Americas Double Standard

A group called American Middle-East Christian Association (AMECA) plans to demonstrate Monday against what it calls the Islamic indoctrination of America's public schools.
The group said it has learned that an intermediate school in Covina, Calif., is teaching Islam to "impressionable" schoolchildren by urging them to fast during Ramadan.

According to the Christian group, a teacher at Royal Oak Intermediate School sent a note home to parents telling them that Muslims fast from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan. The teacher then told parents their children could earn extra credit by choosing to "fast for one, two or three days."

"America's Christian children had better not even utter the name Jesus Christ in public schools without persecution and prosecution by the 'separation of church and state' zealots," AMECA wrote in a press release.

This is ridiculous, teachers get fired for saying anything about Jesus, but it's fine to promote students to Fast. What a #ing joke!!!!!

Isn't it against the law to promote ANY religion in a public shcool?

You know the whole separationof church and state thing. Since public shcools are run on federal funds and everything.

now is this one teacher or is it backed by the whole school, schoolboard?
definitly not right.
first Canada, now California.
if u have more let my know

Legally, it's fine to teach religon (of any sort) to kids in public schools. Only when the government "legitimizes" it with an order or funding does it become illegal (read the Bill of rights). But the ethically right thing to do is to give time to all religons, after all, school is a place to learn. So this school is wrong in its teaching only about Islam, but so are all the bible thumpers that rant about the only thing kids need to know and be taught in school is Jesus.

The only ethical thing to do is to remove ALL religious teaching from public school. Thats what seminaries are for.

And on the fasting note: have you seen Americas children latley. Not eating for a few days might just be good for them.

Sorry, here is the link -

www.newsmax.com...

This is obviously an over-zealous teacher that wants to promote tolerance and understanding he/she just went overboard. If they are learning about different cultures then teaching Islam is okay because it is a culture for the people in the middle east. Nothing for the holyrollers to get their panties in a twist over. The teacher should be reprimanded and they should all move on with their lives. This should serve as notice that letting religion into school is a slippery slope.

Whiny-ass bible thumpers. Cope for the following reasons:

1. This promotes acceptance of the misunderstood and oft-maligned Islamic faith. Maybe a little teaching of it might help you all comr to terms that yes, Islam is another religion, very similar to yours with almost as many adherents.

2. judging by this quote: 'teaching Islam to "impressionable" schoolchildren ' , the AMECA's problem isn't with religion being taught in schools, it's with ISLAM being taught in schools. Of course, this isn't what's happening. The teacher merely wanted the children to have a taste of a different religion/culture than they would normally get in school.

3. Fact: American kids are tubs of lard. I do believe that almost a third of them are overweight. I agree with JuanBond- a little less of the McDonalds couldn't do them any harm.

I'm also an atheist, so don't try to jump me for being unChristian and unAmerican, because I'm neither. I'm just calling it as I see it.

DE

I'll do my best not to get all worked up, stay on topic and not make this post a book.
The jist - everyone and everything good or bad (mostly bad) is not allowed to be discriminated against EXCEPT chrisitian religion and the white man.
Now, am I not correct in thinking it was the christain white man who came here and started this whole deal to begin with?
(NOT that white man is better than anyone else, but at this time it feels as if unless you are NON white you have no chance at squat.)

How did this get twisted into the poor disenfranchised white man? I mean, please. This is about teaching kids about different cultures around the world unless we only want them to know about our culture which isn't white culture but american culture because it wasn't just the white man building this country.

I suggest we not equate everything to being against white people. If you don't want your child to learn about other cultures pull them from public school and find some isolationist christian private school that will give them a one sided biased view of the world, an everybody bad we good type education.

Funny, how any religion other than Christianity can be taught in class, and it is perfectly acceptable to belittle Christianity, but no other.

I'll not jump you for any of the reasons stated, DeusEx, I'll just clarify a couple things for you.

I am perfectly aware of what the Islamic religion is, what is brings, and that the most dangerous place to be in the world is the neighbor of an Islamic nation. You say it is maligned? There might very well be a good reason.

I'm not so much concerned with the children becoming educated in other cultures or other religions until they have a good grasp of our culture the religion of our nation. Afterward, they are more than welcome to learn about the others, and most encouraged to do so if I were anyone.

The fact that our kids are tubs of lard is not going to be fixed by any fasting during Ramadan. That will be fixed by lifestyle changes. My son is a wannabe computer geek who is building his first computer, and spends most of his non-homework hometime reading sites like TechTV.com, but he is also a lean, mean soccor playing machine and an avid bicyclist. He's all-American, but no fat on him. I'd suggest kids get out and be alot more active, that is what I'd suggest if I were anybody.

This nation is a Judeo-Christian nation, pure and simple. The separation clause of the 1st amendment was to insure no particular denomination was to be the official religion, and to insure we did not have a national church to which everyone was expected to tithe. It does not mean Christianity is to be exempt from governemnt and national policy.
James Madison, known as "The Father of Our Constitution" said, "We have staked the whole of all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government, upon the capacity of each and
all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."

teaching all religion in school in an objective manner is fine within the context of social studies. Encouraging any kind of participation is crossing the line, especially when offering it as extra credit or school perks.

Fat Kids are the P.E's department.

If atheists really want religion out of schools, i think they will agree that this scenario is unacceptable.

You know, it doesn't make sense that a true athiest would care about Christianity in school, as the founding fathers beilieved that the human rights were given to us by God, merely protected by the constitution. As long as this is the belief, the government cannot take away the rights, and if this be the case, the "superstition" protects them as well. And they don't even have to tithe to a church or wake up early on Sunday!

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne
You know, it doesn't make sense that a true athiest would care about Christianity in school, as the founding fathers beilieved that the human rights were given to us by God, merely protected by the constitution. As long as this is the belief, the government cannot take away the rights, and if this be the case, the "superstition" protects them as well. And they don't even have to tithe to a church or wake up early on Sunday!

There is a reason cars cannot be sold on Sundays and it is an American way as well as a Christian way.
America was founded under religion and beliefs and that religion was Christianity. Others who come to our country and wish to change our ways, need to realize that this is what America is, what we were founded upon. If you don't like it, then you should tell it to someone who cares, maybe like someone in the country you left to come to America.

Yeah, we have a blue law in Alabama, you can't buy adult beverages on Sunday. It makes alot of outsiders madder than a wet settin' hen for some reason. You'd think they'd learn to stock up Saturday!

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne
Funny, how any religion other than Christianity can be taught in class, and it is perfectly acceptable to belittle Christianity, but no other.

I'll not jump you for any of the reasons stated, DeusEx, I'll just clarify a couple things for you.

I am perfectly aware of what the Islamic religion is, what is brings, and that the most dangerous place to be in the world is the neighbor of an Islamic nation. You say it is maligned? There might very well be a good reason.

-That is a not a religious issue, that's sociopolitical. Just as with any faith, religion has been used to take advantage of the poor and homeless by those who seek only power.

I'm not so much concerned with the children becoming educated in other cultures or other religions until they have a good grasp of our culture the religion of our nation. Afterward, they are more than welcome to learn about the others, and most encouraged to do so if I were anyone.

-I agree, a little feeling for American culture is neccesary, but I am a firm beleiver that other cultures offer just as much as the American one. It can't hurt to show kids other cultures to compare the American one to.

The fact that our kids are tubs of lard is not going to be fixed by any fasting during Ramadan. That will be fixed by lifestyle changes. My son is a wannabe computer geek who is building his first computer, and spends most of his non-homework hometime reading sites like TechTV.com, but he is also a lean, mean soccor playing machine and an avid bicyclist. He's all-American, but no fat on him. I'd suggest kids get out and be alot more active, that is what I'd suggest if I were anybody.

-LOL, I'm the same way. 6'3, 135 lbs. I lucked out and got a freakish metabolism, even though I'm jacked in as often as I can be and don't play any sports. You have to admit, however, that a little fasting couldn't hurt. I agree as well with kids getting out and doign thigns more often. I used to swim, bike, hike, ect. before I came up to university.

This nation is a Judeo-Christian nation, pure and simple. The separation clause of the 1st amendment was to insure no particular denomination was to be the official religion, and to insure we did not have a national church to which everyone was expected to tithe. It does not mean Christianity is to be exempt from governemnt and national policy.

- It may be a Judeo-Christian nation, but Chrisitanity can afford a little leeway for learning about toher cultures. If I had the choice, I'd educate MORE on other cultures, because the lack of knowledge and understanding of other cultures is what breeds intolerance and things like that.

James Madison, known as "The Father of Our Constitution" said, "We have staked the whole of all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government, upon the capacity of each and
all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."

...so don't waste the Tums. If you did, it seems to be nothing more than imersion teaching - a method I'm familiar with. I went th a Catholic school that went into great depths on Islam, Taoism, and the other large religions. Even took an indepth on Santeria.
So, it's part of Social Studies. Not dogma for the sack cloth wearing Christian Fundies to howl against.