Following a big court decision – and one that's sure to be as controversial as Judge Crabb's ruling yesterday that the National Day of Prayer statute is unconstitutional – misinformation, hyperbole and a general fear-mongering freak-out are almost to be expected. That doesn't make them any less disturbing, though.
Take the headline from CNN's blog post: "Can Prayer Be Unconstitutional?"
Seriously? C'mon, worldwide leader in news. No specific prayer is at issue here. No specific person praying is at issue. Prayer itself is not at issue here. This case is about whether the federal government oversteps its bounds in urging citizens to participate in religious activity on a specific day.
Every single person who would otherwise pray on the National Day of Prayer will still – it almost feels foolish to have to point this out – be allowed to pray of course, and to pray in the exact same manner they would have otherwise. No prayer, and no American, is impacted by this decision. Even the President and his Press Secretary, defendants in this case, will be allowed to pray on the first Thursday in May, just like any day. The question is whether the Constitution allows them to use their power within the federal government to proclaim (definitely not an act of prayer itself) that all Americans should pray on that day.
It would be nice if our news media were as interested in informing the public as they are in fanning us. As you see similarly misleading reports and headlines in the news today, send 'em my way: don.byrd@comcast.net.
