Right-wingers in Asheville, North Carolina, are furious that an atheist won a city council seat. So now they're suing - claiming that the North Carolina Constitution disqualifies people from public office if they "deny the being of Almighty God."
Well, the U.S. Constitution ought to put the brakes on this k00ks00t right quick. I don't even need to tell you that the federal Constitution voids state constitutional provisions that patrol public officials' religious beliefs. The Supreme Court has already ruled so in another case decades ago.
The Bill of Rights is incorporated to prevent states (as well as the federal government) from violating basic liberty.
If I was a betting man, I'd wager that all the plaintiffs in this suit - despite thinking that beliefs have no constitutional protection - think the First Amendment protects school harassment in the cases that I've described before. I'd bet the farm on it! They seem to think the Constitution protects acts that go well beyond speech, yet they don't even think beliefs should be protected!
This is yet another example of the right-wingers' cheap elitism that guides their topsy-turvy interpretation of constitutional law.
I could be making more of this story, except that 1) the conservatives have no case; and 2) I don't think there's a chance in hell that any judge is going to rule in their favor.
The most important point may be that conservatives have a deep enough war chest to spend on frivolous lawsuits challenging elections that don't go their way. Who's bankrolling their lawsuits?
It also shows that the Far Right will go to any length to oust those who defeat them - even if it means dredging up obscure laws that aren't even valid.
(Source: http://rawstory.com/2009/12/atheist-councilman)
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Conservatives to sue city over atheist councilman
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment