Editor:
I am writing in response to Casey Jacketta’s July 10 column “Putting God in the Pledge Divides the Nation”.
Although there are some people who are in favor of taking “under God” out of the Pledge of Allegiance, it is certainly not as divisive an issue as she would have us believe.
The U.S. Senate voted unanimously (indivisibly, if you will) against the ruling. The vast, and I do mean vast, majority of Americans do believe that God watches over our nation. In fact, those who are opposed to the Pledge as it currently stands only have the right to protest due to our nation’s Founding Fathers’ commitment to “God-given rights”.
If you feel the idea of “God” ought not to be fully endorsed by the state, perhaps you ought to consider relocating to a different state, one who’s establishment was not so “churchy”, or at the very least stop using the nation’s money with “In God We Trust” stamped on it.
As for separation of church and state, in no place does the First Amendment say anything concerning separation of God and state, just that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
Last time I checked, God was not a religion.
In a country where we do our best to let the majority rule, while at the same time respecting the individual rights of the minority, this is another example of the minority wanting to dictate to the majority, in effect taking away the right to free speech that allows us to say what we believe, even if, heaven forbid, we believe in God.
Jacob Tripp, Computer Science