Calif. initiative to require Christmas music in public schools is OK'd for signature gathering

[Newsjock]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

One California woman is pushing for a measure that would put more Christ in Christmas at schools. According to Josh Richman of Inside Bay Area, the state gave Merry Susan Hyatt and her brother David Joseph Hyatt (Joseph and Merry, get it?) permission to start collecting signatures for their Freedom to Present Christmas Music in Public School Classrooms or Assemblies initiative.

... In other words, schools must offer Christmas music via songs, carols and or instruments in classrooms or assemblies during the holiday season and not, say, in June before summer break. Parents can also excuse their children from the festivities.

So what spurred the Hyatts into action? What was the straw that broke the magi camels' backs? Merry Hyatt says she was dismayed by a holiday celebration at a school where she worked as a substitute teacher. She told New America Foundation: "We were having Christmas without Jesus."

... The Hyatts must collect signatures from 433,971 registered voters by March 29 in order to qualify their measure for the November 2010 ballot.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/scavenger/detail?entry_id=50872&tsp=1

[spinbaby]

1. Is it time for the War on Christmas already?

My, how time flies. Time to get out my secular humanist generic winter holiday decorations.

[kiva]

3. I know, seems like the day of satanic worship where children

dressed as devils seek cursed candy was just yesterday...

[Raineyb]

2. So her issue is with religious Christmas music not being played?

Please have someone tell her about the separation of church and state then tell her to piss off.

I guess the idea of people of other religions not necessarily wanting to be bombarded with Christmas music didn't occur to this twit did it?

[davidpdx]

20. Yeah, even if it did pass it would face a constitutional challange

almost immediately.

[noiretextatique]

4. one petition i won't be signing

we are already inundated enough with that particular holiday.

[Arugula Latte]

6. No kidding!

I'm already sick of Xmas and it's only the first week in November. Bah! Humbug!

Take your Xmas music and stuff it into your Thomas Kinkade Fiber Optic Cobblestone Christmas Stocking (yes, that's what it's called).
http://dyn-images.hsni.com/is/image/HomeShoppingNetwork/408377?$pd300$

[noiretextatique]

7. x--mas eve is my birthday

second suckiest birthday ever. i am always grumpy because of the forced joviality double whammy i am supposed to be experiencing. love the stocking :hi:

[Arugula Latte]

8. Ooh, that IS a bad one.

I've got an early January b-day, and everybody is sick of celebrating ANYTHING by then.

:hi:

[noiretextatique]

9. ah...another grouchy capricorn

:hi: always a pleasure to meet a fellow cap. my mother's bday is the 3rd, so i know anytime in january pretty much sucks too.

[winyanstaz]

15. Mine is on the 4th of Jan....

So I hear you. :)

[MisterP]

22. well, you still have Quentin Crisp nt

[ej510]

5. Fuck that nut case wacko.

Separation between church and state. I hope she realizes that Christmas is a Pagan holiday.

[FiveGoodMen]

10. REQUIRE?

:puke:

[trof]

11. Onward Christian Soldiers

:eyes:

[gratuitous]

12. Democracy in action

Good luck to them. At least they're willing to do something rather than just yammer out talking points on Fox. If they fail to gather enough signatures, will that be sufficient for them to shaddap and go away?

[winyanstaz]

13. Well I am on her side!

I think its ok to have Christmas music on Christmas...and also let's have some Pagan music on Yule as that is what Christmas really is..a Christianization of the Pagan holiday Yule. :)
We need to include music of ALL the other religions on their holidays and celebrate them all as well. Why not? :)
I have a few Wiccan Chants I am sure the Christians will just love to have played to their kids at school. :)

[Codeine]

17. All religion is foul.

Modern silliness like Wicca or Scientology or Bronze-Age bullshit like the Abrahamic mythologies are all equally absurd and useless and are totally fucking inappropriate in school.

[winyanstaz]

23. You are entitled to your opinion :)...

However to lump them all together is also just wrong as they all have different ideas etc.
And my post was supposed to make people think how stupid it is to put one religion in and leave out the others..they should ALL be separated from the state..period.
As to Wicca being useless..you obviously don't know what you are talking about..as I have found it very useful and have helped many people including myself in my lifetime due to things found in Wiccan and Native American ways.
However in essence..we agree...keep religions and spirituality out of schools.

[underseasurveyor]

19. I would agree except that you and I both know that won't be the case.

Pagen music in schools? They'd never allow it. So the best thing is to not have ANY religion represented in schools. Schools are best used for what they were designed for and that's for teaching reading, riding and rithmatic;-)

I especially liked the riding part.

Keep religion in the home where it belongs.

[n2doc]

14. Boy does that sound like a great use of taxpayer dollars

NOT!
Can someone out there propose a change to the initiative process itself to make it harder for these idiotic things to go on the ballot?

[XemaSab]

16. Redding

n/t

[sakabatou]

18. If it passes

They must allow death metal on Talk Like a Pirate Day.

[Divine Discontent]

21. that is hysterical!!! & where do these nuts come from?

Oh that's right, not every Christian can be liberal like Christ was - we have to have the Pharisee-version, too. Seriously, though - she acts like the separation of church & state is UNKNOWN to her. I spit on her! From my keyboard! PFFFT!

[underseasurveyor]

24. I say we all sign up

Get a bunch of these petitions........... take em home and put them in the trash.