Stephen Gordon
Birmingham Libertarian Examiner
May 28, 9:24 PM
www.examiner.com
The Constitution should apply equally to all Americans.
For years, I've been highly critical of Christian conservatives for trying to impose their views of right and wrong on those who don't hold the same beliefs. These are people who would ban alcohol, books, sex toys, science, smoking, states' rights, Internet gambling, minors from using tanning beds, and even directly attack the First Amendment.
To be clear, I don't sympathize with the nanny-state mentality behind all these sorts of stupid laws, but I'll still be the first to come to the defense of this California family's religious, free speech and property rights.
From Fox News:
"On Good Friday we had an employee from San Diego County come to our house, and inform us that the Bible study that we were having was a religious assembly, and in violation of the code in the county." David Jones told FOX News.
"We told them this is not really a religious assembly — this is just a Bible study with friends. We have a meal, we pray, that was all," Jones said.
A few days later, the couple received a written warning that cited "unlawful use of land," ordering them to either "stop religious assembly or apply for a major use permit," the couple's attorney Dean Broyles told San Diego news station 10News.
But the major use permit could cost the Jones' thousands of dollars just to have a few friends over.
For David and Mary Jones, it's about more than a question of money.
"The government may not prohibit the free exercise of religion," Broyles told FOX News. "I believe that our Founding Fathers would roll over in their grave if they saw that here in the year 2009, a pastor and his wife are being told that they cannot hold a simple Bible study in their own home."
Hopefully, justice will be served and the Jones family will be able to hold Bible studies in their home again. However, I'm also hoping this will remind social conservatives that once they give government too much power, it may come back to bite them in the end. Also, if they'd keep their noses out of other people's rights, they'd probably find a lot more sympathy in cases like this.
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