101. Must the US president believe in God?

Comment #57824 by Barbara on July 21, 2007 at 11:08 am

VinceMcD said:

You bring up another point, IMHO the "supporting our troops" movement has been given the same special privileges that religious beliefs are.
I think it is the ULTIMATE support of our country to stand up to this coercion.

Deja Fu said:

Dear Patriotic Barbara (and repliers who present different, though similar, equivocations about "pledges"). Is there something, somehow, *different* in saying, "I love my country" vs, saying, "I love my god"? You might well ask yourselves just where your allegiance to a particular ideology stops and where such pledging leads.

The Pledge of Allegiance is NOT The Pledge of Blind Allegiance. Nor is it a prayer ("under God" should be removed). I think both of you have misunderstood me. The following quote says it much better than I can.

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
~ Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States (1901 - 1909)

VinceMcD said:

I empathize with those soldiers who are in harm's way and I do believe we have an obligation to for lack of a better word, care for them. But empty statements like "I suport our troops hoo rah!" mean nothing. In my opinion it is our responsibility to question that which is wrong and unjust and "unamerican" and speak out against it. Or else we cheapen the sacrifice that those who have died in our service have made.

When I say I support our troops I mean I want them home safe, sound, and as soon as possible. These may only be 'empty' words but I can still say them AND question that which is wrong and unjust and "unamerican" and speak out against it.

To the question "Must the US president believe in God?" - I say NO. The presidents job is to do what is in the best interest of the country as a whole. His personal belief or non-belief in a god should not have any bearing on his decision making.

102. Must the US president believe in God?

Comment #57680 by Barbara on July 20, 2007 at 2:27 pm

debaser71 said:
"That is unless you get out of sync and say, "one Nation, indivisible"."

Exactly!

103. Must the US president believe in God?

Comment #57675 by Barbara on July 20, 2007 at 2:13 pm

VinceMcD said:
"The point is this: any pledge of allegiance should be devoid of a proclamation of faith."

I agree. However, by reciting the pledge as it should be written is an expression of patriotism without a proclamation of faith. I love my country. I don't always agree with the way it is run and I most certainly do not want it to become a theocracy. This was a small request to show support for our troops. Whether Mr Habecker is for or against the war I do not know. But our troops deserve the support of their country.

104. Must the US president believe in God?

Comment #57666 by Barbara on July 20, 2007 at 1:46 pm

Mr Habecker refused to stand and recite the pledge, and after being branded unpatriotic, was forced to enter a fresh election contest to remove him from office. He lost by some 300 votes.

"The Pledge of Allegiance"
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

I don't understand why Mr Habecker would refuse to show his support for our troops in this minor way. He could have stood and recited this pledge without saying the words he objected to. This would have shown that belief in a god is not a necessary prerequisite to patriotism. Or am I missing something here?

105. Islamic Creationist and a Book Sent Round the World

Comment #57055 by Barbara on July 18, 2007 at 8:10 am

As the scientists ponder what to do with the book -- for many, it is too beautiful for the trash bin but too erroneous for their shelves -- they also speculate about the motives of its distributors.

Perhaps it could be filed under 'C' for 'crapola' --- or maybe it could be used as a door stop?

106. A force for evil?

Comment #56023 by Barbara on July 13, 2007 at 10:58 am

pewkatchoo and Ian,

Might I suggest that you each go to your corners of the ring and open a thread in one of the forums?

107. A force for evil?

Comment #55167 by Barbara on July 10, 2007 at 7:09 am

Yup! Friend Giskard, you are correct. And if that's the only sentence you needed to read more than once you have better reading/comprehension skills than I. :)

108. A force for evil?

Comment #55159 by Barbara on July 10, 2007 at 6:20 am

Holy bovine! Most of the sentences were so long I had to read them more than once to understand them. I'm looking forward to reading Against All Gods but if it's written this way I'll be grateful it's a short book. Whew! Otherwise, this is a good article.

109. Diary of a Deserter

Comment #46400 by Barbara on May 31, 2007 at 5:59 am

Logicel,

I know I am! ;-)

110. Pick of the Week: The God Delusion

Comment #43022 by Barbara on May 20, 2007 at 9:38 am

Long live Richard Dawkins!

111. Four arrested in Iraq 'honor killing'

Comment #43013 by Barbara on May 20, 2007 at 9:21 am

Hello everyone!

I've been visiting this site for a few months and finally decided to register.

So far, I've been unable to bring myself to watch the video of this poor girls horrific demise. I fear if I do I may never sleep again.

'Sickened' doesn't even begin to describe the feelings I have for the people who could do this. I hope they will receive true justice.

CJ - I adore your avatar. What is that little creature?