Reporting from San Francisco — After a Lutheran school expelled two 16-year-old girls for having “a bond of intimacy” that was “characteristic of a lesbian relationship,” the girls sued, contending the school had violated a state anti-discrimination law.In response to that suit, an appeals court decided this week that the private religious school was not a business and therefore did not have to comply with a state law that prohibits businesses from discriminating. A lawyer for the girls said Tuesday that he would ask the California Supreme Court to overturn the unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel of the 4th District Court of Appeal.The appeals court called its decision “narrow,” but lawyers on both sides of the case said it would protect private religious schools across California from such discrimination suits.Kirk D. Hanson, who represented the girls, said the “very troubling” ruling would permit private schools to discriminate against anyone, as long as the schools used their religious beliefs as justification.”It is almost like it could roll back 20 to 30 years of progress we have made in this area,” said the San Diego attorney. “Basically, this decision gives private schools the license to discriminate.”

This is true, they CAN discriminate, for any reason, as long as they SAY it’s religious. They can expel Jews, Catholics, atheists, and anyone else who may be wonderful people, but not included in their bigoted world of hate and intolerance.Why then, are they regarded as moral? These two girls weren’t having lesbian sex in the bathroom, I assume, they were just gay. They may be very nice girls and good students. They were kicked out by bigots, because of bigotry, and I hope that any black, Jewish, Moslem or any other minority member of this church and school leaves on the sheer moral grounds that bigotry is bad, even when it’s not faced against you. I also invite ALL STUDENTS of this school to teach their values of their religion (“do unto others as you would have them do unto you”) to their school — by coming out of the closet as gay. That’s right, if anyone seriously takes their religion seriously, the whole idea of loving thy neighbor and acting in a moral way, they ALL need to come out as gay loud and proud, true or not. Think “I am Spartacus.” Then let their immoral judgmental hateful school deal with their prejudice head-on.And can someone please remind me why bigoted organizations like this get tax breaks?

The first government collapse of the global economic crisis is about to yield the world’s first openly-gay leader. Johanna Sigurdardottir, a former air hostess, is expected to be sworn in as Iceland’s Prime Minister by the end of the week.Her moment in the international spotlight comes at the most horrendous moment in her nation’s recent history. As the global meltdown began, the collapse of Iceland’s grossly over-leveraged economy was followed smartly by the implosion of its banks and currency. Now its government has gone the same way, the first to succumb to the backwash from the crisis.Ms Sigurdardottir’s party, the Social Democrat Alliance, was asked to form a new government but its leader is taking a leave of absence to recover from treatment for a benign tumour. And so, “Saint Johanna”, as she has come to be known, has been propelled from the social affairs ministry – which she has presided over for a decade – to take centre stage in a choice hailed as “unexpected but brilliant”.

Funny. No mention of a quote from religious leaders in this article.

Judge Luigi Tosti: Traditionally Courtrooms in Roman Catholic Italy have crucifixes on the wall behind the judge’s bench. Judge Tosti of Italy declined for months to hold court in Camerino, Italy, because he insisted that religious symbols have no place in a court of law. In 2005 he was convicted for failing to carry out his official duties and sentenced to seven months in prison and a one-year suspension. Judge Tosti appealed and does not have to serve the sentence until the appeals process has been exhausted. This is an appeal process that has won the support of secular organizations throughout the world.Judge Tosti said, “I was convicted because I am a minor-league citizen compared to Catholics. No freedom has been won without in the beginning a person or a group of persons trying to get this singular part of freedom against a majority of persons not willing to give this freedom.” Judge Tosti does not intend to restrict his resistance and has gone on strike for as long as the presence of a religious symbol is imposed upon him. Remember, coupon code: nogodblog for a discount on the convention

An analysis of more than 350,000 interviews conducted by Gallup in 2008 finds Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Arkansas to be the most religious states in the nation. Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts are the least religious states.

I wonder how this correlates to states with lower education, higher divorce rates, and crime…

Today’s post is about the separation of church and football. It’s Superbowl Sunday — everything is about football.Today’s question: who does God want to win? Let’s find out together by counting how many players mention, point, or otherwise refer to a deity during the game. In fact, let’s make it a drinking game! Post a comment when you hear one and of course, the post-game interviews count!Enjoy the game.