But if the mural comes down, how will the public school students know how and when to pray and which deity to beseech?

Can I assume this was submitted as flamebait from the lack of subscriber comments?

I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

Man, some days I really feel for judges. You somehow make it through years of lawyering with your ethics and respect for the law somehow still more or less intact, and your reward is to be repeatedly exposed to the stupidest arguments over the most trivial bullshiat in the history of trivial bullshiat.

That's gotta suck.

It frustrates me that there are people who are so blinded by their sectarian cult leaders that they actually think that such things have only a secular purpose.

Crotchrocket Slim: Can I assume this was submitted as flamebait from the lack of subscriber comments?

I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

They're right wing religious fanatics, all their explanations are completely retarded.

Hail Satan!

max_pooper: Crotchrocket Slim: Can I assume this was submitted as flamebait from the lack of subscriber comments?

I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

They're right wing religious fanatics, all their explanations are completely retarded.

But they're retarded because God intelligently designed them that way.

hartzdog: It frustrates me that there are people who are so blinded by their sectarian cult leaders that they actually think that such things have only a secular purpose.

Hey, the school administration is clearly open to people of all religious persuasions, from Baptist to Pentecostal...even Catholics!

As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

A little thin skinned there? Poor baby got her feelings hurt.

Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

Limp_Bisquick: As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

A little thin skinned there? Poor baby got her feelings hurt.

She's not the one who is terrified of an imaginary sky daddy who will condemn her to eternal torment if she fails to say the right words.

Limp_Bisquick: As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

A little thin skinned there? Poor baby got her feelings hurt.

So you'd be fine attending a school with a bit prayer to Allah on the wall?

Crotchrocket Slim: I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

I can't.

But if they replaced the banner, removing the Our Hevenly Father and Amen parts, I think they'd be good to go.

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

0/10. Can we have Bevets back?

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

Sigh...I wish you were read up on the topic. Students can pray in church all they like, so long as it's not disruptive. (You know, sacrificing a chicken before gym class.) Administrators and other authority figures are not allowed to violate the Establishment Clause by mandating students pray.

Please read up on the Lemon Test and other related Establishment Clause cases. It's quite fascinating, if one-sided.

FTA: Jessica Ahlquist, a student at Cranston High School West, sued the city of Cranston and its school committee in April 2011 to remove the banner, which dates back to 1963.

School officials responded that the banner was a historical memento of the school's founding days and did not serve any religious purpose. The prayer encourages values of honesty, kindness, friendship and sportsmanship.


Emphasis mine. This is purely a flamebait thread, but it was obvious this mural was not a problem for decades. Not only that, it's a school in RHODE ISLAND, which is about as red as Smurfette is.

No, what we have here is a little twat who is all filled up with whatever idiocy her parents raised her on who went on a self-righteous lawsuit spree.

Dear Evangelicals,

Please stop doing stupid shiat that you know is banned and will prompt a response simply to push your religious agendas into what is supposed to be a secular government. You are costing us all untold sums of money in both the defense and prosecution of these cases, never mind the damage you do to our system of government, indeed our very way of life, every time you take up this highly-polarizing line of argument. For the sake of the country and the future of all our children, please stop.

Sincerely,

Rational Adults

Limp_Bisquick: As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

A little thin skinned there? Poor baby got her feelings hurt.

Because even though we should be willing to die for the constitution, it's considered "butthurt" to ask governmental entities to uphold the constitution.

Move along, citizen, your theocratic overlords will decide when and where the constitution applies.

Yomoxu: FTA: Jessica Ahlquist, a student at Cranston High School West, sued the city of Cranston and its school committee in April 2011 to remove the banner, which dates back to 1963.

School officials responded that the banner was a historical memento of the school's founding days and did not serve any religious purpose. The prayer encourages values of honesty, kindness, friendship and sportsmanship.


Emphasis mine. This is purely a flamebait thread, but it was obvious this mural was not a problem for decades. Not only that, it's a school in RHODE ISLAND, which is about as red as Smurfette is.

No, what we have here is a little twat who is all filled up with whatever idiocy her parents raised her on who went on a self-righteous lawsuit spree.

Why do you think that constitutional protections are for "twats"?

Gotta indoctrinate people while they're young... Otherwise religion would seem ridiculous to them after they were older and hadn't been taught in their youth that belief without proof - aka "faith" - is more important than reason.

Surprised to see this so far north. I went to schools up and down the east coast, and it was in the deep south where they pushed religion in schools, not the north.

Yomoxu: Emphasis mine. This is purely a flamebait thread, but it was obvious this mural was not a problem for decades. Not only that, it's a school in RHODE ISLAND, which is about as red as Smurfette is.

No, what we have here is a little twat who is all filled up with whatever idiocy her parents raised her on who went on a self-righteous lawsuit spree.

Actually, no. The mural was a problem for decades but no one spoke up about the illegality of it before.

The "we've been doing it for years!" argument is weak, and doesn't mean that you should be able to continue it if it's deemed inappropriate.

GaidinCanuck: But if they replaced the banner, removing the Our Hevenly Father and Amen parts, I think they'd be good to go.

I agree, the rest of it is perfectly fine.

As to the secular argument, what else were they going to try if they wanted to keep the banner?

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

This was a sign in the gym, it has nothing to do with the ability to pray privately. That happens all the time whenever teacher says "POP QUIZ"

Yomoxu: FTA: Jessica Ahlquist, a student at Cranston High School West, sued the city of Cranston and its school committee in April 2011 to remove the banner, which dates back to 1963.

School officials responded that the banner was a historical memento of the school's founding days and did not serve any religious purpose. The prayer encourages values of honesty, kindness, friendship and sportsmanship.


Emphasis mine. This is purely a flamebait thread, but it was obvious this mural was not a problem for decades. Not only that, it's a school in RHODE ISLAND, which is about as red as Smurfette is.

No, what we have here is a little twat who is all filled up with whatever idiocy her parents raised her on who went on a self-righteous lawsuit spree.

So something can violate the Constitution as long as it has been doing it for a long time?

As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

Well, the quickest way to get popular is to sue the school.

The banner is ridiculous for a public school, of course, and I can't believe it hasn't been an issue until now. But, then, Rhode Island's population has that dangerous (but not uncommon) mixture of being very religious and very stupid.

/lived there for 10 godforsaken years
//cranston west seemed relatively normal

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

Are you comparing played out bumper stickers private citizens may put on their own private property to the official actions of a state agent? Wouldn't you want to compare situations that are more alike than unlike instead?

Go stand in the corner! You no has successful comparisons between apples and oranges, no soup for you (take comfort in that you have company in Herman Cain though)!

Crotchrocket Slim: I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

Because it's been there since the 1963 and they don't lead students in the prayer. It was a gift from a graduating class; it could be they considered it an artifact from the schools past rather than a religious symbol.

/mural should have been taken down years ago

Thou shalt not lie

Witty_Retort: Yomoxu: FTA: Jessica Ahlquist, a student at Cranston High School West, sued the city of Cranston and its school committee in April 2011 to remove the banner, which dates back to 1963.

School officials responded that the banner was a historical memento of the school's founding days and did not serve any religious purpose. The prayer encourages values of honesty, kindness, friendship and sportsmanship.


Emphasis mine. This is purely a flamebait thread, but it was obvious this mural was not a problem for decades. Not only that, it's a school in RHODE ISLAND, which is about as red as Smurfette is.

No, what we have here is a little twat who is all filled up with whatever idiocy her parents raised her on who went on a self-righteous lawsuit spree.

So something can violate the Constitution as long as it has been doing it for a long time?

That religious banner has a long, hallowed tradition and has indeed been responsible for the economic and spiritual health of our republic.

GaidinCanuck: [anamericanatheist.org image 298x468]

Crotchrocket Slim: I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

I can't.

But if they replaced the banner, removing the Our Hevenly Father and Amen parts, I think they'd be good to go.

I agree. That's a nice little paragraph. Take off the opening and the "Amen" and call it the school creed. Crisis averted.

Limp_Bisquick: As an atheist, Ahlquist said the mural made her feel excluded and ostracized.

A little thin skinned there? Poor baby got her feelings hurt.

I take it you've never been in the wrong side of a majority/minority situation.

This is my old high school. It was there during my time. I don't even remember it, tbh, but no one had a problem, no one cared.

And West is 95% Catholic. That biatch better leave the school.

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

Children can talk to God as much as they can talk to each other (non-disruptively in school), but students can't be subjected to the school either promoting or discouraging prayer or faith.

How old is this Supreme Court ruling? How it is possible to get into an education career, which requires a college degree, without knowing rules that have been in place for decades?

mortimer_ford: Liberals are big on saying "ALL ONE" this and "COEXIST" that but they won't let children pray in their own schools. How is it coexisting if you're kicking GOD out of schools which Christian Children go to? Apparently, coexisting is just another word for burning in hell.

So you agree we should have Muslim and Satanic murals in school. Glad to hear it!

Ordell: This is my old high school. It was there during my time. I don't even remember it, tbh, but no one had a problem, no one cared.

And West is 95% Catholic. That biatch better leave the school.

So, nobody cared and you don't even remember it existing, but she better leave the school because she got it taken down? Why? According to you, nobody cared anyway.

gimmegimme: Hey, the school administration is clearly open to people of all religious persuasions, from Baptist to Pentecostal...even Catholics!

The irony? It was the Catholics who got annoyed with school prayer to begin with and insisted that local schools stop the practice.

/and by the time the Supreme Court go involved - school prayer was already banned in most states

max_pooper: Crotchrocket Slim: Can I assume this was submitted as flamebait from the lack of subscriber comments?

I'm happy to play along if anyone can come up with a not-completely-retarded explanation for how something as intrinsically religious as prayer could be argued to be "secular".

They're right wing religious fanatics, all their explanations are completely retarded.

Even not-so-conservative religious people have some pretty major logic gaps. I was following a car on my commute to work today that had a bumper-sticker that looked like one of those support our troops ribbons but was black and said "Pray for our priests". I think when you continue to blindly support a religion where the leadership is so fallible that you have to have bumper-stickers addressing the issue, you should be applying some critical thought...

// it is funny how despite many Christian denominations taking fairly literal stands with respect to the Bible, that they rarely seem to mention that setting up an organized religion and priesthoods was NOT part of Jesus' message.

Ordell: This is my old high school. It was there during my time. I don't even remember it, tbh, but no one had a problem, no one cared.

And West is 95% Catholic. That biatch better leave the school.

Or you maybe should realize kids today give two shiats less about religion than they do about race. You know, when you're not shooing them off your lawn.