Posted on 08/21/2003 8:01:22 PM PDT by Lando Lincoln
Liberals seem to have a tough time deciphering certain portions of the writings of our Founding Fathers. Specifically, the Bill of Rights really seems to trip them up. For example, they read the Second Amendment protecting the right of the people to keep and bear arms to mean a right to carry a gun only if you are in the National Guard.
Now the fact that the National Guard did not exist at the time the Constitution was written does not faze Liberals, they simply dislike what the Bill of Rights says so they create a new definition for it. A definition, which suits their agenda of limited liberties instead of, limited government.
No amendment trips the Left up more often though than the very first one. Especially the first line of this Amendment. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
Now really this is pretty clear and extremely easy to understand. The Amendment prevents Congress from making any law favoring any specific religion while protecting our right to exercise whichever religion we choose freely.
Truly no free society could ever have it any other way. The First Amendment guarantees no American will be forced to financially support, or attend any establishment of religion. Yet Liberals have really missed the mark on this one.
To suit their meaning they have construed the First Amendment to mean no religion of any kind, especially Christian religions, in public at all. No Manger scenes at Christmas, no Ten Commandments in a government building, no teaching creationism in schools, no mentioning God anywhere but church or home. Of course this is asinine. The Founders were very clear in regards to the freedom of religion.
A town placing a Nativity scene on a courthouse lawn is not a violation of the Constitution. Nothing in the Constitution comes even remotely close to banning this. After all Congress, which the First Amendment prevents from making laws respecting an establishment of religion, has nothing to do with placing the manger scene there does it?
The same applies with teaching creation in schools. Certainly teaching the scientific evidence of Creation and discussing it with students neither curtails the free exercise of religion or forces an establishment of religion on the students.
Certainly a Judge, or any government official placing a copy of the Ten Commandments on the wall of his office is not an act of Congress either so that too is not a violation of our constitution.
Yet Liberal Judges and lawyers and Liberal activists have been allowed to twist and pervert the meaning of the First Amendment to ban any mention of religion in the public forum. They have done this simply to suit their ideology and vision of America.
This vision is one where God and any mention of Him are limited to the privacy of your home or to a church setting. To Liberals God does not deserve a place in our government at all. Despite the fact our nation was founded on Judeo-Christian principles, and despite the fact many of our Founders were believers who credited our Creator with the blessings of liberty.
Yet Liberals continue in their fervent desire to erase any mention of God, the Bible, or Christianity in our nation. Why do they campaign so eagerly for God to be escorted out of our schools, government, courtrooms, and public places?
Simply put God is not only our Creator but also the source of all liberty, and the source of our nations founding. The Founders made all this very, very clear. And this scenario my friends just does not match the Liberal utopian fantasy the Left wants America to be.
In Liberal think government, run by Liberals of course, is the sole source of liberty and the judge of how much liberty the people can be trusted with. God gets in the way of this since He is the true source of our freedoms. So Liberals must first push God out of the way before they can establish their god, government, as the Supreme Being.
Hence the steady campaign by the Left to remove God as far as possible from as many places as possible.
Now I am sure to get angry emails from God-fearing Liberals protesting this column. And surely there will be those who insist there is a separation of church and state which prevents public displays of religion. But here is the challenge to those well meaning folks. Tell me exactly which religion is established by posting the Ten Commandments or teaching creation? Tell me how Congress has respected an establishment of religion when these things occur?
The fact is I have asked many these questions and never received a satisfactory answer. The First Amendment is very clear and concise. Liberals just do not like what it says.
The Liberal God - Government! The liberal god, big government:
Sin: Laws passed en masse for which you can be punished. Examples: Drinking too much, smoking in bars (California), rape, murder, theft, incest, having a garage sale without a permit, etc ad nauseum
If you sin/break law you will be punished. There are laws for every thing and we are watching!
Tithing: We will take a percentage of your income, the bigger the better, to build up our empire/churches. Examples: Money for forests, art, roads, military (as little as possible), family planning, to pay our priests, etc
if you fail to pay you will incur the wrath of your government
We know all!: We will watch you and know when you disobey/sin - we know all and see all. Examples: Databases, licensing, social security number, carnivore, phone records, an so on.
We will assign you each a 'guardian' angel/agent to watch over you, for your own safety of course!
You will worship us: You will come to places of worship and sign papers acknowledging our power. Examples: Come to the BMV to register your car, sign papers for when you work, get an ID, and so forth
By signing our paperwork you agree to the terms of living here and paying tribute to us. Failure to do so will be a sin and you will be damned. Acknowledge/Believe or else!
We will protect you: As your deity we will insure you are safe, unless you're a sinner of course!
Examples: We will stop your sinful smoking and drinking, make you wear seatbelts, put warnings on everything, we will spare nothing to insure the safety of children. We will think for you, after all we are superior and know better then you what is right and wrong!
Education: We will educate your children into our ways so they may be good servants...err citizens! Examples: Since we know best we will teach them what we feel and believe, regardless of what you teach them. Trust us....
Your faith is silly and the things you believe are wrong - so we will set your kids straight for you, no need to worry. etc, etc.
I often find people rejecting most faiths because they do not want to be made to feel guilty or that it is too restrictive (such as a fundamentalist's stand on abortion, homosexuality, etc and so on) - yet looking at what they propose I find them FAR MORE restrictive. They have passed more laws then we could pack into a Bible and call sins.
My object in life is to dethrone God and destroy capitalism.
Karl Marx
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