Not Goode ... not Goode at all ...

Lately there just seems to be more and more in the news that just boggle my mind. The ignorance and bigotry and self-serving in this country really sometimes just astounds me.

The one lately that is so jaw-droppingly hateful is the story of Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), an African-American Muslim elected last month. Since he is a Muslim, he wants to take his oath of office on the Koran instead of the Bible. This immediately put conservatives in an uproar - it's an affront to American culture, will damage society's fabric and "traditional values" (one of the most narrow-minded phrases in existence), and he should not be able to choose what book he pledges on - only "America" can do that.

After thinking about that, can you get your mouth closed yet? I'll wait ... I know how long it took me ...



First off - no elected official is required to take their oath of office on any book whatsoever. They take their legal oath of office as a group in Congress, with their right hand raised, pledging to uphold the Constitution of the United States, but no other object is required. Pledging one's oath on the Bible is done in a private ceremony (in most cases) which has no legal bearing. Think of getting married at City Hall, and then later having a big lavish church wedding. It's already a done deal, all legal and binding - the second ceremony is just for show, and isn't required at all.

Secondly - I strongly believe that "separation of church and state" should be taken quite literally. There are those who argue that the Bible is the basis for all of our moral and ethical "traditions", but I don't believe that. I do believe that many of the Bible's teachings do reflect good moral basis, but they were written by man to reflect and enforce the common beliefs of right and wrong - not because they are necessarily the transcribed words of God. I believe in the Ten Commandments (well, most of them), but because they are good and right, not because God will send me to Hell if I disobey them. There are those who were raised as non-Christians, even in atheistic families, who still have a solid moral compass, and I believe this comes from men and women and society, not directly from any type of god or goddess. I firmly believe that we are all a part of god (whomever he/she/it is) and that our morals and ethics and love come from within and from what we learn from others - whether it came from a religious entity or not. Whatever the religious beliefs of our founding fathers were, the Constitution was quite deliberately written to include all views, faiths, beliefs, and non-beliefs and still protect and respect all others. To require that any elected official who chooses to partake in a private ceremony, where they solemnize their oath on something that they believe "holy", use only the Bible is not only unconstitutional but asinine - qualities that I don't believe were intended to be "traditional values".

Then came Rep. Virgil Goode's (R-VA) letter to some of his constituents. This unbelievably ignorant man actually had the audacity to say that "if American citizens don’t wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran". Okay ... this is wrong on all levels. Ellison is not an immigrant; his family has been in the United States for over 200 years. The arrogance of stating that we must adopt the "Virgil Goode position on immigration" (umm, he's pretty much against it) is appalling. And you know what? So what if more Muslims emigrate to the United States? So what if more Muslims are elected to office? So what if they, or anyone else, decide to pledge their oath on a book other than the Bible? They are elected to uphold the Constitution, NOT to uphold a religion (see previous paragraph).

But Goode's idiocy doesn't stop there. He thinks that we need to curtail Middle Eastern immigration to the United States, and although he catches himself before saying it, I'm sure his true answer to the question "Do you think there are too many Middle Easterners in the United States right now?" is a resounding "yes". He seems to equate "Muslim" with "Extreme Jihadist Terrorist". Wouldn't he like to know what I equate him with.

Does anyone remember "The Great American Melting Pot" from Schoolhouse Rock? I grew up listening to that and believing this was America. People from all backgrounds, races, religions, skin colors, cultures, societies - this was what made our country what it is. Our "culture" is made up of many, many other cultures that have melded together. We accept each other, learn from each other, take part of each other into our own homes. Who here would like to eat food that came solely from their ancestors' cultures? Not me - blech.

So to say that only the Bible, only whites, only males, only heterosexuals, only anything is "American" and should remain that way ... well, no. That is a narrow-minded, bigoted, horrendous lie. It embarrasses me not only that people in this country honestly believe this kind of lie, but that people in other countries think of this view as American.

I received an e-mail last night from my dear cousin Jo, who I don't think will mind my sharing with you. This part dealt specifically with homosexuality, but you can replace that idea with any other form of prejudice and it still rings true:

"You know, in reading your blog and in reading some of the blogs you subscribe to, you are teaching me so much about your life and what it must be like to try to live a full life like all of the heterosexuals. Things I never would have thought of, like whether to come out or try to live as a heterosexual (as mentioned on someone else's blog), or in wanting children, or in some of the everyday things that I might take for granted. Your blog about Cheney's daughter and her partner and the baby and the responsibility the well-known gay community has in how they are publicly perceived affecting every other gay person in America...it really boggles the mind sometimes. Your post about you and Scott wanting children, and especially Scott, just made me feel so sad for the two of you. I have to admit that I am thinking more about gay rights than I ever even bothered to consider before. I wish every straight person could see gays as you let me see them through your blog, even the blogs of the others. I mean, honestly, we are all human beings. You are not some alien creatures dropped into this world for any devious purpose."

Amen.

Edit: This is a fantastic article about all of this - much clearer than mine: http://www.juancole.com/2006/12/swearing-on-quran-and-nut-on-miami.html