Friday, January 26, 2007
One Nation Under God?
(2)
Just watched 'The Cafferty File' on CNN. Funny stuff! King George does indeed seem to live in the Twilight Zone. And I can't quite figure out whether vice president Cheney is delusional or only a pathological liar or both, but he clearly lives in lala land.
Amazon sent me an (thump) email suggesting I write a review of The God Delusion. Little do they know it is my potty book and I am less than 10 percent through it. So I'll pass on the invitation 'til I've read it, but naturally I'll keep you entertained with quotations from it. In fact, I have some juicy ones from some of the 'founding fathers' of this so-called 'nation under God.' But they'll have to wait until after the evening news...
Ok that's done. Here are the quotations. This could be a long night.
From the terms of a treaty with Tripoli, drafted in 1796 under George Washington and signed by John Adams in 1797:
'As the government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has, in itself, no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Musslemen; and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.' (My italics. 'Musslemen' and 'Mehometan' must be old spellings of, 'Mohammedan.')
The following are quotes from Thomas Jefferson:
'... Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear.'
'Christianity is the most perverted system that ever shone on man.'
James Madison: 'During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been its fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution.'
Benjamin Franklin: 'Lighthouses are more useful than churches.'
John Adams: 'This would be the best of all possible worlds, if there were no religion in it.'
Just watched 'The Cafferty File' on CNN. Funny stuff! King George does indeed seem to live in the Twilight Zone. And I can't quite figure out whether vice president Cheney is delusional or only a pathological liar or both, but he clearly lives in lala land.
Amazon sent me an (thump) email suggesting I write a review of The God Delusion. Little do they know it is my potty book and I am less than 10 percent through it. So I'll pass on the invitation 'til I've read it, but naturally I'll keep you entertained with quotations from it. In fact, I have some juicy ones from some of the 'founding fathers' of this so-called 'nation under God.' But they'll have to wait until after the evening news...
Ok that's done. Here are the quotations. This could be a long night.
From the terms of a treaty with Tripoli, drafted in 1796 under George Washington and signed by John Adams in 1797:
'As the government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has, in itself, no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquillity, of Musslemen; and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.' (My italics. 'Musslemen' and 'Mehometan' must be old spellings of, 'Mohammedan.')
The following are quotes from Thomas Jefferson:
'... Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear.'
'Christianity is the most perverted system that ever shone on man.'
James Madison: 'During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been its fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution.'
Benjamin Franklin: 'Lighthouses are more useful than churches.'
John Adams: 'This would be the best of all possible worlds, if there were no religion in it.'
