Michael Newdow, the atheist who failed to get the Pledge of Allegiance words "under God" eliminated a few years back, is now involved in a federal lawsuit to force the removal of the words "So help me God" from the traditional Presidential Oath that Barack Obama will take from Chief Justice John Roberts at 12 Noon on January 20.
One does not have to be a "religious zealot" to believe that this is much controversy over something unimportant. There is nothing wrong with expressing the hope for God’s backing, as long as it is not specifically denoting Jesus Christ, Moses, Mohammed, the Buddha, etc.
Atheists have a right to their beliefs, but as a small percentage of the American people, they do not have the right to impose their views on the majority. The only debate would be over promoting a specific religious denomination, and neither the Presidential Oath of Office nor the Pledge of Allegiance does that.
We have too many significant issues to deal with in 2009, and this lawsuit should be dismissed as frivolous and having no merit!
Bravo, Dr. Feinman! I agree 100%
You have summed it up perfectly. Why should we remove a generic term just for a minority that doesn’t even have conclusive evidence that a God does not even exist? I hope President-elect Obama reprimands Mr. Newdow and the case is tossed.