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September 11, the public has been lectured repeatedly that the United
States is at war with terrorists who have hijacked the Islamic faith,
not with Muslims, and that Arab and Muslim Americans must be treated
with tolerance and respect. This is good advice, although most Americans
already live by the Golden Rule.
But there are
those who have little tolerance and respect for the rights of others.
And I'm not talking about the obvious hate-mongers, such as neo-Nazis,
the Ku Klux Klan, and the skinheads — all of which are well
known, detestable enemies of democracy. No, I'm talking about the
intolerance of the Left, which professes to support civil liberties.
Here are some worthy examples:
The Sacramento
Bee reports that the American Civil Liberties Union is demanding
that Breen Elementary School in Rocklin, California, remove a "God
Bless America" sign from its property, which the school displayed
in response to the terrorist atrocities of September 11. The ACLU
claims that the words broadcast a "hurtful, divisive message."
"By displaying a religious message, the Breen Elementary School
is dividing its young students along religious lines." At least
for now, Breen's principal has not buckled to the pressure, announcing
that he has no intention of removing the message from school grounds.
The ACLU also
tried recently to stop the Commonwealth of Virginia from implementing
its minute of silence policy for public-school students. The pupils
can use the time for quiet reflection, meditation, or — and
here's the supposed rub — silent prayer. The U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld the state law. A few weeks
ago, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene. Chief Justice
William Rehnquist, speaking for the Court, wrote, in part, that
"There is no allegation that Virginia schoolteachers have used
the minute of silence, or any other occasion, to lead students in
collective prayer." God forbid if they had.
A few weeks
ago, the Madison, Wisconsin, school board banned the recitation
of the Pledge of Allegiance and the singing of the Star-Spangled
Banner from its classrooms. The AP reports that proponents of the
ban argued that the pledge's phrase — "one nation, under
God" — is inappropriately religious, and the national
anthem's lyrics are militaristic. Public pressure forced the school
board to reverse course. However, prior to reciting the pledge or
singing the anthem, students must first be informed that their participation
is voluntary. We wouldn't want to offend anybody.
The Boy Scouts
of America, a private organization, determined that the appointment
of openly gay scout leaders violates its mission and purpose. The
Supreme Court upheld the Boy Scouts' right to freedom of association
under the First Amendment. Now, the group is the target of a well-orchestrated
campaign to ban it from the public square — particularly from
public schools. Just a few days ago, the Seattle Times reported
that "Garfield High School's Outdoor Education program has
broken away from the Boy Scouts because its student leaders object
to a Boy Scout policy that bans openly gay leaders and members."
Did you know
that the ROTC is prohibited from appearing on numerous college campuses?
In New York alone, the ROTC is banned from Columbia University,
New York University, and the City University of New York. Harvard
University chased the ROTC off campus thirty-two years ago. The
September 11 attacks have prodded 900 alumni to petition Harvard
to reinstate the corps, but to no avail — yet.
And then there's
the case of a Jewish elementary-school teacher who was removed from
her second-grade classroom the other day by the liberal New York
City schools chancellor Harold Levy. Apparently, parents, most of
whom are Arab Americans, complained that she made anti-Arab comments.
According to the New York Post, one of the parents complained
that the teacher "told our kids she went to Israel and that
Palestinian children threw rocks at her." The teacher said,
"I do remember saying, 'terrorism is unusual to us, but this
is how everyday life is in Israel." "I didn't teach anti-Arab.
I taught antiterrorism." The Board of Education is now investigating
the teacher. Gee, I wonder if truth is a defense to political correctness?
Yes, we need
tolerance in America. So, when will the Left practice it?
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