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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (44650)	2/25/2002 9:28:00 AM
From: Lane3	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

Latitudinarianism? Wow! Seems to me the terminology, Christian nation, particularly when overtly equated by JC with Saudi Arabia's government construct, means theocracy. Without that context, it may mean theocracy or cultural fascism. That's just my reading, of course. When faced with sensitivity, justified or not, on the part of others, one has many choices. One of them is to tone down one's language a tad. To me, this expression is rather like the difference between having a "Japanese gardener" or a "gardener who is Japanese." Or a "black maid" vs. a "maid who is black." Karen

To: Neocon who wrote (44650)	2/25/2002 9:35:26 AM
From: J. C. Dithers	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

That brings up another question, Neo... Perhaps we need some regulatory requirements as to what counts as being a "Christian." Just saying you are one doesn't really cut it. I would favor a mandatory test, similar to the bar exam. A committee formed from the various denominations could devise and administer a standardized examination, under federal or state aegis. I suppose, in fairness, that secularists should have to pass an exam also. It may take a bit of working out, but in the end we would have much more valid indication of just what kind of a country we are.

To: Neocon who wrote (44650)	2/25/2002 12:56:52 PM
From: E	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 82486

I think it's a semantical thing, aka a misunderstanding, that's taken place here. When I hear "This is a Christian nation," I feel fine about it when I understand the meaning to be descriptive (as it has been here.) Just as I do when I hear "This is a Judeo-Christian nation," though I'm neither a Christian nor a Jew. I mean, it's true. And since most of those values are mine, me being part of this culture and created by it, I'm naturally glad it's true. It's the fear that there is intended, in such remarks made here on BB, a message of the sort we've heard from, for example, George Bush Sr. and Pat Robertson that gives atheists and agnostics an uneasy feeling, I think. I presume everyone knows what Robertson has said. But here is what Bush, who was the President of my country, and that of my atheist parents and grandparents, said: "I don’t know that atheists should be considered citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God." So a bit of discomfiture, even touchiness, on the part of atheist citizens is perhaps understandable.