Once again, Christians are a shining example of maturity and class. No, wait -
MARION-- It was standing room only at the Marion City Council Meeting Monday night. A large crowd turned out to support the Ten Commandments proposal. They were countering one man's fight against the idea.
I know, I know. Maaaaaan -another Ten Commandments issue? These are so lame. Look - don't put religious crap on public land. It's super simple, super constitutionally sound, and super easy to remember. Regardless, I actually care very little about silly religious crap in public spaces, it's always more about the bigger picture with these cases anyway.
While no action was taken at Monday night's meeting it's obvious which side the council is on.
Council member Jay Rix told the atheist "You make me sick to my stomach."
Mayor Bob Butler said, "In God's will this will be done."
Oh, it's on now bitches. Now I really do care about whether this damn thing ends up in your stupid little town. Just kidding, I don't really care any more now than I did before, but I do think those guys are assholes and it would embarrass me if they were my political representatives. Cuz they seem like jerkwads.
But even those harsh words didn't stop activist Rob Sherman of Chicago.
He's the same man who recently filed a lawsuit against the Friends of the Bald Knob Cross.
He's now threatening to make things more difficult for Marion if they do build the Ten Commandments monument.
One resident’s idea to put up a Ten Commandments monument on the Marion town square is spurring a heated debate about religious freedom.
"When private parties put religious displays on government {ground} it's like a cancer, in that if it is allowed to happen in one community it will spread to other communities," says Rob Sherman.
Ehhhh, I personally dislike the volatile nature of comparing things to cancer, but I see Rob's point in that little issues like this are often used as a reference to justify further religious symbols and gestures in areas where they constitutionally don't belong,
Sherman is an atheist activist who wasn't welcomed in Marion. His anti-God message was quickly rejected.
"My problem is an atheist says he has no religion yet he demands that I forsake my religion," says Rabbi Moshe Laurie.
Wait a second - how exactly is it demanding that you forsake your religion to oppose an action which is obviously constitutionally questionable? Come on, Rabbi, your knuckles may be getting sore from all that pearl clutching.
The man who started it all is Marion resident Ken Kessler.
He says the night's meeting was a success.
"Surprised by it and encouraged by it. I think it was a grand turn out," says Kessler.
City leaders say it's not a matter of if the monument will be built, but a question of when.
That didn't stop Sherman from making threats.
He says if city leaders try to sell a portion of Tower Square to technically make it private property, he could try to out bid Kessler.
Wow, really? So they know what they want to do is unconstitutional, so they're planning to make it technically constitutional by trying to sell a portion of the town square - about the size of a Ten Commandments statue - to a private entity? Isn't that kind of a big ol' fuck you to the constitution?
"You might end up with me purchasing that segment. Then I could put up a monument that says God is make believe or there is no God," says Sherman.
Sherman suggests the monument be placed on church or private property.
Anything else, he considers atheist bigotry and discrimination that will have consequences.
"Facing the potential of a long expensive, losing legal battle," says Sherman.
But the threats don't have Kessler backing down.
"A little nauseated but not intimidated," he says.
Very Christ-like. Christ said people made him sick when he didn't get to build graven images in town squares without a fight all the time, right?
Sherman is a Chicago resident, so he doesn't have standing, which means he can't sue. However, he says if one person from Marion contacts him he will make sure the case goes to court.
I hope someone does. Not only because it's the right thing to do, but also because those people sound like a bunch of dicks.
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