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In God We Trust
by Roderick Armageddon and Cordova Duvet

Anvil’s dynamic duo tackles America’s most volatile cocktail — politics and religion. The catalyst? Michael Newdow’s lawsuit against California’s Oak Grove Unified School District, demanding the district removes the Pledge of Allegiance from their everyday protocol.

Frustration and Misperception in America
Facing an audience of irate Pledge of Allegiance supporters, Michael Newdow delivered an eloquent and appropriate rebuttal to arguments supporting the mandatory recitation of America’s tired old Pledge. Here’s an excerpt from the debate that aired on CNN:

Audience member: "We are talking about the greatest flag to the greatest nation in the world; I can't believe that Americans will allow something like this to go by without voicing their opinion. This is ludicrous to me. I just can't believe that the courts would give him the time of day."

Newdow: "I agree, it is the greatest nation and what has made it great is our Constitution. The framers were quite wise in recognizing what religion can do and how it can cause hatred and how it can cause death. You don't have to go far in this world, outside of our nation, to see where that has happened. It is prevalent over the entire globe and the reason we don't have it here is because we have an establishment clause ... If Mike there from Alabama wouldn't mind saying "we are one nation under Buddha" every day, or "one nation under David Koresh" or "one nation" under some religious icon that he doesn't believe in ... if he doesn't understand the difference then we have a problem."

Way to put it, Mr. Newdow.

Fact: The very core and substance of the United States is freedom from a singular line of thinking. Pledging to one nation under God is akin to washing away the entire premise of the Constitution.

During one of his recent addresses to the nation, President Bush stated very sternly just exactly what the "American People" value. In particular, he said that American’s value the phrase, "one nation under God." While by no means a shock, Bush made this statement with little regard to whom the American people truly are: a diverse collection of opinions and beliefs.

The last time I checked my birth certificate, I was an American. Perhaps the Bush administration has been fiddling with my files because I’m beginning to question the validity of my passport. I do not in any way, shape or form identify with Bush’s vision of America. According to my state-sponsored education, the Constitution of the United States of America is the founding document protecting our rights and freedoms, as well as granting us the right to change the face of the country with the times. For those God-loving pledgers pointing to the Declaration of Independence for proof that this is a nation dictated by God, take note that our nation’s proclamation of separation was never intended to be the governing rule of this country. That’s why we have the Constitution.

For those of you unfortunate enough to have sat through FOX’s premier broadcast of The Pulse, you might recall Bill O’Reilly’s verbal assault of Michael Newdow. O’Reilly’s barrage of questioning (more like statements, as he never gave Newdow much time to answer, and severely edited any rebuttals that did get through) showcased one of the most ignorant arguments against Newdow’s lawsuit I’ve yet to witness. O’Reilly’s argument consisted of a weak combination of a dictionary definition and the Declaration of Independence to justify using the word God in the Pledge, as if the Pledge were drafted and enacted by the founding fathers or God himself.

Fact: Since its inception, The Pledge of Allegiance has been altered three times ("Under God" was the most recent addition, added in 1954) to better reflect the political ideals of those motivated and interested enough in using it as a more effective rhetorical tool.

Fact: The Pledge of Allegiance was originally drafted in 1892 by Christian socialist Francis Bellamy, used later that same year in a marketing campaign for the NEA’s quadricentennial celebration for Columbus Day. The preceding campaign involving the Pledge was designed with the intent of selling more American flags. Though not necessarily intended as such, the Pledge was basically an early version of Joe the Camel.

Bellamy's granddaughter said he would have resented the addition of "Under God" to his original Pledge. Francis Bellamy was pressured into leaving his church in 1891 because of his socialist sermons. In his retirement in Florida, he stopped attending church altogether because he disliked the racial bigotry he found there.

Unfortunately for America (and the spirit of Francis Bellamy), Bill O’Reilly’s opinions are shared by a large number of individuals who believe that the separation of church and state is conceptually attractive (especially in public schools), yet a violation of their God-fearing principles once put into action.

If America is so heavily dictated by history and Christianity, then why move forward at all? Why not go back to the Old Testament - you know, the one that was updated to make it more palatable for the masses? The one that said your hands should be cut off for touching a pig's skin and women should be locked away during menstruation? Come on, that's from the mouth of Christianity’s God, right? If our country is founded on and dictated by a Christian God, let's get right back to where we belong. Or wait; did this God change his mind and progress with the times? Did this God commission the New Testament because the old one was outdated, or because he reevaluated some of his original proclamations? What? Christianity’s God amended his own Constitution? Holy crosses, Bill! Perhaps you should rethink your argument!

Fact: The Pledge wasn’t even produced on a governmental commission, yet on his Website, Bill O’Reilly states that Newdow was "…violating my rights by trying to rewrite the history of my country." What? How? Does O’Reilly think that history solely defines what should and should not be? Does he think that the Pledge is an integral part of our country’s founding history?

O’Reilly states, "There is no question that America was set up to allow its citizens to be free because the Framers of the Constitution believed that was why God created man — to exercise free will. It is simply unconscionable for activist judges and fanatical atheists to intrude on the history of the United States." The last time I checked, the U.S. Constitution was set up to accommodate the changing perceptions and needs of the people of this country, not God. For O’Reilly to suggest that Newdow and the 9th District are intruding on history is as ignorant as stating that Constitutional amendments are intruding on the Constitution as it was originally written.

O’Reilly is missing the ark. Newdow and his constituents are exercising America’s government the way it was intended, to ensure equal and fair treatment for all Americans, regardless of creed, faith, or any other factor. Newdow is more American then all those asking for his head.

Fact: American citizens are granted freedom of religion (though it should be freedom from religion). Unfortunately, that is easily interpreted by the Bush administration (and much of America) as "freedom of religion - as long as it doesn’t challenge our Christian ethics."

Fact: The Constitution of the United States of America grants us the right to make changes as we, the people, see fit, based upon the freedoms and rights laid out in that very same document. Keeping those two antiquated, Cold War artifacts in the Pledge is an injustice to the freedoms that American men and women have preserved for more than 200 years.

Now on to the next battle: In God We Trust.

- Rod Armageddon

Alienation in God-Fearing America
I'm feeling alienated in my own country these days. It all started with September 11th. While I take issue with many aspects of this country's response to that attack, (notably the ridiculous assertion that it was perpetrated out of jealousy), the one that has recently resurfaced in my consciousness (provoked by Newdow’s lawsuit) is the apparent mass illusion that the United States is a Christian nation.

I was under the impression that among this great nation's core values is freedom from religious persecution. And I'm feeling religiously persecuted - big time. I don't believe in religion. As a matter of fact, organized religion is near the top of my personal list of The Most Outrageous Affronts to Integrity, Free Will and Personal Responsibility (MY core values). That’s right. I believe that religion very often cripples a person's (or society's) ability and willingness to construct their lives based on their own intelligence and personal experience. Religion gives people an irrational dogma to hide behind when they can't account for an event or a situation in their lives, or if they want to control other people's choices. Religion emphasizes the importance of the after-life, to the extreme detriment of our sitch in the here-and-now. If everybody believed that this life was their one and only chance to experience love and joy, don’t you think the world would be a better place? Let’s not forget, religion is what gave the 9/11 hijackers the courage to commit an unbelievable atrocity.

In spite of my fervent beliefs on this subject, I try to practice respect for people's religious beliefs and would never try to impose my beliefs on them, insult them by ignoring their existence, or ridicule them (well, at least to their face). All I ask is the same respect. I realize that the vast majority of people in this country believe in some sort of God. However, there are a lot of us that don't. Religious belief should be private, not shoved down the throat of every school child and printed on the very currency that we all buy our beer with. To the God-fearing majority, it may seem a small affront to be expected to pledge our allegiance to something we don’t believe in (doesn’t that undermine our Pledge to ask us to ignore the parts we don’t fully embrace?), but to those of us that fear ourselves (thank you very much), it's a daily affirmation of the fact that our beliefs do not count.

DON’T tell me I’m un-American. I lurve this country, or at least the idea of it, and I believe in upholding the Constitution. And the Constitution has a provision for the separation of church and state. That is as it should be. And if there is a legitimate argument for maintaining the status quo, I have yet to hear it. The only opposing viewpoints to the court's ruling I have heard thus far have been emotional, apathetic, and just plain illogical. "That's just the way it's done." is one lazy-ass way to defend a practice which does daily injustice to our Constitution.

Bravo, Mr. Newdow.

- Cordova Duvet