Only a month after the Supreme Court ruled that a 7-foot-tall metal cross could remain as the Mojave Desert War Memorial, it has been stolen. The 75-year-old war memorial disappeared overnight from the National Park Service site.
Someone cut the metal bolts holding the metal-pipe cross to the top of the memorial’s Sunrise Rock on Sunday night or early Monday morning.
The cross was placed on the rock in 1934 to honor troops who died in World War I. For those who may think that this is an act defending civil liberties, think again. For those of us who believe strongly in the separation of church and state, such acts are horrific denials of the rule of law. Civil liberties rest ultimately on a respect for the law. When people turn vigilantes, they deny the very necessity for civil liberties to strive. They also taint the cause of those who sought to uphold a principle in this case. This is an appalling act that is an insult not only against these veterans but against our legal system as a whole.
The Liberty Institute is now offering a $25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Park Service at (760) 252-6120.
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What I caint figger out is how Gawd took hisn’ eye ofin’ that sackrid cross long ‘nough fur a cupla hoodlims tae steel hit…aint He gots a spar angel he could devote to gard duty….
I certainly hope so because that’s the joke I was laughing at. 😀
@mpb: Why? Do you think it will be back in three days?
The cross went missing ….that is so interesting…
Based on BIL’s correct explanation of the 1st Amendment it looks like the Forest Service was in violation on 2 grounds. Or more to the point, ‘two grounds’ before the alteration to the meaning of the plain language of the Amendment the Supreme’s convoluted reasoning recently constructed.
“…the National Park Service, which oversees the land, denied an application to build a Buddhist shrine near the cross. ”
http://www.bjconline.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2959&Itemid=89
Personally, I would have felt better had anti-thieves erected a seven-foot non-denominational Star of David (or any other symbol of their choosing) next to the seven-foot non-denominational cross, but I’ve been trying all day to find a tear to shed over this unfortunate event.
1st Amendment
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion (this is the establishment clause and it prohibits the government from endorsing ANY religion over another, Christian or not), or prohibiting the free exercise thereof (The Free Exercise Clause says you can believe whatever religion you wish as long as it does not trample the rights of others in practice (e.g. no human sacrifices or forced conversions ala the Inquisition) or choose to believe in no religion at all); or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Don’t use terms you don’t understand to bolster your theocratic nonsense TJ to imply we were founded as a Christian nation and your right to free speech somehow equates with your right to use government property to preach your particular ideology from whether it be by active speeches or passive symbols. We were founded as a secular nation by deists. Promoting or establishing any religion is forbidden by the Constitution in plain language.
“There are very few who understand the Establishment Clause section of our 1st Amendment, this heinous act was a violation of the free expression of religion, protected by our Founders just as any free speech is protected in almost all cases..”
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No one is disputing the free expression of religion, as dictated in the First Amendment. Herein lies the difference – it’s not supposed to be expressed on federal or state property, thus, the part of the First Amendment you chose to ignore:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion …”
rcampbell
Hee Hee Hee…..
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Return the shovel … after dark
There are very few who understand the Establishment Clause section of our 1st Amendment, this heinous act was a violation of the free expression of religion, protected by our Founders just as any free speech is protected in almost all cases..
“it is the only proper WWI memorial”
Still . . . the curse of decaf.
soonergrunt,
There is a proper memorial to WWI vets albeit not in Washington.
It’s the Liberty Memorial and War Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. I’ve been going there since I was a wee lil’ kid.
They recently renovated and it’s a very nice museum. And the view from the top of the tower is simply outstanding.
To my knowledge though, it is the only WWI memorial in the country.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty_Memorial
Hee Hee Hee…..
ominous….respect for ‘law’ seems to be gone from all quarters. If the courts refuse to uphold the law objectively…there is no hope of expecting civilians to respect either the courts, OR the law.
And isn’t sanctioning torture and indulging corporations in personhood in actuality revoking ‘civil liberties’ by fiat?[did I use that word correctly?]
Perhaps now we can build an actual memorial to WWI on the mall in Washington, DC WHERE IT BELONGS. Then my jewish great grandfather can get the recognition that he actually deserved.
As a VFW member, this is another thing to be disgusted with the national leadership over. All the money they wasted on this over the years could’ve been spent on an appropriate memorial in a place that people would actually visit.
Raff,
It may be seven feet tall, but it’s probably only about a foot thick. If one can hide bodies in the desert that are undiscovered for years? That’s all I’m sayin’.
Where do you hide a 7 Foot Cross? If the thieves are smart, they would set up the cross on the nearest church’s lawn. That is where it belongs.
Alan,
Yep.
AY,
That was funny.
I suppose the Posse Combatant(s) searching for illegals is just as justified. It is Combatants is it not?
The legal system insulted its citizens, for starters, by claiming the cross was not a Christian religious symbol. When the courts ignore the law, you can hardly criticize citizens for ignoring the courts and their so-called “rule of law”. We do not live in a dictatorship. Fidelity to the law is a two-way street, and citizens have no obligation to respect unconstitutional laws.