What's the beef with the ACLU?

Rather than drag an interesting discussion off topic I wish to propose this topic:In Message 178, Nemesis Juggernaut repeatedly asserts that the ACLU is "atheist," "diametrically opposed to Judeo-Christian morals" and "would rather die that hire a Christian zealot" and while I have no issue with the last statement (as "zealot" often implies insanity and I am sure they do not want to hire mentally instable people of any stripe) I would really like to know NJ's and/or others support for this sentiment.My first question would be - Have you (and I am using you in the general sense, directed to anyone who agrees with NJ, not just NJ himself) never even visited the ACLU's website? Do you really not know of all the work the ACLU has done in support of freedom of religion and defending various churches in court?Examples: Following Threat of ACLU of Virginia Lawsuit, Officials to Agree Not to Ban Baptisms in Public ParksLouisiana Court Affirms Christian Protester's Free Speech RightsACLU of New Jersey Applauds Ruling in Favor of Student's Right to Sing "Awesome God"ACLU of Virginia Defends Federal Law Guaranteeing Religious Rights of PrisonersACLU of Georgia and Baptist Church File Religious Discrimination LawsuitACLU of Rhode Island Files Appeal on Behalf of Christian Prisoner Barred from Preaching at Religious ServicesACLU of New Jersey Successfully Defends Right of Religious Expression by JurorsAfter ACLU Intervention on Behalf of Christian Valedictorian, Michigan High School Agrees to Stop Censoring Religious Yearbook EntriesAnd the list goes on and on and on.I only listed the ACLU defending Christians above to prov a point. They defend Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, Buddhists, Wiccans, Atheists, etc, etc. IOW, EVERYONE.You will find among these cases, of course, cases where the ACLU also takes on Christians, but only when they try to impose their particular brand of religion on others (sometimes thru the government - take the ten commandments in courthouses issue or distributing Bibles in schools, for example and sometimes all by themselves - requiring inmates in drug rehab programs to convert in order to successfully complete the program) or engage in discriminatory or otherwise illegal practices.My second question would be - if you hadn't been to the ACLU's website and/or didn't know about these above cases, then how did you form your opinion about the ACLU? Did you hear it on a talk show or from your pastor or just in passing? Did you form it all by yourself? If the last one, how?My third question would be - if you did know of the above cases (or others like them), then how can you honestly believe that the ACLU is "diametrically opposed" to Christianity?My last question would be - do you understand the Establishment Clause? While the ACLU definitely fights against government endorsement of religion (whether it is tacit or overt), many people seem to forget that the ACLU also fights for the people's right to freely exercise their religion, whatever it may be.Social Issues or Coffee House, please.Edited by Jaderis, : fixed message link

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