[url=http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/19/lawsuit-challenges-under-god-in-pledge-of-allegiance/19295203/]here[/url] [quote] FREEHOLD, N.J. — A New Jersey judge is poised to decide whether a atheist group can move forward with its challenge to the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. Monmouth County Superior Court Judge David Bauman said he will decide shortly whether to grant the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District's request to dismiss a lawsuit filed against it by the American Humanist Association, a Washington, D.C., group that is seeking to bar use of the words phrase in the daily recitation of the pledge in the school district. Bauman on Wednesday heard arguments from both sides. Joining the school district in its effort to have the lawsuit thrown out were lawyers for the Knights of Columbus, the American Legion, and the Becket Fund, a Washington, D.C., group that promotes religious freedom. The American Humanist Association, which works to protect the rights of atheists and other nonreligious groups, filed the lawsuit against the school district in April on behalf of a family with a child in the school system. The lawsuit claims that the practice of acknowledging God in the pledge of allegiance discriminates against atheists, in violation of the New Jersey Constitution. The family and the child on whose behalf the lawsuit has been filed have not been named. David B. Rubin, attorney for the school district, said he is aware of the identity of the family and has confirmed the child is a student in the district, but he said he is under court order not to disclose their identities. Rubin said he is seeking to have the lawsuit dismissed on several grounds, the first of which is the fact that New Jersey law requires daily recitation of the pledge in the state's schools. Despite that, individual students are not required to participate in the pledge, he said. For that reason, Rubin said, the plaintiff's claim of a civil rights violation is unfounded because there is no differential treatment of anyone by the government. "There's not been a requirement or a prohibition from doing anything,'' Rubin said. David Niose, the attorney representing the Humanist Association, said that even though students are not required to participate in the pledge, inclusion of the words "under God'' makes it divisive. "It paints one group as quintessential patriots and the other group as second-class citizens," he said. He said the pledge differs from other school activities that some might find objectionable in that it is an exercise that is performed daily from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The Humanist Society brought a similar case earlier this year in Massachusetts, but that state's highest court ruled recitation of the pledge is not discriminatory because it is voluntary. Niose told Bauman on Wednesday that he thought the Massachusetts court was "simply wrong." Meanwhile, Rubin said federal courts have not recognized the Pledge of Allegiance as a religious exercise, even though a reference to God is in it. "It's simply a recognition of the undeniable, historical fact that religion played an important role in the formation of this country and the development of our government institutions,'' he said. The Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892, but the words "under God" were not added until 1954.[/quote] What do you all think? Care? Don't care? Stupid lawsuit? Give your thoughts