Jan 15, 2005

The New Monkey Trial

I'll have to admit to having just about pulled the pin on tonights reading of the .pdf link you posted here, especially when I came up against trying to wrap my head around applying the "lemon test to child evangelists and Kosher foods"* .

But then, Lo and Behold, "Nightline" comes on with the final installment of the very judgment I'm reading! Coincidence? I think not! Thusly reinvigorated and wholly inspired, read on I did. And yes, Koppel (at least) gets his documents authenticated first**.

In short, I was able to read enough dry material, including some of the best news I've heard in awhile, to insure the first nights good sleep in quite awhile.

G'night y'all

(Wifes back from Texas too)

Gary Williams

http://mycos.blogspot.com/

*Both the Supreme Court and the Eleventh Circuit have acknowledged that the second and third prongs of the Lemon test are interrelated insofar as courts often consider similar factors in analyzing them (snipped some cases and clauses thereof) In fact, the Eleventh Circuit, like several other circuit courts, has combined the second and third prongs of the Lemon analysis into a single "effect" inquiry, (snip) accord Child Evangelism Fellowship of New Jersey, Commack Self-Service Kosher Meats Inc. v . We1ss

**In sum, the Sticker in dispute violates the effects prang of the Lemon test and justice O'Connor's endorsement test, which the Court has incorporated into its Lemon analysis Adopted by the school board, funded by the money of taxpayers, and inserted by school personnel, the Sticker conveys an impermissible message of endorsement and tells some citizens that they are political outsiders while telling others that they are political insiders. Regardless of whether teachers comply with the Cobb County School District's regulation on theories of origin and regardless of the discussions that actually take place m the Cobb County science classrooms, the Sticker has already sent a message that the School Board agrees with the beliefs of Christian fundamentalists and crest ionrsts. The School Board has effectively improperly entangled itself whiz religion by appearing to take a position Therefore, the Sticker must be removed from all of the textbooks into which it has been placed .

L M wrote:

Gary,

> A related breaking story from Georgia.

> > This is a PDF of the ruling, 44 pgs. Read the first ten or so and you > can see two things... >

> 1) It was a procedural issue as to how the need for stickers was derived in > an environment that is ostensibly operated as public government function. > (secret school board meetings with no minutes, limited number of public comments...) >

> 2) They are selling the need for the stickers as a "diversity in education" > issue, but the court (I believe) is not amused at the disingenuity. >

> http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/religion/selmancobb11305ord.pdf >

> Gary Williams

No comments: