If anyone wants to read the unfiltered 9th Circuit Court's Pledge of Allegiance opinion, look for "Newdow v. U.S. Congress" dated 6/26/2002. You'll need Acrobat. I'm a little surprised that it took 48 years for somebody to take the issue to court; I don't think it's worth all the angry rhetoric we will soon hear, and I shudder to think how many trees will be cut to get the paper necessary to print all the unbridled commentary that is forthcoming. As a practical matter, if this decision holds, imagine all the currency which will have to be pulled and re-engraved. Don't think it's gonna happen.
Now here's an idea whose time may have come: in the grand tradition of F*cked Company and F*cked Weblogs, somebody is collecting old dot.com business plans and other detritus from the bubble.
There are several good links at Corante's policy pages today, including one pointing to a site which lets you see if your credit card number is being used by crooks. One would think you could check your statement to determine the same thing, but what do I know?
Emblazon your name throughout space for years to come: your name here!
Posted by Linkmeister at June 26, 2002 04:00 PMGood call on the linkage to the 9th Circuit thing, Linky... (how unironic) I don't know anything about the case, but I hardly believe that it will hold up. While I don't think it's appropriate for schools to force kids to say a pledge that could compromise the beliefs that they're parents are pushing on them, I don't think this decision is the best way to solve that problem. Oh well... I'll just blame that on the silly liberal judges. ;)
Posted by: Pete at June 26, 2002 04:51 PMThe 9th Circuit is by far the most liberal, but...Sen. Diane Feinstein just pointed out on CNN that one of the two judges who voted in the affirmative was a George H.W. Bush appointee, and the other yes vote was by a Nixon appointee. Now I am amused, if that's true.
Posted by: Linkmeister at June 26, 2002 05:15 PMAs amazing as that sounds, link, California IS after all the breeding grounds of some of the biggest repulicans out there. Sure, there's an occasional Feinstein rolling around, but this is after all Nixon, Reagan and damn Jerry Brown (had to add a psychotic dem) country.
Is it 1984 yet?
I'm gonna go read Zippy.
Posted by: hoopty at June 26, 2002 05:32 PMActually, Linky... I read that the Carter and Nixon voted in favor, with the Bush appointee voting opposed (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&u=/ap/20020626/ap_on_re_us/pledge_of_allegiance_12) -- to quote the article:
'The ruling was issued by Goodwin, who was appointed by President Nixon, and Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt, a Carter appointee.
In a dissent, Circuit Judge Ferdinand F. Fernandez, appointed by the first President Bush, warned that under his colleagues' theory of the Constitution, "we will soon find ourselves prohibited from using our album of patriotic songs in many public settings."'
Posted by: Pete at June 26, 2002 08:12 PMWell, Sen. Feinstein may have gotten it wrong, or I may have misheard her. Ah well.
Posted by: Linkmeister at June 26, 2002 09:22 PMa comment on the credit card checking site - without even going there I would be thinking that is a great way for some underworld or incarcerated person to garner several CC numbers - hmmmm? I had a phone offer last week to purchase such a checking program - blah, blah, blah - and they could tell me if anyone was using my numbers - "excuse me, sir, I can do that on my own, thank you very much." "splutter, splutter . . ." click. >..
Posted by: purplemoose at June 27, 2002 06:53 AMI don't understand this fuss over the Pledge of Allegiance. The pledge wasn't penned by Washington or Jefferson, and the problematic words weren't added until what, 1954? The ruling most likely won't be upheld (although I think it should be unless the words are removed and the pledge returned to its original form).
Meanwhile, we're involved in an open-ended war against a tactic; our own government is deciding which of its citizens are entitled to the protections guaranteed by the constitution and which are not; the stock market is falling lower and lower; scandals of near-unprecedented proportions are rocking big-business; half of Arizona is on fire; the G8 is going on....
And what are we in a tizzy about? Two words in a pledge that were added less than 50 years ago, and a "crisis" that is relatively easy to fix.
Posted by: Scott at June 27, 2002 07:47 AM