Well done, Genie. These days, due to job and time being spent on the Uilleann Pipes, Irish Bouzouki, and Low D whistle, my Mudcat time is spent mostly in reading without writing. I have followed this thread with interest.

Your point about the folks who are upset at this ruling, yet object to any type of other religious influence in our institutions is the most astute of any made so far. That is not to say that there have not been many fine points made in defense of the various positions, but this one grabbed me.

It seems to me that this comes down to the depth of committment to ones values, to ones code, to what one believes. Personally I don't give a damn if my child recites the pledge in school each day, or if the currency has "In God We Trust" on it. In fact I would prefer that they did not, and that it did not. This is because it is much more important to me that she feel the presence of God and that she trust the goodness of S/He That Is Always Watching, in her heart and mind, as opposed to wondering if what her old man is always telling her, and which the teacher is always telling her, and what the other kids are always telling her. I want her to sit on my hill, with a starry sky above and the wonder of the Earth Mother below, maybe with her old man's Low D whistle in hand, and know that she is a part of a wonderful plan. When we are in Mass, I want her prayers to be a conversation with that which is the greatest among us, and not some rote thing she learned in Catechism.

As I was the first to say above, this is all a red herring. It is not worth the bandwidth being devoted to it. When politicians raise an issue like this one, without addressing the meat of it, it is usually done to get your attention off other things. Trust me, I know this system well.

All the best,

Mick