Missouri Passes Amendment 2

[Jer]

Didn't see this mentioned, although I might have missed it. Missouri passed a 'Prayer Law' of sorts. It states that students are allowing to pray in public schools, etc. Big whoop, and I don't really care, they can pray their little hearts out. However, it has a *tiny* bit in it that may be, well, let's say exploited.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1757665.html

Story:

Spoiler: show

Missouri voters on Tuesday passed its "right to pray" amendment, reaffirming the right to pray in public and in schools.

In an effort to further define First Amendment rights, the measure formally known as Amendment 2 passed with 83 percent of the vote. The amendment's backers say it helps protect Missouri's Christians, about 80 percent of the population, who say they are public targets.

While the religious protections outlined in the measure are already guaranteed by the Bill of Rights and the Constitution, critics are drawing attention to another part of the amendment:

"No student shall be compelled to perform or participate in academic assignments or educational presentations that violate his or her religious beliefs."

The Missouri Constitution already allows people to worship according to personal beliefs, and prohibits discrimination based on religion for public office, testifying or serving on a jury, according to the Associated Press.

Republican state Rep. Mike McGhee, who introduced the measure, told Fox News that the section stems from a 2006 case, in which a Missouri State University class assignment was to write and sign a letter to the state legislature to support gay adoption.

But critics are skeptical. A New York Times editorial notes that the clause will "create confusion and wreak havoc in classrooms" by giving students the power to refuse completing or participating in any assignments that they claim violates their religious beliefs. It permits students who believe in creationism, for instance, to decline any assignments on evolution.

McGhee, however, says doesn't anticipate any instances where a student might claim "it's against my religion to do algebra."

The move in Missouri is in part seen as one of several pieces of state legislation nationwide that allows for more room for religion and intelligent design in public schools. The Tennessee state Senate passed a bill in March that protects teachers who allow student to question and criticize "controversial" scientific theories like evolution. Indiana legislators in January moved forward on a bill that would allow school districts to decide whether to include creationism alongside teachings of evolution in science curriculum.

Oklahoma, New Hampshire and Missouri have also considered similar bills designed to encourage critical examination of evolution theory.

Research from two Pennsylvania State University professors revealed last year that the majority of public school biology teachers in the U.S. shy away from teaching evolution because they're either unwilling or unprepared to teach it: some advocate creationism while others are afraid to address the topic for fear of controversy.

According to results of the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federal test known as the Nation's Report Card, less than half of U.S. fourth-, eighth- and 12-th grade students were considered proficient in science.

Students are able to refuse assignments that are at odds with their religious beliefs. That part, is the part I have an issue with.

[Roranora]

..designed to encourage critical examination of evolution theory

oic

[Kuya]

the measure formally known as Amendment 2 passed with 83 percent of the vote. The amendment's backers say it helps protect Missouri's Christians, about 80 percent of the population, who say they are public targets.

One of these days we really have to give them a real reason to feel like victims, because this shit is starting to grate me.

[Gwynplaine]

Privatize schools. Do whatever you want. Government schools gets you this.

[Lucavi]

Being the master race is hard enough, Kuya, but being the master race that follows the master religion is even harder.

Being the majority be tough, yo.

[Uzor]

I feel sorry for the poor 80% majority who never get their way, get prosecuted, and have a big target painted on their backs...

Oh, wait.

[Ragnus]

STATES' RIGHTS GUYS! STATES' RIGHTS!

[ronin sparthos]

"No student shall be compelled to perform or participate in academic assignments or educational presentations that violate his or her religious beliefs."

Ah, the true purpose of the amendment rears its head.

[Dimmauk]

Texas is laughing at this.

[chiyio]

religious people strike again

[Xno Kappa]

God fearing Christian generation isn't dying out soon enough.

[Jaybar]

So we just need to contain the cancerous stain to its own extremities. When the results show that Missourian educated students fall well below standard we can finger-point towards legislation that has continued to reduce critical thinking toward their own students.

In reality, we're fucked if we do, and we're fucked if we don't. Religious-backed legislation is too loud and stubborn to accept any backlash.

[Cream Soda]

Just going to make them retarded for when they hit a college biology course

[Alleya]

This shit is just the tip of the iceberg of how much republicans and the religious right have fucked this state. I could go on for days.

[Lucavi]

God fearing Christian generation isn't dying out soon enough.

I can't call them friends anymore, but people I went to school with (all women, and all now with kids, though certainly not still married), are the new, or current generation of god fearing christians.

Funny how they all found religion the second they had kids. I suppose all the stress of handling the kids sought them to seek solice through the stress with God.

[ronin sparthos]

I can't call them friends anymore, but people I went to school with (all women, and all now with kids, though certainly not still married), are the new, or current generation of god fearing christians.

Funny how they all found religion the second they had kids. I suppose all the stress of handling the kids sought them to seek solice through the stress with God.

More like they're just going through the motions of "being an adult" in the same vein as their parents rather than being true to their nature readily available on facebook for any individual to dissect and observe. While we all tend to take aspects of our parentage with us into adulthood, the blatant copy/paste regarding the mindsets of some people completely bewilders me. I love my parents and grandparents, respect their opinions on issues and agree with them on some topics but there is a laundrylist of stuff I just dismiss as bullshit based on my own metrics of analysis rather than defaulting to the "well mom 'n dad liked X so I must like X" that typically springs forth. 'Practice what you preach' and 'actions speak louder than words' are also typically lost on such individuals.

Ah yes, tell me about Jesus, being the good Christian and how much you love God while you trample all about the rulebook you've never bothered to read, treat your fellow man like garbage, break all the rules set down by your religion, phone in some trips to church you're most likely asleep at anyway and put all your chips down on some Pascal's Wager as if the almighty lord of creation you profess to serve can't tell that you're bullshitting your way into Heaven.

The whole thing is amusing, sad and pathetic.

[ringthree]

Just going to make them retarded for when they hit a college biology course

That's what Liberty University is for.

[Uzor]

Just going to make them retarded for when they hit a college biology course

This is assuming someone who still believes in creationism at the age of 20 is smart enough to get in to a college.

[Tyche]

The three loudest right mouthpeices on my facebook are women I went to school with that all had children out of wedlock.

[Ragnus]

This is assuming someone who still believes in creationism at the age of 20 is smart enough to get in to a college.

Nah. The next step is for them to start bitching that the SAT process is trampling on their rights to believe what they feel falls into their religious background. This will lead to two separate tests where one has christian science in it instead of real science. Colleges are then allowed to choose which tests they deem as valid and the ones who don't accept the CSAT will eventually cave under the "persecuted Christian minority" as atheist bigots.