Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin To State Supreme Court: You Are Not The Boss Of Her!
In what has to be a huge surprise to some single-celled organisms who didn't know any better, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin has decided to ignore last week's order by the state Supreme Court to remove the giant Ten Commandments monument from the grounds of the Statehouse, because God's Word, but mostly because it's not a religious thing at all -- it's just a historical marker, really! In a statement, Fallin said,
The Ten Commandments monument was built to recognize and honor the historical significance of the Commandments in our state’s and nation’s systems of laws ... It is a privately funded tribute to historical events, not a taxpayer funded endorsement of any religion, as some have alleged.
Among those "alleging" that the monument endorsed religion would be the state Supreme Court, which held that “the Ten Commandments are obviously religious in nature and are an integral part of the Jewish and Christian faiths.” We're sort of surprised that they didn't add, "Duh, Sherlock" before reminding everyone that "honor your father and mother" and "stop lusting in your heart, Jimmy Carter" aren't even actual laws no matter what God said.
Fallin announced that Attorney General Scott Pruitt had "filed a petition requesting a rehearing" of the case, and added that the legislature was considering amending the state Constitution to allow the monument to stay, exactly as Yr Wonkette predicted. Remember, the State Supremes based their ruling solely on the state Constitution, completely leaving aside the question of whether the monument violates the Establishment Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
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The legislature is out of session and won't reconvene until February 2016. And if it does pass a constitutional amendment to allow the monument -- which of course they will; what part of "Oklahoma legislature" didn't you understand? -- the amendment would have to go before voters. Not sure whether that would be in a special election or in the 2016 general election. Once the voters approve it -- and they will -- the whole lawsuit process would then move to the federal level. And so on, which means that until every possible legal avenue (possibly including a secession attempt for all we know) has been exhausted, that 10 Commandments monument -- with its 11 commandments -- will stay right where it is. Heck, if Oklahoma really works at it, maybe Jesus will come back before the godless heathens make the state take it down. Looks like the Satanic Temple may get a chance to put up their "Equal time" statue of Baphomet after all!
Doktor Zoom's real name is Marty Kelley, and he lives in the wilds of Boise, Idaho. He is not a medical doctor, but does have a real PhD in Rhetoric. You should definitely donate some money to this little mommyblog where he has finally found acceptance and cat pictures. He is on maternity leave until 2033. Here is his Twitter, also. His quest to avoid prolixity is not going so great.
