"The First Amendment does not permit the gov't to buy ANY kind of religious message..."
The govt didn't buy the religious message. It was provided free of charge. "Even if the contractor thought the procurement chain would like Bible verses on the weapons, he must have known that it would be illegal." The Constitution prohibits govt establishment of religion. Since the govt neither requested nor paid for a religious message, there was no establishment. But as I said earlier, the govt should specify future procurements shall omit religious and other messages. From: Harland Harrison Sent: Monday, January 25, 2010 8:46 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re : Re : [Libertarian] US gov't has Bible verses on military weapons > When the government buys a computer, it often says things like "Microsoft > Windows" and "Intel Inside" in a prominent place on the product. When you, or the gov't, buy an off-the-shelf product, you accept whatever it includes. When you custom order anything, a shirt or a gunsight, you get to specify what goes there. This is basic contract law; a contract is a matter of agreement. > I don't see how the govt was ripped off. The gov't was cheated because they never agreed to a message written on their goods. A contract depends on agreement. The government never agreed to Bible messages. If somebody contracted to paint your house cheaply, and you came home to find a McDonalds ad or a Bible verse on your front wall, you could sue him in both cases. > Also, I don't see how the 1st Amendment applies here. The First Amendment does not permit the gov't to buy ANY kind of religious message, often including Christmas trees paid for by employees but sitting in gov't buildings. Even if the contractor thought the procurement chain would like Bible verses on the weapons, he must have known that it would be illegal. Harland Harrison LP of San Mateo County CA ----- Message d'origine ---- De : Bob Giramma <[email protected]> À : [email protected] Envoyé le : Dim 24 Janvier 2010, 18 h 21 min 52 s Objet : Re : [Libertarian] US gov't has Bible verses on military weapons When the government buys a computer, it often says things like "Microsoft Windows" and "Intel Inside" in a prominent place on the product. I don't see how the govt was ripped off. Also, I don't see how the 1st Amendment applies here. From: Harland Harrison Sent: Saturday, January 23, 2010 9:30 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re : [Libertarian] US gov't has Bible verses on military weapons > The US government might consider specifying that such verses be omitted in > future procurements. They already did! It's called the First Amendment! > It was a private sector contractor exercising free choice, which libertarians > should applaud. No, it was a rip-off of the government which libertarians always condemn. Can the contractor sell advertising space, for a brand of beer for example, on products designed and fully paid for by the government? Secretly stealing the space to plug his religion is no different. Harland Harrison LP of San Mateo County CA ----- Message d'origine ---- De : Bob Giramma <[email protected]> À : [email protected] Envoyé le : Ven 22 Janvier 2010, 16 h 41 min 03 s Objet : Re: [Libertarian] US gov't has Bible verses on military weapons The subject line of this e-mail post is misleading. The private sector contractor printed Bible verses on weapons purchased and used by the US government. The US government was not aware. It was a private sector contractor exercising free choice, which libertarians should applaud. The US government might consider specifying that such verses be omitted in future procurements. From: Harland Harrison Sent: Friday, January 22, 2010 2:08 PM To: [email protected] Cc: [email protected] Subject: [Libertarian] US gov't has Bible verses on military weapons US Military gunsights manufactured with Bible verses inscribed. May God help us. Bible codes' on Afghan army guns Al Jazeera's David Chater reports on the implications of the religious gun sights US-made rifles inscribed with Bible codes are being used by US forces and Afghans to fight the Taliban. The weapons come from Trijicon, a manufacturer based in Wixom, Michigan, that supplies the US military. The company's now deceased founder, Glyn Bandon, started the practice which continues today. ... Markings included "JN8:12", a reference to John 8:12: "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, 'I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life," according to the King James version of the Bible. The Trijicon Reflex sight is stamped with 2COR4:6, a reference to part of the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians: "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ," the King James version reads. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2010/01/20101211239216652.html Harland Harrison LP of San Mateo County CA [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ ForumWebSiteAt http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Libertarian Yahoo! Groups Links [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ ForumWebSiteAt http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Libertarian Yahoo! Groups Links [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
