God chased out of kindergarten

[larrymeyer]

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/...ll-Courts.html

No Bible in Show-and-Tell, Says Court

God chased out of kindergarten

By TERESA MASTERSON

Updated 8:12 AM EDT, Wed, Jun 3, 2009


A local mother of a kindergartner read an excerpt from the Bible during her son’s show-and-tell about him. It turns out this was a big no-no.

On Monday, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that she has no right to do that, reports phillyBurbs.com.

“The Marple Newtown School District in suburban Philadelphia told plaintiff Donna Kay Busch in October 2004 that she could not read the Bible passages during her son’s ‘All About Me’ program.” The court of appeals upheld this decision.

We would love to know how much taxpayer money the courts took for this years-long final decision to come about. All to shut down a kindergarten show-and-tell.

Now, we know we’re pushing a hot-button issue with this, but we’re still going to push it.

If your belief in the Bible, in the Torah, in the Koran, etc., explains a lot about you, then why shouldn’t it be allowed in a kindergarten show-and-tell presentation called “All About Me?” Seems logical. Why shouldn’t your beliefs be allowed anywhere?

This is where people usually start yelling "separation of church and state!" But here’s a little fun fact: The term “separation of church and state” is not in the Constitution. Being able to freely exercise and discuss your religion, and forbidding the government from forcing anyone to financially support or participate in a religion, is though.

Suffice it to say, “Johnny’s” (we don’t know the boy’s name) mom wasn’t an agent of the government, nor was she forcing anyone else to participate in her religion. She was talking. (To a bunch of kids who were probably napping or drooling.) And now she’s been told to shut up.

How have we gone from the country founded by people who wanted the ability to say what they want, religious or not, without a fascist government stopping them, to a country that freaks out at any sort of religious sentiment and spends taxpayer money so the court system can tell us little Johnny’s mom can’t read a Bible scripture in a kindergarten show and tell?

Really?

The term “separation of church and state” comes from a very wise letter by Thomas Jefferson to a congregation of Baptists in Danbury, Conn. in 1802. He refers to the first amendment, but his explanation and meaning does not say that religious beliefs cannot be voiced in any environment of the “state.” On the contrary, the whole point is to protect citizens from an overpowering government that tells them they cannot voice their religious beliefs or they must ascribe to specific ones.

So if the courts, a government agency, dictate that a person cannot share his/her religious views in all realms, isn’t that a violation of the true idea of separation of church and state?

By doing this, the government is saying you cannot practice your religion any time you desire. In a way this makes the government a staunch supporter of the church of nothing. And in turn dictates that citizens give taxpayer money to support its courts to uphold it.

We can think of hundreds of things the government should be protecting us from (a plummeting economy; rapists attacking 11 year olds; having to carry the burden of a bankrupt car company; etc.). Show-and-tell with God references is not one of them.

[Philbert]

A local mother of a kindergartner read an excerpt from the Bible during her son’s show-and-tell about him. It turns out this was a big no-no.

On Monday, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said that she has no right to do that, reports phillyBurbs.com.

To be precise, the court ruled that the principal's judgement call in this case did not violate the first amendment. That's subtly different from judging whether the opposite call would have been indefensible on first amendment grounds.

If your belief in the Bible, in the Torah, in the Koran, etc., explains a lot about you, then why shouldn’t it be allowed in a kindergarten show-and-tell presentation called “All About Me?” Seems logical. Why shouldn’t your beliefs be allowed anywhere?

Quoth the court:

But the unchallenged record demonstrates the school
permitted Wesley, in the classroom and as part of his “All About
Me” week, to express his religious beliefs. These beliefs were
featured on his “All About Me” poster as a depiction of a church
and a statement expressing that he likes to attend church.
Wesley was permitted, as other students were, to present his
poster to the class in the manner he desired. Accordingly, the school’s actions do not appear to have been motivated by
discrimination against Wesley’s religion. Rather, the school
identified a significant difference between the identification of
religious belief and certain holiday-oriented religious materials,
on the one hand, and a parent’s reading of holy scripture, on the
other hand, which it considered a form of proselytizing.

The problem was that the mother was not talking about how the Bible influenced their life, she was delivering a reading from the Bible. They let the kid talk about church, but the reading the mother chose wasn't about the kid or their practices, so the principal decided not to allow it.

[tlgpa]

Not sure why the mother was reading from the bible. I always thought show and tell was about the child learning how to share, speak in front of peers, build communication skills, etc. My mom never came to school for my show and tell.
I'd imagine if the boy held up the bible and spoke about it on his own it would have been perfectly acceptable.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/informati...dergarden.html
The Marple Newtown School District in suburban Philadelphia told plaintiff Donna Kay Busch in October 2004 that she could not read the Bible passages during her son’s “All About Me” program. The school did permit the boy to discuss a poster that included references to his church as well as his family, pet and best friend.

“Parents of public school kindergarten students may reasonably expect their children will not become captive audiences to an adult’s reading of religious texts,” Chief Judge Anthony J. Scirica of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals wrote in the split 2-1 opinion, which upheld a lower court decision.

Schools can more tightly control speech presented to younger students, who may not distinguish a parent from their teacher, the ruling said.

[jcabin]

All this because some little kid probably went home and asked his seething **** liberal mother if she ever read the bible. In turn the mother lost all self control and rationale' and stormed into the school carrying all the forces of the herds fecal matter in a massive shit storm and full of rage, forcing the principal to make a call otherwise he'd end up without a job. Too bad the principal is a coward.

[tlgpa]

All this because some little kid probably went home and asked his seething **** liberal mother if she ever read the bible. In turn the mother lost all self control and rationale' and stormed into the school carrying all the forces of the herds fecal matter in a massive shit storm and full of rage, forcing the principal to make a call otherwise he'd end up without a job. Too bad the principal is a coward.

And now for what REALLY happened:
She never got to read the bible to the class. The principal didn't allow it so she sued the school.

DONNA KAY BUSCH, v. MARPLE NEWTOWN SCHOOL DISTRICT
http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/documen...s/07D0671P.pdf

Guess it's the seething **** ultra religious mother who lost all self control and rationale' and stormed into court carrying all the forces of the herds fecal matter in a massive shit storm and full of rage,

I wonder how much she cost the taxpayers.

[daschnoz]

I wonder what the principal would have done if the kid wanted to "show-n-tell" something from the Koran or the Kama Sutra.

You know of course, if he would do the same for these books as he did for the Bible, he would be labeled as either a religious bigot, or some kind of anti-sex Christian whack job, and the MSM would be all over it - "Should a person like this be in charge of our schools? Details at 6."

[jcabin]

And now for what REALLY happened:
She never got to read the bible to the class. The principal didn't allow it so she sued the school.

DONNA KAY BUSCH, v. MARPLE NEWTOWN SCHOOL DISTRICT
http://www.paed.uscourts.gov/documen...s/07D0671P.pdf

Guess it's the seething **** ultra religious mother who lost all self control and rationale' and stormed into court carrying all the forces of the herds fecal matter in a massive shit storm and full of rage,

I wonder how much she cost the taxpayers.

sorry i didnt real the whole article only snippets :/

[JoeWilliams]

Mother should have known better than to read the Bible in a public school.

Now, if the principal would only get rid of the pagan ceremonies most public schools still celebrate and engage in each October....

[larrymeyer]

Wonder what would have happened if the Mom had wanted to read HOW TO FIELD STRIP AN M16

[phillyd2]

must be a pretty weak and crappy god to be chased away so easily.