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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsArizona Republicans Propose Bill That Would Not Allow Atheists To Graduate High School
Arizona Republicans Propose Bill That Would Not Allow Atheists To Graduate High School
January 25, 2013 By Hemant Mehta
A group of Arizona politicians all Republicans, of course have proposed a law (House Bill 2467) requiring public high school students to recite the following oath in order to graduate:
To quote Comedy Centrals Ilya Gerner: Nothing says I take this obligation freely quite like a state law that withholds your diploma unless you swear an oath.
Kevin Bondelli adds:
Its bad enough the Republicans are demanding loyalty of the kind normally reserved for members of Congress and beyond but theres also no way I would say those last four words, and the current text of the legislation does not allow for any alternatives.
In other words, if this bill were to become a law, atheists would either not be allowed to graduate or they would be forced to lie so they could graduate. Neither option is acceptable.
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2013/01/25/arizona-republicans-propose-bill-that-would-not-allow-atheists-to-graduate-high-school/
Arugula Latte
(50,566 posts)The next DUer who says that atheists are the militant ones should read this.
So sick of this crapola.
Fresh_Start
(11,330 posts)nt
yortsed snacilbuper
(7,939 posts)JaneyVee
(19,877 posts)They're relentless. For a party that talks about "freedom" all they ever seem to do is try to march us towards theocratic-fascism.
Proud Liberal Dem
(24,438 posts)I wonder if they're trying to get all this stuff "in before the lock"?
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)just recently...
All of them were solid Dems I presume, calling atheists who dared express discomfort as "complaining voraciously", "right wing trolls", "whiners", "Mitt lovers", "dumb ass straw grasping", "militant", ignorant of history and much, much worse.
For me, part of the problem appears to be that much of the country DOES just yawn at the religiosity that's crept into our public ceremonies. Expressing any kind of critique about that gets one swatted pretty hard - including here. If someone doesn't start drawing lines in the sand over this stuff it just creeps in more and more.
But the pushback from those on both the right and left is equally ferocious imho. This isn't just a Rethug thing. Maybe the Rethugs are actively working to insert the religiosity into the public sphere but the Dems passive acceptance is almost worse.
Proud Liberal Dem
(24,438 posts)how incensed the right was about President issuing videotaped statements about working hard, staying in school, and getting good grades? And now this???? Tell us again, how President Obama is like Hitler?
JitterbugPerfume
(18,183 posts)unless you have met my ex sister in law that lives in Arizona, then it all makes a perverted kind o sense
CanonRay
(14,119 posts)at least for now.
LiberalFighter
(51,104 posts)dballance
(5,756 posts)If the legislature of AZ is stupid enough to pass this, and I have no doubt they are, then the governor should veto it in the best interest of not having to waste taxpayer dollars in already strained budgets defending it.
If Brewer is dumb enough to sign it into law, here again I have no doubt that's very possible, the first thing that will happen is the ACLU on behalf of some students and parents will file for an injunction/restraining order preventing this law from being implemented. They will get it because any reasonable judge will have to conclude they'll have a high likelihood of prevailing in court to get the law declared unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court has already ruled you cannot require students to take an oath in a case with respect to the Pledge of Allegiance. This is not only requiring but coercing the students to take an oath since they're going to withhold their diploma. That ain't gonna fly.
msongs
(67,453 posts)quaker bill
(8,224 posts)is that liars have no problem swearing them. These dillweeds just want to have a fight to prove they are "persecuted". The persecution complex makes them feel more Holy. They aren't doing this to you, it has nothing to do with you, it is all about how it makes them feel when they are "fighting".
No remotely sane person believes that putting the 10 commandments on a plaque, a nativity scene in the public square, or this crap, actually does anything or creates any change. They just feel more richeous when they are making other angry about it. It is like a little boy pulling pranks for the attention.
redqueen
(115,103 posts)It's an idiotic bill but it won't pass anyway, and besides...
As written, the bill does not exempt atheist students or those of different faiths from the requirement, though Thorpe has pledged to amend the measure. In that we had a tight deadline for dropping our bills, I was not able to update the language, he wrote in an e-mail to the Arizona Republic. Even though I want to encourage all of our students to understand and respect our Constitution and constitutional form of government, I do not want to create a requirement that students or parents may feel uncomfortable with.
Viva_Daddy
(785 posts)Moses2SandyKoufax
(1,290 posts)remind us that RW christians are only a loud minority and that militant atheist are just as bad and as big of a detriment to society as the fundies? Also, nobody should criticize the fundies cause we're not all like that, and an attack on one is an attack on all!
Is this the point in the thread?
forestpath
(3,102 posts)backscatter712
(26,355 posts)panzerfaust
(2,818 posts)Two Christian priests supervising the torture of a suspected heretic.
Religion is a mental disorder.