there is a furor over same sex marriage and my question is ; Is marriage a religious institution ? or is marriage a civil institution ? if it is religious there should be no laws about it at all, if it is civil then it should be for any person who wants to pair with another regardless of who, and since there are laws that treat married people differently from single people then to deny others the same rights is not equal protection of the law and so any law on marriage is by definition not equally applied to single people and as such government should have no involvement with a private contract between two people.

I watched a 2 hour program that was discussing a PBS program called "Buster" and how Bush's new Secretary of Health Education and Welfare had suggested an episode was unfit for child consumption and should not be aired. It was on a family with two mothers, which promoted bad family values. Now, something no one on the panel talking about this , nor the secretary herself seemed to notice, that any non homophobic person or child would be more likely to assume the two mothers were divorced sisters raising their families on the old family farm than two lesbians. The insecurity of the ridged puritans show through when they yell about how the private life style of someone miles away is a threat to their way of life.

I also have a problem with the intrusion of religious doctrine into the pledge of allegiance and our money . If you have no problem with it or even enjoying it being there , ask your self if you would feel the same if it was "in Chrishna we trust" or " one nation under Allah". or should each coin have a different entity ? Do we put Zeus on the hundred or thousand dollar bill and would God feel ok on the lowly Nickel ? But which denomination do we leave blank for the atheists ?

The simple point is that when people were losing their heads over what they believed and the imposed beliefs of others, it was a detriment to the country as well as those trying to live in it. I don't believe any religion has had their god interviewed by Larry King or in any other way can physically guaranty their views and have no right over the beliefs of others, regardless of their feeling of religious benevolence and good will toward earth and man. Those who exterminate or exile other beliefs are simply showing their lack of faith in their own beliefs . Are their teachings so foul they will not hold up to a competing view of the world and universe ?

Which is why the founders of the US attempted to prevent the control of our government from falling into the evil hands of the religious zealots so that those of more modest religions could believe as they felt with their hearts rather than worshiping in fear of beheading or burning.