1st, it's usually not about being "offended", it's about the separation of church and state. You keep your religion in your pants when you are acting in an official capacity at a state function- anything else is an endorsement of religion. And since the US is full of many people of many different religions and some with no religion, you shouldn't be making religious pronouncements for people- aside from it being against the constitution, it's just bad form.
2nd, the folks who get all hot and bothered over secular folks wanting their elected representatives to wear secular hats when they do their government business, ought to imagine how freaked out they would be over a Muslim- or a "secret" Muslim, even. I know it's hard to do this mind experiment, maybe even impossible, but most people only like their own invisible buddy- and they don't really like other people's. So try to imagine all that stuff about Perry- only he's in to Allah, or volcano fairies, or some other weird crap.
I think most people are not the least offended by prayer- what is offensive is being forced to be somewhere, because by law you have to be there, and then being stuck in a prayer, or being stuck in a prayer you think is insane, or even contrary to your religion. You want to go to court and swear to Allah on a copy of the Koran? Think about it. |
