Jennifer Killpack-Knutsen ([info]green_jenni) wrote,
@ 2007-01-12 12:12:00
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Chris Buttars is at it again
I guess Chris Buttars didn't make a big enough religious splash in the last legislative session. From the Senate Site:

"Little by little, over the last 200 years or so, a cloak has been pulled over the First Amendment, masking it’s guarantee that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

I think it is time to pull back that shroud and carefully re-assert the vision established by our founders. As Lisa wrote in today’s Deseret Morning News, I am introducing legislation which will take a small step toward restoring the unalienable rights of freedom of expression and freedom of religion.

This bill puts Government out of the business of prohibiting religious expression. The only situation in which the government will be allowed to ban religious expression will be to further a compelling government interest using the least restrictive means possible. You can read the 2-page text here"


I commented to the post the following:

I'm all for protecting people's right to worship, but not to force others to worship their definition of a diety. I support your right to believe what you want, to display religious artifacts in your home and on your property, to wear clothing that states your beliefs, to pray and worship in your churches and homes. I do not support the creation of a culture where one narrow definition of diety is forced upon the rest of us in school and public prayers and speeches and displays of Christian religious symbols are displayed to the exlusion of all others.

Your bible is very clear on public displays of piousness:

Matthew 6:5 - 6

5. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites [are]: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

It seems to me that this drive to be as publicly pious as possible shows either a huge ego problem or a lack of faith in your god. Don't you believe that all your time spent at home and church worship, and living your life to your god's highest standards is good enough to get you into heaven? Give your god some credit, and in the meantime, leave the rest of us to live our lives in the way we choose.



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[info]skepticle
2007-01-12 07:18 pm UTC (link)
Hehehe, I was listening to KCPW this AM about this issue and that Buttars guy is on meth.

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[info]green_jenni
2007-01-13 08:25 am UTC (link)
He certainly doesn't seem to have his feet planted firmly in reality.

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[info]mwalton
2007-01-12 07:24 pm UTC (link)
Isn't this the guy even Doug Wright refers to as the "Senator of the pod people?" I seriously wonder if there's something in the water in the capital building after some of the bills people really try to push through..it's just...yeah. No touch with reality. *Sigh* Good response btw. This is an argument my father and I have all the time..he also is one of those "prayer in schools" proponents. I can almost always cut that off with "whose prayer?" and when I work out the logistics with him he's usually forced to back off, until the next time.

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[info]green_jenni
2007-01-13 08:22 am UTC (link)
It's a crazy issue. Some people just don't understand (or even care) what it's like to have minority religious beliefs. You would think that they'd be sympathetic, seeing as how many of our foremothers and fathers came to this country seeking relief from a dominant relgious system adn the ability to believe their own.

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[info]mwalton
2007-01-13 03:53 pm UTC (link)
I think that's why I *do* understand. I grew up in a tiny town where everyone except for myself, and a few other kids went to the local Christian church. I had anti-Mormon literature shoved in my locker, was called all sorts of names, and generally made to feel out of place. Our school even still had a bachalaureate (sp?) or a religious send off for graduates which I refused to attend knowing they'd be bringining in the local minister who made a habit of bashing mormons (which was amusing to me as my family were the only active mormons in the town). Anyway, between that and teachers who made my life difficult because of my beliefs I think that's why I'm much more sensitive to the issue. And am a HUGE believer in separation, because I've seen the destruction the mixing can cause.

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Buttars
(Anonymous)
2007-01-20 03:30 pm UTC (link)
I completely understand Buttars. He is a religious whacko every bit as extreme in his religion as the Islamists who lust for jihad are. What I don't understand, and what concerns me, are the people in his district who vote for him time and again. What could possibly be going through the mind of someone who knowingly, willingly, not-under-some-kind-of-duress picks his name on a ballot that has any other alternative, including a candidate from the planet Kudzu? The fact that there are that many who do, causes me extreme angst.

PotP

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