Below is my class picture from 1981. As you can see, it was a diverse bunch.
I can’t say with any precision at this late date, but I estimate that the “white” portion of this class was about half Jewish, the rest Catholic, and at most there were two Protestants besides me. Of course, at the time, I was not even a tiny bit aware of this. People’s faith traditions were not something that even entered my mind, mainly because no one ever bothered to talk about them or treat people differently because of them. At the time of this photograph, I was dating the girl in the center of the photograph, who was Italian-American (Catholic), and not once in our whole relationship did anyone, including us or our parents, ever mention that we didn’t share the same religion. But, of course, we didn’t.
For me, this was my school, my home town, what I considered to be “America.” I had to leave to discover that much of the rest of my state and country didn’t think anything like the way that we thought. I’m not going to suggest that we were some kind of superior lot. For one thing, we were horrible snobs who looked down on other communities that had less exalted interests. But one thing we had right was the idea that America is a place for everyone, and that what mattered wasn’t the color of your skin or the religion of your parents, but how you acted and treated others.
Where I live now in Pennsylvania the classrooms are beginning to look even more diverse than this, even though they were close to 100% white in 1981. One big difference is there are a lot more kids whose parents don’t use any version of the Bible as a Holy Text. But even for my 1981 class, the idea that the Bible should be the “official” book of New Jersey would have seemed presumptuous and unconstitutional. There’s simply no sense in which I can relate to what the Tennessee House of Representatives just did in voting to make the Bible the official book of their state.
To be fair to the Republicans down there who are primarily responsible for this bill, there is some very strong resistance from the leadership. House Speaker Beth Harrell voted against the measure, as did Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris (in committee) who says he hopes it does not pass in his chamber.
“I sure hope it won’t pass. I think it’ll be a dark day for Tennessee if it does,” Norris said.
“All I know is that I hear Satan snickering. He loves this kind of mischief. You just dumb the good book down far enough to make it whatever it takes to make it a state symbol, and you’re on your way to where he wants you.”
Someone needs to translate that from the Tennessean for me, but I get that he doesn’t think the exercise is a good idea. Also, the Governor and Lieutenant Governor have both expressed concerns about the bill, intimating that a veto could be forthcoming. The governor’s spokesman said, “The governor doesn’t think it’s very respectful of what the Bible is.” And the Attorney General is totally opposed it the bill.
The bill would violate both the U.S. Constitution and Tennessee’s state constitution, Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III said.
“I am quite confident that the Bible’s distinguished place in history will not be diminished in the absence of a state’s endorsement,” Slatery said in a statement.
He said Tennessee’s constitution states that “no preference shall ever be given, by law, to any religious establishment or mode of worship.”
But none of this changes the fact that the Tennessee House of Representatives passed the bill by a 55-38 margin, with at least one proponent using the occasion to savage the state’s chapter of the ACLU and their Jewish Executive Director, Hedy Weinberg.
I hear a lot from conservative Christians that I and my type don’t respect their traditions and culture, but just look at my class from 1981. How much are these folks respecting our traditions and culture?
The answer is that they are not respecting them at all. This kind of bellicose religious particularism would have been out of place where I grew up even 34 years ago. It is so much more inappropriate in contemporary America, which is increasingly making my 1981 classroom look monochromatic and insular.
Put another way, who’s violating the “Don’t Tread on Me” ethos here?
I am so thankful that I grew up in a period and location when the Scopes trial had made TN a laughing stock. None of us could then have predicted that TN wouldn’t continue to look forward but would instead look back and double down on their Bible thumping. Is Inherit the Wind banned in TN? Is it today included in school curricula anywhere?
Simple answer: As much as their traditions and culture dictate, which is not at all. You and your type (like me) are unbelievers and heathens and unrepentant sinners and God-deniers and foul apostates and an offense in the eye of God to all that is good and decent and holy. Thus you must be condemned and driven out, root and branch, from the company of the righteous.
It would be a lot more satisfying, of course, for them if God were to heed their prayers and smite you with thunderbolts as you flee into utter darkness, but they’ll take what they can get, even if it’s only smug assurance of their own moral and spiritual superiority.
In my six grade class there were thirty-six of us. Twenty-three boys, thirteen girls, and one great teacher. (Easy to spot the girls in our class picture because we all had to wear dresses and not just on class picture day.)
In Oklahoma the AG is busy working on getting bibles back in the classroom. He appears to have no time to address the hunting club the police have created.
There WAS a not-so-long ago time when religion wasn’t front and center of our politics and our culture. What changed that? Has it been brought about by the commercialization and pervasiveness of religion on TV? Happened to scroll by ABC Family channel last evening when they turn it over to CBN/700 Club Pat Robertson. He was holding forth about Obama and THE Democrats. I said to myself it didn’t use to be that it was okay for so called religious leaders to hold forth on political matters in such a non-objective partisan way. Most religious leaders maintained a neutral stance.
I HATE it that religion in America has been cheapened by what’s happened to it over the last 30 to 40 years. It was also true that our politicians didn’t feel compelled to assert their religious beliefs. For forcing religion into the political sphere, the GOP should disappear and be replaced by a more sane party.
Finally, I wonder if we will see a reduction in overt religiosity when Obama leaves the White House since he symbolizes for the right that of which they are so afraid.
Three intersecting reasons why this fundie based religiousity made a comeback in governance. Civil Right (Brown v. Board of Ed through affirmative action), Roe v. Wade, and Jimmy Carter.
And no — the end of Obama’s term in office will not reduce the prevalence of this violation of Church and State. The “conservatives” are only in the middle years of their agenda to “take back this country” for their white Jesus and his white, long-bearded daddy.
Reaffirming the wisdom of Pogo once again. <sigh>
My mother was long a fan of Pogo. Can imagine that “hard to tell with a worm child” delighted her.
More behind-the-curtains sinister billionaire machinations.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/11/14/1255653/-New-Reports-Expose-a-Hidden-Conservative-Cabal-Mas
querading-as-Think-Tanks
This is just an act of defiance by these people. The interesting thing is that it has been brought out there already are laws against the type of things that is in the post and described in the opinions.
Thus the true problem comes to the surface, why are not these law breakers being prosecuted and our laws enforced? I declare here and now until the Federal Government stands up and start enforcing the laws that are on the books. This type of behavior will continue.
We desperately need to go back to the rule of law in this country not just ignore it and give transgressors a simple pass.
Can’t even enforce the significantly eroded financial laws on the books. Republicans profit from the craziness of the christo-fascists and Democrats fear them.
I picked you out right away. 1981, and you’re already disgruntled.
And sitting on the far left.
Don’t worry, BooMan. The next crazy issue to come up will be “Which version of the Bible is the real state book?”
We are the the Father Coghlin-Silver Shirt part of the fever right now. Neo-Nazis are putting posters over Appalachian State University’s campus. That’s just up the mountain from Tennessee, which just made the Bible its state book.