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Oral arguments were heard in a Massachusetts Superior Court on Monday over a lawsuit filed by an atheist couple who believe that their children are being discriminated against because the Pledge of Allegiance – which is said every day in Mass. public school classrooms under state law – contains the phrase "under God." "The daily recitation in public schools of a pledge declaring that the nation is 'under God' is discriminatory toward atheists and humanists," David Niose, president of the American Humanist Association and lead attorney for the plaintiffs in the case, stated. "No child should go to school each...

In Massachusetts Superior Court a lawsuit has been filed by an atheist couple. They claim their children "are being discriminated against because the Pledge of Allegiance." The Pledge is said in school.. in the classroom. The couple is upset about the phrase "under God." According to The Christian Post.. "The daily recitation in public schools of a pledge declaring that the nation is 'under God' is discriminatory toward atheists and humanists," David Niose, president of the American Humanist Association and lead attorney for the plaintiffs in the case, stated.

Acton,Ma. - This morning, Superior Court Judge Jane Haggerty is scheduled to hear arguments in Doe vs. Acton-Boxborough Regional School District. The case, brought by an Acton family, asks the court to order Acton schools to remove the phrase “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance. The plaintiffs, who call themselves the “Does” to protect their identity, are atheists — albeit not particularly courageous ones, as they attempt to remain anonymous in their lack of belief. The Doe case is only the most recent example of the abuse of our legal system by plaintiffs who seek to cleanse society of...

Under GodFebruary 7 is a notable historical day for the acknowledgment of God in modern America: it is the day that a sermon was preached before President Dwight D. Eisenhower, suggesting that the words "under God" be added to the pledge. The sermon was preached by the Rev. George M. Docherty, pastor of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D. C. (you can download and see the full sermon, with his notes and additions). This sermon was preached for Lincoln Day, and it had a great impact on those listening, including President Eisenhower, who was seated in the same...

Newt takes no-adultery pledge By ALEXANDER BURNS | 12/12/11 1:09 PM EST When the Iowa social conservative group The Family Leader unveiled a sweeping pledge on marriage and abortion over the summer, Newt Gingrich was one of the candidates who passed on signing it. Now, Gingrich has answered the pledge with a lengthy written response, vowing to support a federal marriage amendment, reinstate the Mexico City policy -- and, per the stipulations of The Family Leader pledge, to be faithful to his wife: I also pledge to uphold the institution of marriage through personal fidelity to my spouse and respect...

Atheists and radical church-state separatists have taken particular offense to the continued uttering of the Pledge of Allegiance. To these individuals, the words “under God” have no place in the public square, even when utterances are voluntary in nature. Now, there’s a new epicenter in the debate over the Pledge. Following the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the University of Connecticut’s interim athletic director, Paul Pendergast, decided to add the recitation as a viable way for individuals to remember both the nation and U.S. troops. Following his decision, the Pledge was first uttered after a home football game...

UConn interim athletic director Paul Pendergast said he was impressed with the way the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce begins its functions with the Pledge of Allegiance and how Hartford radio icon Brad Davis uses it on his WDRC show. And in the year of the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Pendergast thought employing the Pledge of Allegiance before UConn basketball games would be a worthwhile tribute to the nation and enrich the university. So it has been used since the beginning of the season before the National Anthem. "I've noticed each time we do it there has...

Herman Cain Reverses, Signs Pro-Life Pledge on Abortion Washington, DC -- Herman Cain has reversed position and decided to sign a pro-life pledge on abortion a prominent pro-life group has had other Republican presidential hopefuls sign that Cain initially declined to attach his name to months ago. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/11/22/herman-cain-reverses-signs-pro-life-pledge-on-abortion/

Herman Cain Reverses, Signs Pro-Life Pledge on Abortion Washington, DC -- Herman Cain has reversed position and decided to sign a pro-life pledge on abortion a prominent pro-life group has had other Republican presidential hopefuls sign that Cain initially declined to attach his name to months ago. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/11/22/herman-cain-reverses-signs-pro-life-pledge-on-abortion/

Deval Patrick flatly refused to take a side on whether the Pledge of Allegiance should be banned in schools, dodging questions on Brookline’s controversy over patriotism yesterday. The proposal by a group of Brookline peace activists to ban the pledge in town schools — proposed the week of the anniversary of the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 — has outraged the families of both 9/11 victims and soldiers killed in action. More traditional residents of Brookline were shocked by the latest evidence of how far left their leafy suburb has lurched. “It’s the most asinine thing,” said Frances Greenleaf Hall...

Days before the 10th anniversary of 9/11 a leader from a group in Massachusetts is calling on public schools in one town to ban students from reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, saying it has no educational value and the pressure it places on children to participate makes his “skin crawl,” The Boston Globe reported. Martin Rosenthal, the co-chair of Brookline Political Action for Peace, or Brookline Pax, told the paper the pledge puts “kids in an uncomfortable situation” and doesn’t belong in schools. The group, therefore, will ask town meeting voters in November to pass a nonbinding resolution on the...

WASHINGTON – The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) released the following statement today announcing that Gov. Rick Perry has signed their marriage pledge: "Kudos to Gov. Rick Perry for making it clear: he's a marriage champion!," said Brian Brown, president of NOM. "The purpose of NOM's Marriage Pledge is to move from vague values statements to concrete actions to protect marriage. Gov. Perry joins Michele Bachmann, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum as a signer of NOM Marriage Pledge. By doing so, Perry makes crystal clear that, contrary to the conventional wisdom, gay marriage is going to be a bigger issue...

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has joined Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Sen. Pennsylvania Rick Santorum in signing a pledge to oppose same-sex marriage on a number of specific fronts. The three candidates signed the pledge advanced by the National Organization for Marriage, which has led national and state campaigns to limit marriage to a man and a woman. The signature of the front-runner, Romney, is a bit of a coup for the group, as he's been careful about committing to other pledges, including a broad promise to a socially conservative Iowa group that caused trouble for other candidates....

It now appears that the ACLJ has less than two weeks to file a legal brief backing the cross at the new Ground Zero Museum. This is being challenged in court by the American Atheists. It is their view (the ACLJ) that the lawsuit is without merit. The cross was formed by two intersecting steel beams that survived the Twin Towers collapse on 9-11. According to the radio station that I heard this information, you can sign the petition at 1-877-989-2255 OR you can log onto Aclj.com and look under "Radio Årchives". ** I apologize if this format is incorrect...

Mitt Romney did the right thing by rejecting a social conservative group’s repulsive “marriage pledge.” Will he explain his reasoning? As Michele Bachmann and Rick Santorum bent over backward to endorse a right wing document pledging allegiance to conservative values, the Romney campaign says that while their candidate supports “traditional marriage,” he finds some of the pledge’s “references and provisions [to be] undignified and inappropriate for a presidential campaign.” The pledge, put out last week by right wing activist Bob Vander Plaats and his group, The Family Leader, reads like a hit list on American freedoms. One of the document’s...

The Brody File has learned that The Family Leader, an influential pro-family group in Iowa will ask each of the 2012 presidential candidates to sign a marriage pledge that professes everything from marital fidelity to embracing a federal marriage amendment. The document, which has a total of fourteen points is called, “The Marriage Vow-A Declaration of Dependence Upon Marriage and Family”

An unexpected battle over the minutes of the Bowie County Commissioner’s Court meeting erupted at its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, June 27. At the last meeting on June 13, the commissioners approved the minutes of May 23 but in doing so set off a firestorm of controversy because in an amended version of the minutes, the court voting 3-1 with Pct. 3 Commissioner Kelly Blackburn absent, the voted to remove the prayer and the pledge of allegiance from the minutes. From the official minutes of that meeting, Pct, 4 Commissioner Pat McCoy said “he did not approve of the...

Bachmann won't commit to 'Cut, Cap and Balance' pledge By: CNN Political Reporter Peter Hamby Rock Hill, South Carolina (CNN) - Nearly every Republican presidential candidate has pledged to sign the "Cut, Cap and Balance" pledge to slash government spending, but U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann is not ready to commit. Her reason? It doesn't go far enough. The pledge, backed by more than 150 conservative groups and a dozen GOP Republican senators, demands that Congress not raise the debt ceiling unless it passes "substantial" budget cuts and spending caps along with a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Former...

An Oregon town's City Council voted down a proposal to say the Pledge of Allegiance before every council meeting, but later passed a compromise that seemed to make no one happy. The approved measure allows the pledge to be recited at just four Eugene City Council meetings a year, those closest to the Fourth of July, Veterans Day, Memorial Day and Flag Day. It was supposed to be simple, but Councilman Mike Clark soon found out when you’re dealing with God and country, nothing in Eugene is easy.

Mark this up as yet another knock against the pledge, which seems to be happening frequently as of late and particularly within the mainstream media. In Oregon, the Eugene Town Council voted 5-2 against a motion to recite the pledge at the opening of every town meeting. There was a compromise allowing the pledge to be said 4 times a year but only on certain holidays. One council member who voted for the ban said reading the pledge was like reading the Communist Manifesto before every meeting. Yes, you read that correctly on both counts. The compromise struck allows the...

  One Nation Under…What? David C. Stolinsky June 23, 2011 While broadcasting the U.S. Open Golf Tournament, NBC ran a segment showing schoolchildren reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. But the words “under God” were omitted. NBC claimed the omission was accidental, and apologized to anyone who was offended. Note that NBC apologized for giving offense, but did not apologize for editing out part of what actually happened. That a “news” organization does not believe altering facts deserves an apology is revealing indeed. What else does it alter, but we don’t know? Interestingly, “indivisible” was also omitted. Does someone at...

On Sept. 7, 1965, I stepped into an American classroom for the first time. I was nervous, but in that the Beatles had been on the Ed Sullivan Show just before that and I had a similar English accent (Sheffield, not Liverpool), I was quite a novelty and the nerves soon went away. Then, without warning, I was asked, along with all of the other kids in Mrs. Imhoff’s sixth-grade class at East Elementary in Tillamook, to recite the Pledge of Allegiance. I didn’t know the words, but Debbie Johnson, standing next to me, did. And she was proud to...

What do you think of NBC's decision to cut the words 'under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance during a patriotic video aired for the network's US Open coverage? It's offensive! It's not patriotic if the network is rewriting the Pledge! It was the right thing to do, since there should be true seperation (sic) of church and state! It's not a big deal either way

Listen to the pledge of allegiance that runs alongside the patriotic images, and later to the one that overlays video of previous U.S. Open winners: (VIDEO)

Michele Bachmann Bashes Romney for Not Signing Pro-Life Pledge by Steven Ertelt | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 6/19/11 3:36 PM Congresswoman Michele Bachmann today bashed Mitt Romney in what could be the first of many Republican presidential clashes over the issue of abortion. Bachmann cicatrized the former Massachusetts governor for not signing a pro-life presidential pledge. As LifeNews.com reported, the Susan B. Anthony List unveiled the pledge on Friday and indicated Bachmann, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul signed it. The pledge has the candidates promising to support only judicial nominees who won’t interpret the Constitution...

The U.S. Supreme Court Washington D.C., Jun 16, 2011 / 06:08 am (CNA).- On June 13, the Supreme Court ruled against atheist activist Michael Newdow's latest attempt to remove the words “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance.“Not surprisingly, the Supreme Court has again rejected the argument that saying the Pledge of your own free will creates an official state religion,” said attorney Eric Rassbach, litigation director at the religious liberty defense group the Becket Fund. “The words 'one nation under God' make clear the bedrock American principle that our rights come not from the State, but are endowed...

Kids refuse to say the Pledge of Allegiance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT4FHUet988

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) talks about how he enjoys hearing the pledge of allegiance at the beginning of the Senate session, however does not say "under God." Instead, he says "one nation, indivisible."

So to get to $100 billion, House Republicans are using a gimmick. They're measuring their cuts not against the actual level of spending. What they're doing instead is cutting against the airy fairy numbers in President Obama's proposed fiscal 2011 budget. That budget was never passed. It might as well be a unicorn because it doesn't really exist.

"A controversy is brewing at San Francisco’s City Hall over one of the newest members of the Board of Supervisors who refuses to recite the pledge of allegiance. District Six Supervisor Jane Kim rises with her fellow supervisors for the Pledge of Allegiance at each session of the Board of Supervisors, but she does not recite the pledge and has not done so since taking office last month, Fox KTVU reports. Kim said that she believes it is a personal decision of how to honor the flag and country and has been surprised by the criticism. "I don't think our...

It is rare today to find a conservative who doesn’t think, that anyone who refuses to say the pledge of allegiance is traitor or a socialist or both. The pledge is recited at the beginning of so many different types of gatherings from public schools to “Tea Parties” to you name it. Try to find an American who doesn’t know the words by heart, let me know how that works out for ya. If only more Americans knew their Constitution this well, or for that matter, the truth about the pledge of allegiance, I am certain that America would be...

At a recent Board of Supervisors meeting in San Francisco (District 6), newly elected Board Supervisor Jane Kim, to the shock and dismay of patriotic Americans everywhere, refuses to say America’s Pledge of Allegiance. The San Francisco Examiner reports: “Kim’s objection to the pledge, she says, is that the ideals it speaks of are not reality, specifically its conclusion, which says “with liberty and justice for all.” Kim says the nation is just not there yet.” While Kim has a right to be anti-American and fill a position of authority in American government nonetheless, we as patriotic Americans, have a...

Grab your barf bags. You're going to need them when viewing this video produced by Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, featuring celebrities making sacred pledges to lord Barack Obama to support a whole host of trendy causes as well as feel-good poses and posted at MySpace Celebrity. Here is how the "Presidential Pledge" is described: Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore team with MySpace Celebrity and celebrate Barack Obama's presidential inauguration in a truly inspiring way with The Presidential Pledge, a moving video directed by Demi and produced by Ashton’s Katalyst Films. Reflecting Barack’s call for change, the film features over...

The principal of a public school in Brookline, Mass., is asking parents to fill out permission slips before their children can participate in a weekly recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. Gerardo Martinez, the principal of The Devotion School, informed parents that the school would begin reciting the pledge in January over the public address system. Attached to the letter was a form that asked parents to check either: "Yes, my child will participate in the weekly Pledge of Allegiance" or "No, my child will not participate in the weekly Pledge of Allegiance." "I urge you to have a conversation...

Disgusting… Radical Rep. McCollum Says Tea Partiers Are Anti-American & Racist Haters For Posting Video of Her Omitting “Under God” From Pledge Radical Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) Says Tea Partiers Are Anti-American & Racist Haters For Posting Video of Her Omitting “Under God” From Pledge What gall… Earlier this week Nor Cal Blogs released video of far left Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) omitting the words “under God” while leading the Pledge of Allegiance on the floor of the US House of Representatives.

Congresswoman Betty McCollum is claiming that conservatives like me are inciting hate, racism, and intolerance by showing the world that she has no respect for our pledge. In the article that had the video attached to it, I also stated that she is a hypocritical Christian because she runs around using her Catholic faith as a reason she should be re-elected.  So she is also claiming that I am attacking her faith. It all began on Sunday when I posted a video of the Congresswoman from Minnesota's 4th District leading the Pledge of Allegiance on the floor of the...

What is it with the League of Woman’s Voters and the Pledge of Allegiance? For the second time in less than a week a congressional debate began with a request for the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, and for the second time in a week the League of Woman’s Voters moderator said no, and for the second time in a week the audience got up and said it anyway. One would think that with all of the bad publicity after last week’s incident, the League would have “gotten it.” But Tuesday night the League of Woman Voters proved that...

In a deja vu moment, a second crowd interrupts a Leave of Women Voters moderator to say the Pledge of Allegiance. A few days ago we posted a video of a crowd jumping to their feet to say the Pledge. That happened after an audience member asked the ACORN activist League of Women Voters moderator "Are we going to say the Pledge of Allegiance?", which she promptly stated "No we are not. That’s not part of the proposal tonight." The crowd defied her reply and stood to say the Pledge anyway. That same incident happened again as the debate between...

At a debate sponsored by the Illinois League of Women Voters between Democratic incumbent Rep. Melissa Bean, GOP challenger Joe Walsh and Green Party candidate Bill Scheurer Wednesday, the audience loudly objected when the moderator, Kathy Tate-Bradish, insisted on proceeding without reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. In the end, she didn’t stand a chance against the 300-member audience. The camera captures Republican Joe Walsh’s reaction: Ms. Tate-Bradish reportedly scolded the crowd after the pledge ended, blaming the outburst on the Republican candidate. The LWV executive director, Jan Czarnik, also condemned the Pledge’s recitation, telling the local news, “It’s a phony...

In the 8th Congressional District in Illinois there is a three way race between Democrat Incumbent Melissa Bean, Republican Candidate Joe Walsh and the Green Party’s Bill Scheurer. In a debate last week which was sponsored and moderated by the League of Women Voters a spontaneous recitation of The Pledge of Allegiance broke out, much to the dismay of moderator Kathy Tate-Bradish of the LoWV. During the opening of the event, an audience member stood up and requested that The Pledge of Allegiance be recited. Tate-Brandish said that it would not be recited because it was not on the schedule...

At a U.S. congressional candidate debate this past week, the crowd of approximately 300 in attendance drowned out the moderator's objections, not to protest over government policies or to argue some candidate's comments, but to insist upon reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Illinois' 8th Congressional District candidates had gathered at Grayslake Central High School in Grayslake, Ill., to participate in a debate moderated by Kathy Tate-Bradish of the League of Women Voters, Evanston branch. During Tate-Bradish's opening comments, an audience member stood to ask if the Pledge of Allegiance would be recited. "No, we are not," the moderator responded, "That...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M61pDT05A8 Gotta love it.

Priceless! Here is video of an Illinois crowd spontaneously rising to their feet to say the Pledge of Allegiance, even though the League of Women Voters’ Moderator had said they had no plan to do so. A man calls for a point of order to ask the moderator if they are going to say the Pledge, to which the moderator said, “No we are not.” As the moderator tried to explain why they would not be saying the Pledge – the crowd rose to their feet and began saying the Pledge! Republican Joe Walsh – candidate for Illinois’ 8th Congressional...

The phone rang and it was Ross Perot, who hasn't given an interview in years. Perot, who won 19 percent of the vote in the 1992 presidential election, making him one of the strongest third-party candidates in American history, got straight to the point. "Remember what you wrote about John McCain in the March 13, 2000, NEWSWEEK?" "Sure," I lied. "When McCain called Perot 'nuttier than a fruitcake'?" The Texas billionaire, now 77, still has some scores to settle from the Vietnam era, and his timing is exquisite. Just days before the South Carolina GOP primary, he wants me to...

"The crowd breaks into an impromptu Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of the candidates forum between 8th Congressional District (Illinois) candidates Joe Walsh, Melissa Bean and Bill Scheurer at Grayslake Central High School."

Dear Rep. Garrett, I'm a tea-partier. I like the job you are doing. But, about that pledge. Money talks, you-know-what walks. That's the rule the tea party is trying to lay down. Don't worry; As far as I'm concerned you're fine. But I'd be careful about associating TOO closely with the GOP right now. We voters know you are a solid conservative, especially on fiscal matters. We wouldn't vote for you repeatedly if it weren't so. But the GOP is a sick old doggy, as far as I'm concerned. The Pledge is just words, and probably a waste of time...

he Republican Party made a spectacular mistake in publishing their “A Pledge to America.” In an attempt to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory they have raised questions about their own party’s commitment to issues their base is most concerned with and about which they would like answers. For instance, the pledge says nothing about a fence along the US/Mexico border. It is ambiguous about worksite enforcement of immigration laws and, most important of all, it does not mention amnesty for illegal aliens. WHY??? The 2008 Republican Platform committed the Republican Party to completing a border fence, enforcing immigration...

Last week the House Republicans issued their update of the 1994 "Contract With America." They have labeled it the "Pledge To America," and it was launched to a standing ovation from House Republicans. On Friday I spoke to Representative Peter Roskam (R, Ill.) and asked a few questions about this new effort. Roskam said that the preamble of the pledge, "which is really, I think, moving," was met with a standing ovation when it was presented to all the Hose Republicans and the representative was pleased that the National Review said that the new pledge was bolder than the original...

"Democrats are already tagging the events as campaign gimmicks, which, of course, they are. But in the stunts can be seen evidence that one political party is finally taking seriously public demands for reform and change ... (and ending) irresponsible spending, oppressive taxation and regulation, harmful social policy and self-aggrandizement." Was this a hastily penned conservative response to the Pledge to America unveiled Thursday morning by House Republicans? Not exactly. It's a passage from The Sunday Republican's lead editorial Sept. 25, 1994, after Newt Gingrich's insurgent, resurgent GOP issued its Contract With America. The Contract was a specific set of...