Tennessee Schools Must Display National Motto

From the Channel 5 News site:

New Law: Schools Must Display 'In God We Trust' In Clear View

  

Ugh, just ugh.  I've spent so much time wanting them to remove it from our money, and this just takes things in the wrong direction.  I respect that most Tennesseans are religious, but why must they demand that everyone else be religious too?

I've heard that some claim that it's not about promoting religion, but rather promoting the national motto.  Oh, so it's not Christian propaganda, it's political propaganda.  Sure, that's way better.  But you can't fool me.  If the national motto was, "Protect the Environment" or "Visualize World Peace", they probably wouldn't be pushing so hard.

I'm not going to call it religious prosecution just yet.  It's just words on a wall, not rounding up atheists for concentration camps.  But it does send a definite and clear message:  Atheists are not welcome here.  And with that message, Christianity crosses the line from "well meaning dogma" to "oppressive hate group." 

VA Tech Shooting Caused by Talking Alien Raccoons

...at least, somebody probably thinks so. I'd like to tell you that the actual headlines aren't quite as silly (or in as poor taste), but at this point I honestly can't.

The bodies weren't even cold yet, and the media's biggest attention-hounds were already trying to use the tragedy to support their own agenda. Let's take Jack Thompson, for instance. He hates video games so much, that he scans the newspaper every day for atrocities he can blame on them. So when something like the Virginia Tech shooting happens, good ol' JT already has his speech nearly written; he just has to fill in the specific names and dates. The good news is, nobody has to pay attention to anything Thompson says any more, because you can pretty much guess it. A postal worker goes on a shooting spree? Must have been playing GTA. Peeping tom terrorizes neighborhood? Must've learned his voyeuristic habits from playing The Sims. Obesity on the rise? Blame Pac-Man. World Trade Center attacks? The terrorists must've been playing Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Jack Thompson blames the VA Tech shootings on Counterstrike. Dr. Phil also agrees that video games must have been an influence. Neither has any actual evidence to base this on - no games were found in Cho Seung Hui's possession, and his roommate confirmed that he never saw Cho playing them. But why mess up a perfectly good theory with facts? Meanwhile, Reverend Fred Phelps, head of the charming "God Hates America" and "God Hates Fags" websites, is claiming that the tragedy is yet more evidence that America is being punished for its sins (you know, like tolerating homosexuals)... and is using it as an excuse to disrupt the funerals. And Christian news website "One News Now" somehow managed to blame the shootings on the fact that evolution is being taught in public schools.

When people accuse this of being a "blameless society", it usually means that it's the criminals who come up with excuses for what they've done. But now it's not just the perpetrators making the excuses; everyone wants to get in on the act. Now bear with me. Isn't it possible - even remotely - that the shooting had nothing to do with God or video games or evolution or violent movies or karma or astrology or Harry Potter? Isn't it possible that Cho Seung Hui is just an asshole? Can we please let a tragedy go by without trying to blame it on whatever "hot button" is currently vogue? When you come up with ridiculous objects of blame, all you're doing is helping the criminals by giving them new things to try in court.

Now, I'm all for examining Mr. Hui to find out how his brain works. I'll happily allow my tax dollars to go towards researching the psychopathic mind. Anything to keep this kind of thing from happening again. But Jack Thompson, Fred Phelps, and the rest of these loudmouths aren't trying to probe a killer's mind. They're just furthering their own careers, and playing "the blame game" without a shred of real evidence to support their opinions.

Related Articles/Sites:

Reverend Fred Phelps / God Hates America

Thompson Blames Video Games For Virginia Tech Shooting

Dr. Phil Blames Video Games for Virginia Tech Massacre

Creationist: Teaching 'evolution-only' dampens respect for human life

Warrant Reveals No Games In Cho Seung Hui's Posession

Some TG-Related News Articles

Woman's Gender Change Shocks The Man She Dated
A Dear Abby column. It shows how little people understand transgenderism. If she has a woman's mind, and she now has a body to match, she's a woman. I understand why it creeped the guy out. A sex change is something that's hard for some people to wrap their minds around. What I just don't get is why he got so mad about it. It would be one thing if she was still pre-op, but she is a woman now, by nearly every definition.

Trans Candidate Takes Aim At Political Barriers
I hope this is a sign of things to come. I'm not much of a voter - I've just never seen a candidate who I really thought shared my beliefs. Most elections seem to involve two stick-in-the-mud idiots. For instance, I'm very much against censorship. Last presidential election I paid attention to, both candidates were in favor of censoring the internet more heavily. I'm a big believer in the seperation of church and state, but every candidate I see wants to improve the "moral climate" of America. And so on. At least with this woman, I know we share some opinions. Too bad I don't live in her district.

Transgender Child to Enter Florida School
This one bothered me a little. While I applaud the progressive attitude, I do worry about making decisions so early. A lot of trans children don't really feel "wrong" until they hit puberty. While many others feel it much younger, there's just so much sexual ambiguity in everyone before their hormones kick in, that I'd hate them to make these kind of decisions too early. Still, the child has been examined by the experts, so if they're sure, then more power to them.

Transgender Firefighter's Discrimination Claims Valid
Same $#!T, different day/job/minority/etc. Yet another person discriminated against for things they can't really control. Believe me, nobody wants to be a tranny. If it were a choice, we all would have simply been born the gender we were meant to be. Having people hate you, thinking you're evil, is just adding insult to injury. Many of us hate ourselves more than enough already, we don't need help, thank you.