Good news: It looks like the pledge of allegiance case is going to the Supreme Court. It may not turn out like we want, but it will be a good battle.

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 28 � A federal appeals court Friday rejected the Bush administration�s request to reconsider its decision that the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional because of the phrase �under God.� The ruling means the case could go to the Supreme Court.

IN ANNOUNCING ITS decision, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the request for a rehearing failed to persuade a majority of judges on the circuit, so the controversial June 2002 ruling by a three-judge panel stands. The court also said it would not accept any other petitions to reconsider.

The court also said it would be �wrongheaded� to allow public outcry to influence court decisions.

�We may not � we must not � allow public sentiment or outcry to guide our decisions,� Judge Stephen Reinhardt wrote in the 46-page opinion.
�It is particularly important that we understand the nature of our obligations and the strength of our constitutional principles in times of national crisis,� Reinhardt wrote. �It is then that our freedoms and our liberties are in the greatest peril.�

Pledge of Allegiance ban upheld

Here’s a really good story about the current “administration” and the numerous pitfalls of religious bullshit in federal decision making. You need to register, but it’s free:

Heaven Help Us…

Immediately after taking office, Bush announced that he would transform the relationship between church and state by incorporating religious organizations into public work. Now, in a flurry of recent actions, the Bush administration has started what can only be viewed as a revolutionary change for our government and perhaps his most lasting legacy as president.

Can the legislature really avoid the courts?

Measure seeks pro-commandments constitutional amendment

Nobody is immune from the budget cuts, according to the Onion:

God Quietly Phasing Holy Ghost Out Of Trinity
HEAVEN�Calling the Holy Trinity “overstaffed and over budget,” God announced plans Monday to downsize the group by slowly phasing out the Holy Ghost. “Given the poor economic climate and the unclear nature of the Holy Ghost’s duties, I felt this was a sensible and necessary decision,” God said. “The Holy Ghost will be given fewer and fewer responsibilities until His formal resignation from Trinity duty following Easter services on April 20. Thereafter, the Father and the Son shall be referred to as the Holy Duo.”

Some more disturbing news…

Kansas House bill is aimed at government interference with religion

The bill would require local and state governments to have a “compelling” public interest before attempting to regulate a religious activity or organization. If regulation is necessary, it would require the “least-restrictive” option.

God sought in rain rally

“This country, and northwest Kansas, has turned away from God and sinned, and the land is full of blood from aborted babies,” Leonard Kinkade told the Hays Daily News. “Too many pastors have turned a blind eye and deaf ear in their churches, and as a result of the sin, God has withheld his blessings of the rain upon the land because of the sin in the [country].”

Ugh…
And you thought our commencement speakers were bad…

Plaintiff in 1999 Pleasanton high school religion-based case may look to Supreme Court

Lassonde’s high grades made him a co-salutatorian, and he drafted a speech quoting extensively from the Bible.

In court documents, he explained he meant the speech to convey his desire for “fellow graduates to develop a personal relationship with God through faith in Christ in order to better their lives.”

Yeah, Newton went wacky after all the stress of stealing the calculus from Leibniz, and did all these calculations like how much water the Biblical flood took. (Believe it or not, I once taught a “Conceptual Change in the 17th Century” course that ended with Newton.) I only heard the end of the world figure recently, though.

Hey, who knew that Sir Isaac Newton was a religious nut-job?:

LONDON (Reuters) - Armageddon is just 57 years away, by the calculations of Britain’s most famous scientist, the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on Saturday.

Sir Isaac Newton, the 17th century scientist and theologian, wrote thousands of pages of notes in his attempt to decode the Bible and pin down the date of the apocalypse, said the article.

End of the World Is Nigh, Says Long-Dead Scientist