Re: John Lofton/Oaths

[Steven Jamar]

Jim, are you seriously saying that pluralistic and tolerant are not able to mutually exclusive?  A society cannot be both pluralistic and tolerant?  I've never heard tolerance offered in contrast to pluralistic.  I've only ever seen them hand in hand -- we are pluralistic and tolerant of difference that comes along with being pluralistic.  I guess I've missed something. While I may not substitute salt for sugar, I will use both in one recipe. Steve On Jul 29, 2005, at 6:23 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:   In a recent posting, the term pluralistic was used to describe our society.  Word choices are, or are not, deliberate.  I was trying to flush out the choice, and its purpose.  I "pressed" the question only in the sense that I continue to ask for arguments on one side or the other.  I am asking because I come to the table with an impression about these two words and what kind of thinking is reflected in the choice of one or the other.   In this case, the choice was pluralistic, rather than tolerant.  We may be pluralistic by design.    I have also read and heard, especially in an earlier day, our society referred to as a tolerant one.  And in those cases, tolerance was offered in contrast to pluralism.    Obviously, neither pluralism or tolerance are adopted by those terms as the official governmental ethic in the Constitution of the United States.  Perhaps some use the terms interchangeably, even though they would never substitute salt for sugar in a cookie recipe.    I asked whether a textual argument for one choice or the other exists.  After all, if the Constitution makes us one or other, rather than our preferences doing so, the proof of the point should be at hand.     Jim Henderson Senior Counsel ACLJ --  Prof. Steven D. Jamar                               vox:  202-806-8017 Howard University School of Law                     fax:  202-806-8567 2900 Van Ness Street NW                   mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Washington, DC  20008   http://www.law.howard.edu/faculty/pages/jamar/ "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent.  It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage - to move in the opposite direction." Albert Einstein

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