State's moment of silence law tossed

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-moment-of-silence-22jan22,0,5456973.story

A federal judge Wednesday overturned a state law requiring students to observe a moment of silence at the start of each day, ruling it amounted to an unconstitutional endorsement of religion aimed at introducing prayer in public schools.

The decision by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman makes permanent a ban he put in place in May after a legal challenge by Dawn Sherman, a student at Buffalo Grove High School, and her atheist activist father, Rob Sherman.

"This has just brought closure for everyone, for all the districts in the state of Illinois," said Venetia Miles, spokeswoman for Township High School District 214, based in Arlington Heights.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

1. Oh nose!

This will bring the religious kooks out of the woodwork.... It will take 3 seconds for them to tell us about the war on silence.

[jwirr]

2. Good. Those who want to pray can do it silently on their own time. nt

[ComtesseDeSpair]

3. Good decision

There's no need for something like that in schools. It's a subversive intrusion by the religious right.

[Jamastiene]

4. I don't understand why the Talibornagain types

make such an big issue about wanting to force prayer into public schools. As long as tests and exams are given, there WILL BE prayer in public schools.

If you ask me, their "fight" to get prayer officially into schools is not about prayer. It is about forcing other people to do something that fits their certain brand of fundamentalist "Christianity." :shrug:

[mrcheerful]

5. Actually its the first step towards the goal, since the 1950's education

was the stepping stone for many social changes. Teach the young to accept this is the way America works without allowing them to question the reasoning behind what they are told is truth. The child grows up believing this is how things were meant to be and how it has always been done. Most American's think the pledge of allegiance was written by the founding fathers and one nation under god has always been in the pledge since G Washington wrote the pledge. Same with the money today, they think god has always been on the dollar bill why because that's all they ever seen on the money. Few have seen the old money before god was put on the money.

That's one of the reasons that so many believe this is a country built on christian beliefs, its on court houses, the money and in the constitution, freedom of religion. Few understand and lack the knowledge to research these false beliefs so the reason the word god was put on everything was the 1950's red scare, come on commies wouldn't be able to use money with god on it, they wouldn't pledge if the pledge had the word god in it, and they wouldn't go to government buildings cause god was put on those too. The stupidity of it blows the mind but people still believe it today.

[dixiegrrrrl]

6. I am soo stealing that phrase...Talibornagain.