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Registered: August 07, 2001
Posts: 246
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Oh, I forgot, I do have a suggestion for you.
Maybe you should speak to some of the school's administrators and explain to them that one of the basic concepts of democracy is the idea of majority rule with minority rights. While the majority of your school may support the commandments, you, as the minority, have the right and duty to request a compromise. You could ask them to remove the commandments that deal specifically with the belief in the Christian god, such "I am the Lord your God...," "You Shall Not Make Graven Images," "Do Not Take God's Name in Vain," and "Keep Holy the Lord's Day," while keeping the rest of the commandments up to serve as a "list of rules for life."
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Registered: August 07, 2001
Posts: 246
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I must agree, instead of placing the ten commandments on the wall, why can't there simply be a list of rules that don't mention the Christian god? It always seemed to me that when it was decided that the ten commandments could be placed in schools it was a sort of compromise to please those who were upset that group prayer in schools was illegal (note that I said group prayer, individual prayer in schools is quite legal). Many of the ten commandments are good points, such as not murdering, not stealing, and other things of that nature, but the commandments do make a reference to a specific god. Many people would be upset if a list of Muslim or Buddhist rules were placed on a wall in school and some of those rules happened to endorse the god of that particular religion. I go to a public school that is mostly Christian (mostly meaning about 99%), and I'm really surprised that the ten commandments haven't been put up on our walls yet. If the administration was willing to remove the commandments that made specific references to the Christian god I wouldn't really have a problem with them being in my school, although I doubt they would really benefit anyone. Most people my age have already decided on their values and what is morally right for them, and I don't think seeing the ten commandments on a wall would make a difference. If someone has already made a habit of stealing, that person has already made the decision to do something that many feel is morally wrong, and therefore is unlikely to stop such a habit just because they see a commandment on a wall telling them to.
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