A Stitch in Haste

No, not that one -- this one:

Our Founding Fathers knew the importance of freedom of religion to a stable democracy, and our Constitution protects individuals' rights to worship as they choose. We reject religious discrimination in every form, and we continue our efforts to oppose prejudice and to counter any infringements on religious freedom.
...
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2006, as Religious Freedom Day.

I call on all Americans to reflect on the great blessing of religious liberty, endeavor to preserve this freedom for future generations, and commemorate this day with appropriate events and activities in their schools, places of worship, neighborhoods, and homes.

Some hasty stitches:

--How sad, and hypocritical, that such a statement could not be intellectually honest enough to mention, even in passing, the notion of freedom from religion, the right not to be proselytized at -- especially by government -- and the right not to have religious bigotry serve as the illegitimate basis for discrimination of the form that this day truly warns us against.

--How ironic that this President, who depends so heavily on some of the most intolerant, bigoted and downright fascist "Christian" factions in this country would be the one to invoke "individuals' rights to worship as they choose." Is there any worse form of hypocrisy than religious hypocrisy?

--On the other hand, this "holiday" is not an innovation of this Administration; it's an annual ritual that dates back to 1994 and the Pervert President. Which of course invites the question: why not just issue one "proclamation" and be done with it? The answer is, of course, rank political grandstanding. Does the President go through the motions of proclaiming each December 25 as Christmas Day?

--While we're on the subject, where exactly does Article II of the Constitution say anything about the authority to declare holidays? Oh, right, I forgot: Article II power is now deemed "plenary," at least by this Administration.

To hell with this worthless, grandstanding "proclamation."

Meanwhile, happy MLK Day, everyone.