The Eleventh Commandment
By Ron Marr (08/29/03)
If I'm honest, I can't really say that I have any profound feelings about the removal of a Ten Commandments monument from the rotunda of an Alabama Judicial Building. It doesn't bother me that it was there. It doesn't bother me that it's not there now.
But the scenes broadcast from Montgomery did catch my attention. The Christians holding vigil were prostrating themselves on the ground, many in tears, all outraged. On the other side of the aisle the ACLU crowd hung around with smug and self-satisfied looks, snickering and pointing, ecstatic that they had one-upped their arch rivals.
I don't like fanatics, which is why I have little truck with either ACLU members or the radically religious. I know a lot of Christians who live their beliefs and don't try and shove them down the throats of others. Nice people, kind and decent, and many of them are good friends of mine. Then again, they weren't the ones writhing, screaming and convulsing in front of the Judicial Building.
But least you think I'm letting the secular humanist, ACLU tribe off with a free pass, think again. The only sect more humor-impaired than the radical religious are the supplicants of the American Civil Liberties Union. I swear, these people have never cracked a smile in their life, and if by some miracle they did feel a moment's joy, it would be because they had just managed to darken someone's day.
The truth of the matter is that the radicals comprising both the ACLU and the fundamentalist Christian sects have quite a lot more in common than they care to admit. For starters, they don't really want to share their beliefs; they seek to beat you over the head with them. They wish them to be mandated and obeyed. Both sides feel that they have a headlock on absolute truth, and any dissenting word or opinion is absolutely wrong. They are little fascists who worship control far more than they adore enlightenment.
All is serious with these cretins. Nothing is fun. I'm pretty sure the ACLU would sue to stop a six year old's birthday party if the guest of honor failed to properly celebrate diversity by inviting total strangers of every race, color, creed, sexual orientation and hairstyle. I'm pretty sure the radical Christians would try and shut the shindig down if the young participants failed to say grace before each bite of cake.
The most glaring commonalty, however, is that these two groups will do ANYTHING for attention. As indicated by their actions, the need to be observed and applauded is their driving motivation. In short, they want people to look at them. They are the drunken Uncle who wants you to pull his finger, the class clown who stands on his desk and does the Twist, the insecure actress who attempts to raise her ratings by tearfully revealing her drug addiction to Barbara Walters on live TV.
To both the ACLU and the fundamentalist Christians I can only say this. Shut up and get a frickin' life. And I mean that in the nicest possible way.
To the former - The ACLU - you know damned good and well that the Constitutional restraints against a meshing of church and state was not meant to prevent expression of religion...even if it is on public property. The intent was to prohibit the American government from establishing a state-sponsored religion, demanding that citizens accept. believe and pay homage to something that is nothing but an adjunct of the legislative, judicial and executive branches.
Placing The Ten Commandments on public property hurts no one, converts no one, and offends no one. You best get your sand-blasters oiled up if you want Biblical maxims abolished from the landscape, for in the US there are approximately 4,000 public buildings which have engraved or sculpted references to Christian belief. You best start with that little old edifice which serves as home to the Supreme Court, and don't bitch when Sandy Day O'Connor comes at you with an ax handle.
To the latter - The radical Christians - quit rolling around on the pavement and attempt to behave as intelligent adults. It would seem to me that it is more important to believe those words in your heart, to practice them in your daily life, than it is to insist that others read them. People already know about the 10 Commandments, and they will make their own decisions. They will steal, or not. They will commit adultery, or not. They will covet their neighbors wives, dogs, power tools and 1949 Indian Motorcycles...or not.
Personally I'd like to post just one commandment on every telephone pole in America
Unfortunately, "Thalt Shall Not Act Like A Horse's Ass" would never catch on.
(Printer friendly version) Email: Ron Marr
