Ten Commandments in school? Georgia House unanimously votes yes

[n2doc]

By Richard Fausset
February 29, 2012, 7:58 a.m.
Reporting from Atlanta —
In Georgia, students in public schools could soon be regularly reminded that the God of Israel commands that they shalt not make any graven image.

And that they shalt not covet their neighbor's wife. Nor his manservant. Nor his maidservant. Nor his ox.

Those, of course, are two of the Ten Commandments, and a new bill picking up steam in the statehouse in Atlanta would allow human history's most famous Top 10 List to be displayed in all Georgia government buildings, including schools.

The Associated Press reports that the bill, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Tommy Benton, passed the state House unanimously Tuesday on a 161-0 vote, and is well-positioned to pass the state Senate.
more

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-ten-commandments-bill-20121129,0,2606486.story

[hobbit709]

1. The stupid really should be immediately painful.

that seems to be the only way these idiots might learn something.
How many Supreme Court decisions does it take?

[no_hypocrisy]

2. 5-4-3-2-1: cue Newt!

Betcha he'll have a public opinion about this by the 6:00 News tonight.

[The Straight Story]

4. From a post of mine elsewhere:

Aitken's Bible Endorsed by Congress (& more on religion in government)

Last edited Mon Mar 5, 2012, 05:19 AM USA/ET - Edit history (1)
Came across this while researching old bibles (this is from loc.gov) and thought it interesting

Aitken's Bible Endorsed by Congress

The war with Britain cut off the supply of Bibles to the United States with the result that on Sept. 11, 1777, Congress instructed its Committee of Commerce to import 20,000 Bibles from "Scotland, Holland or elsewhere." On January 21, 1781, Philadelphia printer Robert Aitken (1734-1802) petitioned Congress to officially sanction a publication of the Old and New Testament which he was preparing at his own expense. Congress "highly approve the pious and laudable undertaking of Mr. Aitken, as subservient to the interest of religion . . . in this country, and . . . they recommend this edition of the bible to the inhabitants of the United States." This resolution was a result of Aitken's successful accomplishment of his project.

Aitken's Bible
Aitken published Congress's recommendation of September 1782 and related documents (Item 115) as an imprimatur on the two pages following his title page. Aitken's Bible, published under Congressional patronage, was the first English language Bible published on the North American continent.

Northwest Ordinance
In the summer of 1787 Congress revisited the issue of religion in the new western territories and passed, July 13, 1787, the famous Northwest Ordinance. Article 3 of the Ordinance contained the following language: "Religion, Morality and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, Schools and the means of education shall be forever encouraged." Scholars have been puzzled that, having declared religion and morality indispensable to good government, Congress did not, like some of the state governments that had written similar declarations into their constitutions, give financial assistance to the churches in the West.

Morality in the Navy
Congress particularly feared the navy as a source of moral corruption and demanded that skippers of American ships make their men behave. The first article in Rules and Regulations of the Navy (below), adopted on November 28, 1775, ordered all commanders "to be very vigilant . . . to discountenance and suppress all dissolute, immoral and disorderly practices." The second article required those same commanders "to take care, that divine services be performed twice a day on board, and a sermon preached on Sundays." Article 3 prescribed punishments for swearers and blasphemers: officers were to be fined and common sailors were to be forced "to wear a wooden collar or some other shameful badge of distinction."

Morality in the Army
Congress was apprehensive about the moral condition of the American army and navy and took steps to see that Christian morality prevailed in both organizations. In the Articles of War, seen below, governing the conduct of the Continental Army (seen above) (adopted, June 30, 1775; revised, September 20, 1776), Congress devoted three of the four articles in the first section to the religious nurture of the troops. Article 2 "earnestly recommended to all officers and soldiers to attend divine services." Punishment was prescribed for those who behaved "indecently or irreverently" in churches, including courts-martial, fines and imprisonments. Chaplains who deserted their troops were to be court-martialed.

Christianizing the Delawares
In this resolution, Congress makes public lands available to a group for religious purposes. Responding to a plea from Bishop John Ettwein (1721-1802), Congress voted that 10,000 acres on the Muskingum River in the present state of Ohio "be set apart and the property thereof be vested in the Moravian Brethren . . . or a society of the said Brethren for civilizing the Indians and promoting Christianity." The Delaware Indians were the intended beneficiaries of this Congressional resolution.

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel04.html

http://www.democraticunderground.com/121812606

[Viking12]

10. No, Mr. Beck, Congress Did Not Print a Bible for the Use of Schools

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-rodda/no-mr-beck-congress-did-n_b_598698.html

[The Straight Story]

12. Not sure I get the gist of why you were linking that

As my post was more a generalized one from the Library of Congress (but I do appreciate the link, was not aware beck was trying to say the US printed bibles for schools)

[Viking12]

13. ...and we're not sure why you deemed it necessary to make reference to pre-Constitutional documents

in reply to the claim that's it's un-Constitutional.

[obxhead]

5. It should be considered Treason imo.

[Paladin]

6. This Is Establishment Of Religion, Pure And Simple.

We used to have a Supreme Court that would strike something like this down without bothering with a hearing. Not any more....

[Shankapotomus]

7. Why can't they just post

the laws of the state if they want to promote proper behavior? Why do they need the precepts from one religion? Just post the laws of the state!

[lunatica]

8. The future of this country is definitely at a crossroads

And the divide among red and blue states is becoming a veritable rift as deep and significant as the tectonic plates. What's happening right now must be true fodder for science fiction writers.

[gulliver]

14. It will just be struck down by the courts.

Of course the politicians have to vote for it, just like a lot of voters do. No sense dying on that hill politically or looking less than Christian to your idiot neighbor. Someone will sue to post the Code of Hammurabi, the Laws of Manu, and the Four Noble Truths too.

The Ten Commandments are great, but they suffer from association with assholes. Every good thing has a bunch of scumbags trying to leech an image from it. No one can get away with saying that the Ten Commandments should be taught in church, for example. That would be too easy. You have to stick the commandments in front of the kids faces in school. Then the kids can look at the twisted people who forced the issue and wonder if the commandments are really wise after all.