Chief Justice Moore refuses to remove 10 commandments

[Brown]

Caption: "Since we can't go to the Judicial Building to read the Commandments anymore, we might actually have to (sob!) go to church, or even worse, buy a Bible if we want to read them!"

 

[nightwind]

Contempt

Why was the judge in the case not charged with "Contempt of Court"? Is it because he is a judge and above the law?

It seems that some sort of punishment needs to be laid down here. Had a "regular" person went against and order like this, they would be in jail.

 

[Frank Newgent]

77% of americans don't want the monument moved.

The other 23% want to see it moved to some overgrown field near a refrigerator with no door and a car on blocks. Call it Hillbilly Stonehedge.

 

[bpesta22]

Originally posted by Silicon

Caption 1: As part of catholic tradition, once I finish probing your anus, you will officially be an altar boy.

Caption 2: It's true Jethro, every time you masterbate, God kills a possum.

Caption 3: For safe keeping, I shall now insert the stone tablets inside this man's anus.

Caption 4: If you look real close at Festus's bung, you can see the virgin mary weeping. And, when Festus farts, it sorta looks like she's laughing.

Caption 5: I know homosexuality is a sin, but if loving you is wrong, then I don't wanna be right.

Caption 6: Well, without the moral backing of the 10 commandments to guide me, I think I'll just sodomize this man.

Caption 7: Just my luck, being superglued to a rube.

Caption 8: Well, the good news is we can fix this without major surgery, but the bad news is I don't think the hamster will live.

Caption 9: For the last time, Jethro, no your ass doesn't look fat in that.

Last but not least:

Caption 10: No, I said get the ROSARY beads!!!

 

[jnelso99]

This whole episode reminds me of a song by Foetus: "Take It Outside Godboy"

"Well when you quote the bible
Is when I load my rifle"

Caption:

"S'okay, Jim Bob. Cousin Daisy's nuts. Seems to me you have a NICE butt there, boy."

 

[subgenius]

Re: Contempt

Why was the judge in the case not charged with "Contempt of Court"? Is it because he is a judge and above the law?

It seems that some sort of punishment needs to be laid down here. Had a "regular" person went against and order like this, they would be in jail.

I made that point earlier.....very bad message to send. But learn from it.....justice is more like just us. It ain't the same for you and me. There are class distinctions and a hierarchy in the land of the free.

 

[Cinorjer]

The new CNN-USA Today-Gallup poll found 77 percent of the 1,009 Americans interviewed earlier this week disapproved of U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson's order to remove the monument. (Cnn.com)

This kind of bogus polling really clinches my drawers. We're presented with this kind of thing by the media, with no way to check on how valid it is. This one in particular is highly suspect.

The questions start right off the bat:

Why such a small sample? And from what parts of the country did they poll? Did the person being polled even know about the issue before the phone call, and if so, how informed are they of both sides of the argument? Where did they get their information from? How many people who disagreed with the Judge's order describe themselves as active Christians?

For that matter, I just noticed the question was carefully posed as whether or not they agreed with the Judge's order to remove the monument. It says nothing about if those polled also agreed with how Moore defied the order. One does not automatically presume the other.

 

[Checkmite]

Re: Contempt

Why was the judge in the case not charged with "Contempt of Court"? Is it because he is a judge and above the law?

It seems that some sort of punishment needs to be laid down here. Had a "regular" person went against and order like this, they would be in jail.

Justice Moore was originally acting on behalf of the State of Alabama - remember, it was the state, not Moore, which stood to be punished; that is, the court order declared that the State must move the monument. When the associate justices unanimously overruled Moore, he no longer represented the State of Alabama in this case, and his "refusal to move the monument" meant nothing, since he had no standing by which to enforce the keeping of the monument. Therefore, Moore was not in contempt of court, no matter how much he "vowed" not to follow the court order.

 

[Lurker]

This kind of bogus polling really clinches my drawers. We're presented with this kind of thing by the media, with no way to check on how valid it is. This one in particular is highly suspect.

I am always suspicious of polls which do not show how the question was worded. That can make a huge difference.

Lurker

 

[Upchurch]

Just when you think that this sort of thing can't get any more bizarre...

Wow. that's a stretch. I notice no justification was given as to what pegan symbol the panther represents...

While we're at it, maybe we should remove all the trees, which are symbolically representative of the Druids, eh?

 

[Cinorjer]

Wow. that's a stretch. I notice no justification was given as to what pegan symbol the panther represents...

I love reading about Native American and Pagan religions, and I've never heard of a panther being associated with anything. The Native Americans told myths about all sorts of animals like coyote, raven, etc. No panther that I can remember. What's telling is that the woman talks about how it's disturbing because it's a "cat-like image". Cat = witchcraft. I suppose. The world is full of nuts, that's for sure.

 

[Brown]

From the "It Just Keeps Getting Weirder Department" and CNN:

Mississippi Gov. Ronnie Musgrove volunteered Thursday to join neighboring Alabama in the fight over the Ten Commandments monument by offering to display it in his state's capitol building for a week starting September 7.
...
Musgrove, a Democrat, urged other governors to allow similar displays in their states "to show support for our common Judeo-Christian heritage."

I'm sure Mississippi is just overflowing with tax revenue and can afford the luxury of defending the lawsuits that it will be inviting.

Of course, displaying the Ten Commandments is not a job that the government needs to do in the first place. Anyone who wants to know what the Ten Commandments are can go to a neighborhood church or look them up in a Bible. To spend tax dollars to litigate this issue seems to be the height of folly.

And then there are remarks like this:

The Rev. James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, told the rally the First Amendment specifically addresses Congress and does not restrict displays like Moore's.

"They've taken those simple words and twisted them to mean something the founders had no intention of," he said. "The separation of church and state is not in the Constitution. They've had to contrive the basis of these things, and then talk about them as if they're a fact."

I wonder how the good Reverend would react if reminded, "You know what else isn't in the Constitution? Tax exemptions for churches."

I also wonder how the good Reverend has the nerve to stand up in front of a group of people and display his ignorance of basic principles of constitutional law. The Eleventh Circuit addressed Dobson's position head-on because it was argued by Judge Moore, and the argument (characterized by the Court as "plenty bold") was soundly rejected. The rejection was based upon ample Supreme Court precedent. Also, the Eleventh Circuit noted that even Judge Moore himself did not agree with part of what Dobson said, because Moore "apparently recognizes that the religion clauses of the First Amendment apply to all laws, not just those enacted by Congress."

 

[Cinorjer]

Oh, this is rich...

Under the banner headline of "Most American Adults say monument should stay", the Religion News Service (whoever that is) gives the following:

As a new poll shows that more than three-quarters of American adults disapprove of the federal court order removing the Ten Commandments monument from the rotunda of Alabama's state judicial building, evangelical leaders continue to voice divided opinions about the controversy.

A USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll of 495 adults found that 77 percent said they did not approve of the order, 19 percent approved of it and 4 percent had no opinion. The poll, taken Monday and Tuesday (Aug. 25-26), has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/131/story_13180_1.html

Besides noticing that the total people polled in this article changed from over 1000 to under 500, how in the world can Gallup, who should know better, claim such a tiny sample has a 5 percent margin or error? Of course, you'd expect something called the "Religion News Service" to have such a misleading headline and statement. I polled about a dozen of my friends and coworkers last week, and only 2 of them have even heard of the monument controversy. That means, I guess, that over 90 percent of Americans have never heard of it.

 

[pgwenthold]

I love reading about Native American and Pagan religions, and I've never heard of a panther being associated with anything. The Native Americans told myths about all sorts of animals like coyote, raven, etc. No panther that I can remember. What's telling is that the woman talks about how it's disturbing because it's a "cat-like image". Cat = witchcraft. I suppose. The world is full of nuts, that's for sure.

Wow, a panther statue is "cat-like"? Oh the humanity!

OTOH, it probably wouldn't be a very good panther statue if it wasn't...

 

[Upchurch]

Cat = witchcraft. I suppose.

Is witchcraft considered pegan by Christians? I thought they considered it Satanic. Of course, perhaps they consider peganism = satanism.

 

[Regnad Kcin]

The Rev. James Dobson, chairman of Focus on the Family, told the rally the First Amendment specifically addresses Congress and does not restrict displays like Moore's.

"They've taken those simple words and twisted them to mean something the founders had no intention of," he said. "The separation of church and state is not in the Constitution. They've had to contrive the basis of these things, and then talk about them as if they're a fact."

I wonder how the good Reverend would react if reminded, "You know what else isn't in the Constitution? Tax exemptions for churches."

Touche!

 

[Martin]

Is witchcraft considered pegan by Christians? I thought they considered it Satanic. Of course, perhaps they consider peganism = satanism.

I suspect that this particular group of Christians considers 'anything other than Christianity' = satanism.

 

[Brown]

As you may have heard by now, the Supreme Court decided not to hear Moore's appeal. The decisions of the federal courts to remove the monument are now binding. From Yahoo and the AP:

"It's not over. We do not intend to be stopped. We do not intend to give up. We have only begun to fight," Moore, who has offered to let Congress use his display in the Capitol, said at a news conference in Alabama.
...
Moore challenged the high court to settle the question once and for all, and accused the justices of ducking their responsibility to clarify murky questions about the constitutional principle of separation of church and state.

As far as Moore's Court battle is concerned, the fight is over. The federal court's ruling is binding upon him and his state. If he wishes to try to provoke litigation in other states, then he should consider stepping down from the bench, as such political activities are generally inconsistent with the role of judge.

Judge Moore is still subject to discipline for alleged ethical violations related to the Commandments monument.

Even if Judge Moore remains on the bench, it is a fair bet that he will be asked to recuse himself in almost every case that has religious overtones. Those who are not Christians may feel (perhaps rightly) that they would not get a fair shake from Judge Moore.

 

[Schizobunny]

If there is a god, which I highly doubt there is, I wonder what he means when he says god is the basis for law. He is supposedly talking about the christian god, but according to other religions he could be talking about Satan. How would he like it if he found out Satanist were putting there religion in court houses and making laws? There is nothing wrong with satanism, but I don't think this judge stopped to think that maybe his religion isn't the only one in the world.

 

[Regnad Kcin]

Moore challenged the high court to settle the question once and for all...

Unless he disagreed with their opinion.