Meditation 1228
Some Questions For Oklahoma
by: John Tyrrell
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The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled in a 7-2 decision that the 10 Commandments monument on the statehouse grounds, erected in 2012, violated the state constitution, specifically article 2, section five of Oklahoma’s Bill of Rights,* and must be removed.
Governor Mary Fallin responded by claiming the the Supreme Court got it wrong and that she would not remove the monument. Further, she stated that the state legislature would be starting the process to amend the state constitution to make the monument legal..
According to Rep. Mike Ritze, whose family paid for the monument (but not for the state-owned land on which it sits). the monument re-emphasizes the history and heritage of America's legal system. “It is a historical presentation of where we get our laws.”
Questions:
- Does this monument succeed in that aim?
- If so, shouldn't the Governor show some respect for the law?
- Does the monument itself make any claim to be a historical representation of there the USA gets its laws? Or is it just a Protestant list of the 10 Commandments?
- Does this monument have any measurable affect on the citizens of Oklahoma?
- Are they going to church more often?
- Has the divorce rate dropped significantly thanks to less adultery
- Has the murder rate dropped significantly
- Has stealing disappeared from Oklahoma?
- Are Oklahomans markedly less materialistic thanks to reduced coveting?
- Does the monument serve any purpose except stir up unnecessary strife and waste state money in defending it?
Notes:
* “No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such.”
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