FOX News Angry at Lack of Religious Displays in Washington State Capitol November 27, 2009

FOX News Angry at Lack of Religious Displays in Washington State Capitol

By Guest Contributor
November 27, 2009

FOX News Channel can’t believe it.

The Capitol Building in Washington state isn’t allowing atheist displays or Nativity scenes or anything else… How *dare* the state government treat all groups equally?!

Essentially, they’re reporting on what is a lack of news.

They cover it if no religious/non-religious displays go up.

They cover it if atheist displays go up.

They won’t be satisfied until a Nativity scene — and no other display — is prominently in all government buildings.

In other words, screw the Jews and Muslims and any other group that has something to celebrate over this holiday season.

(via Atheist Media Blog)

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  • Trace

    It is “the atheists”…how dare they?

  • That’s why I worship the Pink Unicorn in the privacy of my own home 🙂

  • I don’t know if you can even call that segment reporting. Rather, it looks like Faux News advocacy for one position. Sadly, this is what news has come to in in America.

    And not all atheists feel the same about the FFRF display. There are some who felt that the display was a bit inflammatory. I would have gone with a much less provocative sign.

    But according to Faux News, all atheists are of one mind.

  • Tim

    Incredible! People are outraged!
    Meh.

  • I am from Washington state and I could care less if they display holiday decorations in the capitol as long as they are fair and sensitive to everyones creeds and beliefs including people who hold none. This is one thing I happen to agree upon with Gov. Gregoire. If we all can’t play nice and be sensitive to everyone then ban all decorations till we can all come to an agreement on this issue. Kudos for Gov. Gregoire.

  • What kind of world do we live in where our government buildings are forced to be focused on the business of government and not the pageantry of one religion’s holiday?

    I mean, next we’ll expect our politicians to actually address issues instead of investing in a marketing campaign.

    It’s just sad.

  • Richard Wade

    at 1:55 on the video:

    But the policy does allow for these symbols and the nativity scenes and the menorah to be outside on the capitol grounds.

    How is it any different because of the lack of a roof, other than the displays have to withstand the weather? It’s still on state property. If not this year, then next year there will be a waterproof religious display out front, and the state’s endorsement of that particular religion will once again be implied. Once one goes up, then soon enough there will be the competitors, and ffrf will be setting up a waterproof version of last year’s sign. Time to dust off the fiberglass statue of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

    at 3:10 on the video:

    But the state has said “We will put up a tree, but it’s definitely not a Christmas tree.” They say it is a holiday tree only, and it is being run by the state government, so it is not a private symbol of the season. And they say it’s secular in nature and that the courts have upheld that.

    Holiday tree my ass.

    So if an object is whatever the owner says it is, then:

    How about a Holiday Family Scene? You know, a little “secular” display depicting a family of three trying to keep warm by sheltering with barn animals, as has been done for centuries? It’s just a history lesson for the kids, see?

    Oh yeah, and how about a Holiday Torture Display? Just a “secular” exhibit of how ancient Rome kept people in line by publicly torturing criminals to death, by nailing them to two planks of wood. It’s just a history lesson for the kids, see?

  • Typical for the Fox Propaganda Channel.

  • I think my favorite bit was where the guy said something like, “This is what happens when the state tries to regulate speech.”

    Yes, the Evil Atheists Who Run Our Government are totally stopping you from celebrating your holiday of choice in your home. They are also stopping you from going to your house of worship to participate in services for your holiday. How dare they interfere with the right to shove your beliefs down someone else’s throat! For shame, for shame.

    Are there t-shirts that say “Soldier in the War on Christmas”? I totally want one.

  • Edmond

    Wow.

    “It’s a move that was an easy way out for the state government to avoid the controversy of having to deal with what happened last year.”

    Duh!

  • Edmond

    And then,

    “you can see the twisting logic that has to go into all this when the state government gets involved in trying to regulate speech this time of year.”

    NO, this is what happens when the state government tries to endorse any particular religion over another. The “twisting logic” comes from the religulous who think that just EVERYBODY wants to hear their message of proselytization, and that the STEPS OF THE PUBLIC COURTHOUSE are just the perfect venue for their sermons!

  • Yeah! That was unbiased reporting! “It was the Atheists!” Oh noes! We haz teh Athiest in warshington!

  • Twewi

    Last year the capitol allowed anyone to put up displays, and it was cluttered with all sorts of crap, including a Festivus pole. There was, of course, the Faux News outrage, and the local media tried to make a story out of the clutter. There were even a few protesters, if I remember correctly, but nobody else really gave a damn. I don’t think I ever heard a single person talk about it who wasn’t on TV/radio. If they’re doing the outdoor displays this year, I’m pretty sure they’ll be just as indiscriminate. Western Washington is actually a pretty good place to be nonreligious.

  • It always amazes me how, when FOX News gets butthurt about something, instead of reporting honestly on it and taking the hit, they report on ambiguous “people” who “think” one way or the other about something (things like, “people are really upset about [X]”).

    On Wikipedia.org, they have a word for phrases like that: Weasel Words. You use them when you want to disguise someone’s personal opinion as a noteworthy fact or news story.

    It seems that even user-edited sites like Wikipedia have higher standards than FOX News….

  • MaleficVTwin

    I loved this line:

    Because of this new policy…..

    New? I think not. This policy is over 200 years old. What’s new is Washington States’ adherence to it.

  • Ben

    I don’t know if you can even call that segment reporting. Rather, it looks like Faux News advocacy for one position. Sadly, this is what news has come to in in America.

    Sadly this is the case in most western countries, at least here in Australia as well, and from what I hear in the UK.

    The worst part is that when questioned on their bias, often they don’t even pretend to hide it anymore, claiming that the rise of the Internet has changed journalism from purely objective to opinion-driven … so apparently it’s okay for all news to opinionated.

    On Wikipedia.org, they have a word for phrases like that: Weasel Words.

    We use this phrase a lot in Australian politics to define words politicians to use in order to avoid keeping their promises. They’re called “weasel words” (over here) because they’re specifically injected to give them room to [wriggle like a] weasel to get their way out if they have to.

    These days, though, they just deny ever making the promise in the first place. “I never promised the gays I’d legalise marriage, I just said I’d remove some of the discrimination against them.”

  • They’re putting up a tree!!!

    Damn those pagans. They always get their way.

    The rest us have to suffer in silence while we are smugly reminded that the sun will actually start to get higher in the sky after the solstice. I’m sickened.

  • The Christmas tree is pagan of course. It is from the Germanic Yule celebration. I wouldn’t want a pagan symbol up or a Christian one or a Jewish or Hindu or… or … except I agree that the tree is a secular tree. We should embrace that and make it our own. For the lols.

  • muggle

    Are there t-shirts that say “Soldier in the War on Christmas”? I totally want one.

    Me too! I want several so I have a clean one every day between Thanksgiving and December 25. Perhaps in several different colors? Anything but red or green. 😀

    I’d wear it with pride. Enough with this nonsense already!

  • This is incredibly silly. I absolutely loveeeee the way fox portrays atheists… like we’re some kind of fun-holiday hating people who would like nothing better than for everyone to be unhappy. Wronggg! This holiday season isn’t all about religion, as much as some people would like it to be, its about family and giving and being with people you love and having a good time. I mean, Christmas isn’t all religious anyways… Santa sure as hell wasn’t in the Bible. So atheists such as myself aren’t trying to be a Grinch and stop Christmas… we just look at the holiday in a more logical sense than those that actually think a virgin has God’s baby.

  • Sackbut

    This is ridiculous.

    Dozens Rally to support Prohibited Nativity Scene

    The nativity is now on display in front of the Central Presbyterian Church on one of the square’s corners. The solution is not what rallyers or the nonbelievers wanted.

    “Removing everything is an equitable solution,” PAN President Steven Neubauer said, adding he wanted to see the nativity and atheist sign allowed to be displayed together. “We would have preferred to have our display up at least for one season.”

    I’m very surprised the atheist organization was not perfectly satisfied that such signs were prohibited from the public square. The atheist organization and the religious group can perfectly well display their signs on private property. It appears that wasn’t the point, which is unfortunate.

  • muggle

    Sackbut, I have to agree. This is exactly the outcome they should have desired. They should be celebrating a victory for church/state separation.

  • Hmm. What’s really odd about this is that, at the same time they’re reporting that there will be “NO” holiday displays in the Washington state capitol this year, Fox itself fully admits that there WILL be some holiday displays nonetheleless:

    The rules, which were officially signed into order by Washington’s Department of General Administration on Oct. 30, still allow the annual state-sponsored holiday tree inside the Capitol rotunda.

    In other words, Fox News not only lied about this, they have the temerity to provide evidence they lied on their own Web site!

  • @ Emily: You know what you get when you rearrange “Santa”? Satan! 😉

  • Hahaha I had never thought of rearanging the letters in Santa… that’s quite interesting. Although I have to say, if Santa and Satan are one in the same that puts an extremely different look on my childhood…
    Anyways, I do find it kind of sad that no matter what the Washington State Capitol does, people can’t just be happy. I think that no matter what, people should focus more on the meaning of holidays rather than being ostentatious with showing off decorations and trying to convince people to join in on their religion. Its almost a little sad, even though I have to admit, holiday decorations can be pretty.

  • We Are The 801

    “The delusion into which the X. Y. Z. plot shewed it possible to push the people; the successful experiment made under the prevalence of that delusion on the clause of the constitution, which, while it secured the freedom of the press, covered also the freedom of religion, had given to the clergy a very favorite hope of obtaining an establishment of a particular form of Christianity thro’ the U. S.; and as every sect believes its own form the true one, every one perhaps hoped for his own, but especially the Episcopalians & Congregationalists. The returning good sense of our country threatens abortion to their hopes, & they believe that any portion of power confided to me, will be exerted in opposition to their schemes. And they believe rightly; for I have sworn upon the altar of god, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

  • Emily

    Wait… and they say he’s live in Seattle. He’s definitely not in Seattle. He’s in the newsroom. God, Fox is annoying.