Exhibit One - Former Colorado LG Gail Schoettler has a great op-ed in today's Denver Post on censorship. She plays off the whole Ward Churchill thing to point out other incidents that "reflect a deeper threat to our liberties and are getting far less attention in the press." She's only the voice of the heroes though. The real one's are a bunch of high school kids.
Superintendent Bob Conder not only banned the book "Bless Me, Ultima," but then
magnified his mistake by giving all the school's copies to the complaining mother to destroy. Now, really, under whose constitution does he have the right to destroy books some parent doesn't like (and he hasn't read)? The kids set him straight, and he apologized for his folly.
Exhibit Two - Arkansas Rep. Buddy Blair is asking the lege to reaffirm their support in the separation of church and state. It seems he's fed up with the need to do every little thing in the name of Christianity.
Blair said last week he filed the measure after religion, specifically Christianity, was referred to several times during House debate over whether to place the definition of marriage between one man and one woman in public school textbooks. The House eventually passed the proposal.
"It's scary thing; I've never seen anything quite like it," Blair said of the religious overtones in the debate, and during this session.
"I'm a Methodist and I try to go to church on a regular basis but I don't try to influence others based on my religious beliefs," he said. "I think it's occurring more now than ever."
Blair, who is term limited, served in the House from 1981 to 1995 and returned in 2003. He was re-elected last year.
He points to the debate over the definition of marriage in textbooks as one in a series of events during the session that suggests many lawmakers are no longer separating church and state when they enter the state Capitol.
Early in this session Gov. Mike Huckabee questioned the Christian values of Sen. Jim Holt, R-Springdale, after the lawmaker filed legislation that would restrict immigrants coming into the state.
The House has passed a bill dealing with abortion rights and a bill has been filed that would create a specialty license plate with the slogan, "In God We Trust."
Also, during a recent House Democratic Caucus meeting, Rep. Joyce Elliott, Little Rock, complained that the prayer given each day in the House is limited to Christianity. Some lawmakers apparently left the meeting before she had finished and questioned her religious convictions. Elliott said she is Christian.
I can understand why he's peeved. Folks, if you throw Jesus around like that he might get hurt.
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