And there was one, with a similar bunch of "whereas" boilerplate, in
honor of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. There was a nitwit on Usenet who claimed
that one of the "whereas", by mentioning the Law of Noah, enforced said
code on the US. (It is typical of ideologues to have such difficulty
distinguishing between boilerplate and operative clauses.)
These, like "extensions of remarks" in the Record, may seem like a waste
of time to you and me, but they are not to legislators with their eyes on
their constitutents who are reading the Record.
(I thought the "Armenian Genocide" resolution was a waste of time, being
an exercise in what Snopes calls "slacktivism" instead of paying attention
to people who are alive to suffer now. But they had their eyes firmly on
votes.)
On Sun, 16 Dec 2007, Richard Dougherty wrote:
Well, maybe you will; see below. Congress does this sort of thing regularly.
(Haven't seen one for atheists yet, but I can't keep up.)
Marty: Do you think the "whereas" you cited that was left out was omitted
because it was too over the top, or because the wording of it might actually divide
Christians? (I'm thinking of the specific reference to the Bible especially.)
Richard J. Dougherty
Resolution on Buddhism
(Vietnam):http://usinfo.state.gov/dhr/Archive/2003/Dec/01-499319.html
Resolution on
Judaism:http://www.350th.org/commission/Jewish%20350th%20Res%20passes%20Joint%2011-24.pdf
Resolution on
Islam:http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&x=20071003165444mlenuhret0.9762384&m=October
On Ramadan:http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=14293
-----Original Message-----
From: "Jean Dudley" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent 12/15/2007 11:12:13 PM
To: "Law & Religion issues for Law Academics" <religionlaw@lists.ucla.edu>
Subject: Re: alarming new law?
It's not a law, it's a "non-binding resolution". Legally, it's pabulum. Still, it's a
waste of the House's time, IMO. What effects it has on society at large is up for speculation. I
see it as indicative of a wider mindset that Christians are "persecuted" here and the
world over. Of course they are; As are Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Buddhists, and every other
cultural subset. Susan, you and I will not live to see a resolution like this passed for any other
religion in the good ol' US of A.
JeanOn Dec 15, 2007, at Sat, Dec 15, 8:49 PM, Susan Freiman wrote:This just
came to me from an atheists' list. Is it true?
Susan
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`PRESS RELEASEFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The Council for Secular
Humanism Chides Congress for Disrespecting Religions(December 14, 2007) -- Experts from
the Council for Secular Humanism noted with alarm the passage of H. Res. 847 in the House
of Representatives. This unnecessary, unwarranted, and bigoted law, under the misleading
title "Recognizing the Importance of Christm as and the Christian Faith" passed
the House with overwhelming bipartisan support It effectively undermines the sort of
religious tolerance necessary in these changing times.
Just days ago in the midst of the Jewish Festival of Lights, four Jewish men in New York City
were attacked on the subway for replying to a group of ten people who wished them a
"Merry Christmas" with a similar greeting: "Happy Hanukkah. For this, these
men were first insulted, then beaten. It was a Muslim man who came to their physical defense.
The actions of the Congress, by passing the resolution and thus expressing preference to the
Christian faith over all the others represented by the diverse population of these United
States , encourages this sort of behavior.
The First Amendment's guarantee of religious liberty, and of the
nonestablishment of religion, was devised to create a secular state in which
all religions would be equally tolerated and none given preference. The
language of the House resolution effectively undermines the design of the
Founders, and creates an atmosphere where non-Christians will continue to be
targeted, treated like second-class citizens, and even become victims of
violence like those four Jewish subway riders in New York .
Paul Kurtz , CSH chair, stated, "It is deplorable that in this day and age and in light of
violence against religious minorities here in the United States that the Congress would stoke those
flames with preferential language in support of a single religion." David Koepsell , CSH's
executive director, noted, "Te First Amendment Guarantee was designed to prevent the sort of
religious intolerance that resulted in violence in Europe, and our Congress should respect the
intent of the Founders."
We call on the Congress to reject this resolution, to stand up for religious
freedom, secularism, and pluralism, and to foster a climate in which all
believers and nonbelievers alike are treated
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