[url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/13/in-god-we-trust-lawsuit_n_2867227.html]Article[/url]
[quote]The Freedom From Religion Foundation mounted a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department and other government officials this week, claiming that they are discriminating against nonbelievers by including the phrase "In God We Trust" on the nation's currency.
"Our government is prohibited from endorsing one religion over another but also prohibited from endorsing religion over nonreligion. The placement of a monotheistic ideal on our nation's currency violates this stricture and is therefore unconstitutional," FFRF Co-President Dan Barker said in a statement.
Along with 19 other plaintiffs, the FFRF argues in the lawsuit that they "are forced to proselytize -- by an Act of Congress -- for a deity they don't believe in whenever they handle money."[/quote]
I fully agree with this lawsuit. I think that it's pretty clear that printing "In God We Trust" on money violates the idea of separation of church and state. A secular entity should not be spreading the idea of trust in a deity (any deity), especially not through something that everyone has to use.
This idea is not anti-religious. It is the same principle as to why I don't learn about human anatomy in my Shakespeare class. It's not that there's anything wrong with learning about anatomy, that class just isn't the time or place for it. Something printed by the government is not the place to declare that "we" (whoever that refers to) "trust in" a deity, when that is not true in many cases.
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It was tacked on during Truman's time while the Red Scare was in effect. There was no threat of Communism back then in America, just paranoia. There's no threat of Communism today in America.
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Edited by Mac: 7/26/2013 5:24:18 AMIt speaks volumes about people's priorities that they would make a big deal out of this.
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Lets get this strait. NOWHERE in the constitution does it say "Separation of church and state"
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Hasn't this been done before?
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Whats the definition of god, why did einstein use god alot in his metaphor, for me it depends on what you believe it is. Instead of removing it, why not change its meaning.
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I think everyone should just shut the -blam!- up. I'm not the biggest believer but I don't get mad at other people publicly displaying their religion. Just cause it says the word God on it doesn't mean you should get butthurt about it.
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Isnt there precedent on this kind of case where the lawsuit was lost. pretty sure that will happen again since precedent is there for a reason.
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The motto "In God We Trust" has already been challenged by three lawsuits and has been found constitutional before in all three cases. I doubt that would change now.
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We should be worrying about saving the Rhinos! Save the Rhinos!!!!!
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It shouldn't have been there originally, but I don't really care that it is. I think a lawsuit is going a little overboard.
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And this is why I hate angry athiest. Bunch of bitches who cry for attention.
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I agree with the lawsuit on principle, but I think the last thing we need to do right now is spend a ton of money re-designing, printing, and distributing new currency just to remove 4 words that are basically meaningless and ignored anyway.
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If you don't like something, change it. Unless it's selfish. But with this both sides are being selfish. How about we just leave because it's already there, maybe print off different sets of money for the atheists to use that say "In science we trust".
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While their motives for doing so aren't all that extreme, I don't care about what's written on something that I'll only have temporarily, as long as I can make purchases with it, it can have a penis on it for all I care.
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That is complete bullshit. It has been around since 1956; why remove something like that?
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"I don't get why people are offended by a religious statement" "I'm offended by atheists trying to broadcast their beliefs what the -blam!- man" -Most of this thread so far.
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Edited by Jotaro Kujo PhD: 3/15/2013 1:45:08 AMI really don't think this is necessary at all. It's currency; it shouldn't matter what it says, because in the end, currency is for making transactions. That's it.
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Isn't "In God We Trust" the official motto of the US? I'd have thought that would be more of a bone of contention for the FFRF than just the phrase appearing on currency.
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Why do atheists claim that theists bother them, when atheists do shit like this?
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Somebody has a lot of free time.
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We honestly have nothing better to do with our time than to complain about money?
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This is such a waste of time and energy... We don't have better things to do besides get pissy over some words on a bill or coin? Really, you're life is that empty that you have time to get pissed about that?
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I'm an atheist, and actually like the 'In God We Trust' and would be irritated if it was removed, I mean really it's the nations roots.
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These people need to stop acting like butthurt atheists. I mean, does it really matter? I am an atheist, by the way.
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These coins have been like this for over a hundred years, the words on the coins don't actually affect anyone's actions (do you read these coins everytime you use one?), etc...just seems like people wanting to stir up something over something that doesn't even matter. http://i.imgur.com/6Nfdv.jpg
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I think it would be better to go after the national motto, which is "In God we trust" and go back to our original motto before Congress changed it in 1956 because of the scare of communism.