEATAC wither.
SEATAC? Where is the ACLU? Death to Political Correctness!!
Could you point me to an exact quote from the Rabbi where he did what say here. All I have read is the typical democrat appology of pointing the finger at the other party and declaring yourself the victim and it was all a misunderstanding.
The same exact thing that is wrong with placing a manger scene there.
See?... we just start ex·ert·ing our power, just like every other darn group does... we have to learn from them :)
(From your remarks you missed that it was the menorah that was at issue, not the tree. )
It is clear that the trees did not raise a First Amendment issue for the Rabbi, any more than a snowman or Santa would have. Whether one agrees or not that the tree is secular, it was deemed so by the Supreme Court so they could keep their Lemon Test.
Displaying a menorah OTOJ does raise a First Amendment issue. It doesn't look like it would be hard to address it, the trees are already there and just a "liberty sign" would meet "Alleghany". But It opens them up to other demands by other groups today: Wiccans and Moslems and various Christian and other sects.
Sure it's academic, but facts matter. The Rabbi did not have a case.
You have three socks?
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