Submitted by Pedro, Dec 5, 2007 23:30

Thanks for your reply. As I said before, I'm not American, so I'm certainly not as knowledgeable as you on these topics. For me, it's mostly a logic and philosophy exercise.

Ben said: "The founders answered this very question explicitly as possible in 1796 in the Treaty with Tripoli. Article XI of this treaty begins "As the United States government is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion"

I haven't said it was founded on Christian religion, but on Christian values. There is a difference. All civilizations are founded on a set of moral values that are derived from, but not equal to, some religion. Of course, other things come in to play, but religion gives us most of the ethic system.

Note that a great part of American values are derived from Christianity. Freedom and equality between all men, for instance, are concepts present in Christian doutrine that - at least from an outsider's perspective - play an important role in the American ethical set.

Ben said: "No, it isn't a mistake. Both refer to majorities being given sole status as 'we' in the National Motto. The 3/5th compromise, counting blacks as 3/5th of a white person for congressional representation and taxation, IS embodied in the U.S. Constitution in Article I. "In God We Trust" is LESS defensible as a National Motto than "We Are White" would be."

Maybe I wasn't clear enough, but the point I was trying to make is that's not a question of majority. I see 'we' in the print not as 'most of us', but as a affirmation of the principles that support your country.

Now, I might agree that having that print on the currency is not necessary or that the choice of words could be better. My point was just that it's not an offense to atheists or non-Christians.

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