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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 24, 1986)
Page 2/The BattalionAThursday, April 24, 1986 Opinion Religious group threatens cornerstone of democracy Congress shall make no law re specting an estab lishment of reli gion , or prohibiting the f r e e exercise thereof; or abridg ing the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right o f t h e people were jailed and even put to death if their religious beliefs didn’t fit in with the beliefs of their countrymen. In many countries the church controlled all affairs of state. Karl Pallmeyer peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of griev- — Che First Amendment, Constitu tion of the United States. When our forefathers wrote the Consti tution they realized that Americans wanted freedom. Freedom to criticize the government. Freedom to get to gether. Freedom to write anything. Freedom to say anything. Freedom to worship in any fashion. People came to this country because they had been den ied these freedoms back home, and our forefathers wrote the Constitution to protect these freedoms. Now there is a group who wants to take away one of those freedoms. On occasion monarchs would decree that their nations had to follow a specific religion. Then the monarch would do his best to get rid of everyone who didn’t follow that religion. After a few years the people would get tired of this oppression. They would revolt and put a new monarch on the throne. More of ten than not, the new monarch would decree that his nation had to follow an other religion. Then the new monarch would do his best to get rid of everyone who didn’t follow the new religion until the people revolted and set up another monarch who would set up another reli gion. A lot of people got tired of this cy cle of stupidity, so they came to Amer- Americans for Biblical Government thinks that the Bible should be used as the basis for our government. Although the First Amendment provides for the separation of church and state, Ameri cans for Biblical Government wants to put God in control of the country. One of the main reasons people came to America was to escape religious per secution. Catholics, Calvinists, Luther ans, Puritans, Quakers and other groups were being denied the right to worship according to their beliefs in their home countries. Sometimes people Our forefathers realized that Amer ica was filled with many different peo ple who had many different beliefs. They realized that the best form of gov ernment would be one that allowed all people the right to believe what they wanted. They realized the best govern ment would not force people to worship in any particular fashion. They realized that a government should not come be tween man and God. Americans for Biblical Government wants to change that. Americans for Biblical Government claims that our government and our Constitution was formed on a religious background. That is simply not true. Many of the founding fathers, including Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Frank lin, were deists. Deists believed in God but they didn’t believe that He took an active role in man’s affairs Deists be lieved that man must make a conscious effort to make the best out of the world God gave him. Americans for Biblical Government claims that most of our laws, laws that prohibit killing and stealing, are based on biblical precedents. Laws that pro hibit killing and stealing predate the Ten Commandments by thousands of years. It didn’t take divine inspiration to realize that killing and stealing is wrong. Common sense shows that a society that allows its members to kill and steal won’t last long. Last week Americans for Biblical Government held a meeting on campus. The purpose of the meeting was to gain support for President Reagan’s plan to send $100 million to aid the Contras in their battle against the Sandinista gov ernment in Nicaragua. It’s ironic that a group that claims to be Christian sup ports wholesale killing in Central Amer ica. It seems this group is using religion as the basis for their political ideas. By claiming that aiding the Contras is the Christian thing to do, Americans for Biblical Government can get support from those who feel they have to prove their faith. Religion is a personal thing — a matter of the heart. It should not be used to control the minds of others. Freedom of religion is one of this country’s greatest strengths. Many na tions have failed because they allowed certain religious groups to take control of their country. In a nation of varied beliefs, a government cannot serve all of its people if it adopts one particular reli gion and denies its people the right to worship any way they wish. Karl Pallmeyer is a senior journalism major and a columnist for The Battal- United Fesiure Syndicate AWGULI6S ©1906 HOLTON POST White House staff booked solid It was Monday af ternoon and ev eryone in the White House was bent over his desk hard at work — on his book. David Stockman had inspired the entire administration to pursue writing ca- Harlequin was red in the face. “Deaver belongs to me. I taught him ev erything he knows about acid rain.” “Okay, I’ll give you Deaver for your book if you give me Meese for mine,” Beerbaum said. Harlequin said, “Have you been of fered a large sum of money?” Art Buchwald Harlequin thought it over and then said, “It’s a deaL But from now on I’m going to write about anybody in the White House I want to.” “Not yet, but my agent tells me when they see my chapter on Pat Buchanan’s tantrums I’m a sure ‘Book of the Month.’” Harlequin looked up from his typewriter, “What’s the vice president’s first name?” he yelled above the din. “I think it’s Harry — no, it’s George,” Stretcher said. “I envy you. I’m not even up to how we took Grenada.” “My publisher said to start with Libya and work backwards. Did you have any luck with the paperback rights yet?” Harlequin shook his head. “No but CBS wants to see a typed manuscript. They’re thinking of doing ‘Behind Closed Doors 11.’” “Will you guys shut up?” Beerbaum said. “I’m writing the definitive chapter on Mike Deaver.” Harlequin was flabbergasted. “What right do you have to write about Deaver? You hardly knew the guy.” “I knew him well enough to buy a BMW from him.” The phone rang and Stretcher picked it up. “Aw gee, Mr. Regan, I’d love to do it but I’m working on my book Why Reagan’s Roses Failed. Is it really impor tant? .... Don’t yell, don’t yell. I’ll write the damn speech.” Stretcher hung up. “Wait until I do my observations on Regan. He’ll be sorry he talked to me like that.” Dumbarton, vyho had been correcting galleys, looked up and said, “Was Bob McFarlane National Security Adviser before A1 Haig or after him?” “Haig was never security adviser. Mc Farlane took over from Clark who re placed Richard Allen. Haig was secre tary of the state and he was suceeded by George Shultz.” “You’re making a mistake including facts,” Stretcher said. “The publishers don’t want history. They want reputa tions wrecked, character assassinations and cutthroating of the first order. That’s why they are offering us such large sums of money.” The phone rang again. This time Beerbaum answered. “Yes, Mr. Presi dent. You would like to redo your entire fiscal budget? .... Yes sir, it can be done, but could it wait until tomorrow? You see I’m researching the upstairs- downstairs part of my book, and I’ve set up an interview this afternoon with the chef. While I’ve got you on the line Mr. President, what do you eat for break fast? .... Yessir, Mr. President, I’ll get on the new fiscal policy right away.” Beerbaum said, “Was he burned up! I thought he was going to jump into the receiver with both feet.” Mail Call Rowe's dream state Harlequin said, “You lucky dog. You can now write an entire chapter on how you were personally chewed out by Ron ald Reagan.” “I wish he had fired me,” Beerbaum said. “When you get canned by the pres ident you sell a lot more books.” EDITOR: 3dalia cused of 1 ing a vid store robl capital m judge sa ’ Thursday ■State I really don’t believe that other Arab nations are as strongly allied in/ Ovard on Libya as they say they are, and no one really believes that Khadafyi Michelle Powe’s Friday column seems to miss some important points True, the American raid on Libya will provoke more terrorist acts, as it already has, but it was just about Reagan’s last option. It seems that theot thing that Khadafy understands is violence as evidenced by thefailureol diplomatic efforts and international condemnation of Libya’s supportfo; terrorist activities. Jude loco murt change of any popularity contests in Libya. He is currently hiding out in the desen r ^ reportedly afraid of a coup attempt. ci t Powe claims that the United States attacked innocent people in theLj r °h t)er >' 111 raid. Sorry, dear. The targets were carefully chosen military installations* 1S were known to support terrorist activities. I really don’t believe any inn«rT £ < ^n as * people were living in the Soviet-made transport planes at the Tripoliait|)| m0V( W ; IS It is unfortunate that some civilians were killed in the raid, but itisalsoaj^Be invof see 20 innocent people gunned down in two European airports. sheriffs d Powe claims that because Lebanon, Iran and Syria are closely alliedij^*^ ^ . Soviets, they are not likely targets for retaliatory attacks. Well, Miche n i enC e sto the I’ll let you in on a little secret: The Libyans are pretty tight with Soviets,i[^ftiply w The reason that these countries have not been attacked is because theIr jnot to loo States has not been able to pin down the groups responsible for thetertoi! acts. I do remember American ships shelling terrorist headquarters in Lebanon after the embassy bombing there. Michelle, I hope you come out of your dream state and realize thatth Soviet government really doesn’t want world peace, and that theSovietsi behind most of the terrorism in the world. Oh, and tell the Frenchwe’m sorry about their embassy. Mike Grubbs ’88 said. Hew and died i later afte emergenc Vo Pasturized humor EDITOR: SAN MA tical leade ay they mi or sheriff Let me express my feelings concerning the pathetic humordisplav dth questic TTie Batta/ion cartoonists. For too long cartoons l.u king i <>mmi; Comin plagued Aggieland’s newspaper. I have long since given up waiting lot; J*' change and have decided to help push for one. Jut the 52- Is it too much to ask for The Battalion stall to review thecartoomi f al sudde assure that ignorant works do not go to press along with other readable K™ ( ^ material contained in The Battalion? It is already obvious to me thatcenit^i ^'j, cartoonists should not be allowed to have their works pubhshed.andK yy (l ,i u ., , 11-year-old n San Frar they should even lose their job. This is not to say that I want cartoons to disappear from thepageso Battalion. I am merely suggesting that the current cartoonists be putom pasture where their senses of humor will blend in quite nicely with the surroundings. Gordon Jones ’88 Not the desired effect 'ate in vest ij Word th; ng candid; n Texas a ay jarea ; nissal from Fs Depart White w; EDITOR: President Reagan’s decision to bomb Libya appears to be verypt with most Americans. This action was aimed at reducing terrorismbvniii terrorists think twice before they carry out attacks against U.S. interest!’ should ask ourselves if the air strike against Libya had the desiredeffett The answer is clearly no. Instead of frightening terrorists, Reagan! 1 actions have only made them more resolute. T he fact that several U S kl that failed to explode were found intact in civilian areas miles fromam I Libyan military targets has not only infuriated Libyans but alienatedot: I European allies, and has even caused a few thoughtful Americanstov I Now terrorists are more determined that ever. Further U.S. reprisaiil only result in a cycle of bloodshed that could lead to war. Those who si- ultimately will not be terrorists but rather innocent Americans, Europeac and Libyans. The attack on Libya achieved none of the desired objectives. Now Americans and Libyans are more hateful to one another than ever. Insifi considering ourselves as part of the same humanity, we look atone being less than human. Terrorism is a sick, reprehensible act of violence, and wemustnott to cause us to lose our composure. We should remember that terrorisirf fewer Americans in a year than are killed in automobile accidentsinadi' Let us put the acts of a despicable few in perspective an seek respomesit will be of benefit to all, regardless of nationality. John Wendt Khadafy not evil at heart EDITOR: Col. Moammar Khadafy may be the “mad dog” of the Middle EasttK he may in fact be the arch-fiend of the universe. But Khadafy isnotevi* heart. Khadafy is a human being. A human being whose 15-monthol(l adopted daughter is dead at the hands of an American bomb. Truly evil men don’t adopt orphaned children. We must stopescalit this “eye-for-an-eye-mentality” as it is leaving us all blind. So I urgetk' percent of Americans who support the president’s militaristic actiontol’ in mind the old adage: Two wrongs don’t make a right, before putting “Nuke Khadafy” bumper sticker on their cars. Derek Bercher Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 words in length. The editorial staff reservfiq to edit letters for style and length but will make every effort to maintain the author's0 letter must be signed and must include the address and telephone number of the wilff Art Buchwald is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times Syndicate. The Battalion (USPS 045 360) Member of Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Conference The Battalion Editorial Board Editor Managing Editor Opinion Page Editor. City Editor News Editor Sports Editor . Jm U" ..Lotf m ..CaihiA': Tn'* Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting newspaper operated as a community service to Texasa&.W**®' Station. Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the Editorial Board or the author and do not neceui^' ■ opinions of Texas A&M administrators, faculty or the Board of Regents. 1 he Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students in reporting, editing and photograplt ,( ‘ ,,l ' Department of Journalism. I he Battalion is published Monday through Friday during Texas A&M regular semestc..,. . lion periods. Mail subscriptions are SI6.75 per semester, $35.25 per school year and $35 per full rear. Ad' 10 ■ except for holfof nished on request. Our address: I he Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX7® Second class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. r IU , POSTMAS7 ER: Send address changes to The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald, Texas A&M University, W”! 77843. Tit No Sr.