# CNN's bullshit "under god" reporting **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 27, 2002, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175 "2002-06-27T03:57:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Opus1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/858c86/32.png) [@Opus1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Opus1)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/1 "2002-06-27T03:57:46Z")
I put my first thread on this topic here by mistake, but this one’s supposed to be here. I just saw the most ridiculously biased, unfactual report on CNN about the recent court decision regarding the pledge of allegiance. It stated the following: “The federal government has traditionally not been neutral to God. God is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitutition, and [some other document I can’t remember.]” Uh, wrong on several counts. The DofI mentions a “creator” and was drafted prior to either the first amendment or the existence of a United States of America. The only god mentioned in the Constiution is Tiu, the Germanic god of war. “The President is sworn in on a Bible.” Sorry, try again. Presidents can be sworn in on whatever they damn well please. Or were the lazy ass researchers at CNN unaware that Pierce was sworn in on a copy of the constitution? “Sports fans rise to support our country, if not necessarily God [bit fuzzy on the wording here].” This was followed by a clip of some woman singing “God Bless America” at a baseball game. 😕 Boy, how irrelevant is this? What happens at a baseball game is of no concern to the federal government, or is CNN unaware that sports venues frequently hold all sorts of religious events, like Promise Keepers meetings and Christian rock concerts? And have people already forgotten that singing “God Bless America” during the 7th inning stretch is a tradition that started less than a year ago, and is rapidly dying out already? In short, a complete hatchet job, tossing together all sorts of tidbits and odd facts (and some total lies) to try to show just how silly the court is for believing that having teachers lead students in reciting an oath which mentions God is equivalent to a state endorsement of religion. I realize this is nothing compared to what people like Bill O’Reilly and Dr. Laura are going to say about this decision, but at least those are clearly stated as editorial opinions, not alleged to be factual reporting. ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/2 "2002-06-27T04:11:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Opus1 \* > **The only god mentioned in the Constiution is Tiu, the Germanic god of war.** Heh? What? 😕 Where the hell is “Tiu” mentioned? Tripler Why include a German god in a letter to an English King? ---
**Author:** ![Tripler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripler/32/21807_2.png) [@Tripler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tripler)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/3 "2002-06-27T04:18:33Z")
[sub]Damn. Preview!![/sub] And where is “Tiu” in the Constitution? Which Constitution are you reading? Tripler It’s not even in the Articles of Confederation. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/4 "2002-06-27T04:26:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*\*The only god mentioned in the Constiution is Tiu, the Germanic god of war. \*\* It’s not, that I can find. Anybody else wanna look? [http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html](http://www.house.gov/Constitution/Constitution.html) ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/5 "2002-06-27T04:31:42Z")
> [@](#): > > The only god mentioned in the Cons **tiu** tion is Tiu, the Germanic god of war. Of course, this only works if you misspell Constitution. That’s my only guess. ---
**Author:** ![lokij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@lokij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lokij)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/6 "2002-06-27T05:04:33Z")
Although I haven’t searched the entire document yet, I would guess there might be some reference to “Tuesday”. Tuesday is named for Tiu or Tyr as he is also known. Wednesday is named for Woden or Odin, Thursday for Thor also called Donnar to name a couple of others. ---
**Author:** ![Protesilaus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Protesilaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Protesilaus)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/7 "2002-06-27T05:25:42Z")
Tuesday doesn’t appear anywhere in the constitution, but if you count the amendments, there’s March (Mars) in the Twelveth and January (Janus) in the Twenty-Second. ---
**Author:** ![zigaretten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/91b2a8/32.png) [@zigaretten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zigaretten)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/8 "2002-06-27T05:33:37Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Opus1 \* > \*\* > The only god mentioned in the Constiution is Tiu, the Germanic god of war._\* Nice rant, but… “…Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our **Lord** one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven…” from the U.S. Constitution. Though I suppose they could be talking about the Germanic god of war. ---
**Author:** ![zigaretten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/91b2a8/32.png) [@zigaretten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zigaretten)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/9 "2002-06-27T05:44:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Opus1 \* > \*\* > "God is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence… > Uh, wrong on several counts. The DofI mentions a “creator”… > \*\* Nice rant, but… “…the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s **God** entitle them…” from the Declaration of Independence. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/10 "2002-06-27T07:19:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Opus1 \* > \*\*“Sports fans rise to support our country, if not necessarily God [bit fuzzy on the wording here].” This was followed by a clip of some woman singing “God Bless America” at a baseball game. > \*\* I have NEVER heard “God Bless America” sung at a baseball game. Only the national anthem. And occasionaly, Canada’s national anthem. ---
**Author:** ![Zoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/6de8d8/32.png) [@Zoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoff)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/11 "2002-06-27T10:43:50Z")
I didn’t see the CNN report, but from what you posted I’m not sure it was unfactual and you might be reading bias into it because of your strongly held opinion. The report states that The Man hasn’t been neutral toward religion and this seems to be true. The Declaration of Independence does include reference to “nature’s God” and another poster has mentioned the reference to God in the Constitution. The President is traditionally sworn in on a Bible. The fact that he can opt out of that doesn’t change the fact that presidents have been sworn in on Bibles. The reference to singing God Bless America sounds dubious unless they tied it into singing it at state-owned or financed stadiums, but that still seems a bit tenuous. But many courts open with references to God and God is on the currency. Saying that the government hasn’t been neutral about God seems to be supported by history, so CNN wasn’t wrong on that in my opinion. When CNN says the government hasn’t been neutral they’re not necessarily saying “therefore, the decision is stupid.” Was there anything in the piece that editorialized on the decision? I’m not attacking your position on the Ninth Circuit’s decision, I just think you might be reading something into the story. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/12 "2002-06-27T11:49:08Z")
“The President has traditionally been sworn in on a Bible” is a BS argument. Read the Constitution and you will see that the Oath of Office doesn’t contain word one about religion. On the other hand, the Constitution does prohibit any religious test for office. ---
**Author:** ![Zoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/6de8d8/32.png) [@Zoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoff)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/13 "2002-06-27T12:07:51Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Monty_ > “The President has traditionally been sworn in on a Bible” is a BS argument. Read the Constitution and you will see that the Oath of Office doesn’t contain word one about religion. I don’t think it’s a BS argument. I’m not saying the Constitution requires a Bible, I’m saying it’s traditionally been done that way. CNN’s apparent point was that government hasn’t been neutral about religion. The use of a Bible for swearing in the president is evidence of this. I’m not arguing that the use of the Bible is constitutionally required or correct or smart or anything. I’m just saying it’s evidence of the use of religious symbols by the government. Are you arguing that the use of a Bible to swear in a president is actually evidence that there isn’t a mixing of government and religious symbols? My point was that, based on what Opus1 posted, CNN’s report seemed factual. I think it would be just dandy if religious symbols weren’t used by government. But, as a point of fact, they are. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/14 "2002-06-27T13:15:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spooje \* > \*\*I have NEVER heard “God Bless America” sung at a baseball game. \*\* Guess you didn’t watch the World Series then. There was a big production of having a different singer at each game during the 7th inning stretch. ---
**Author:** ![Drastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Drastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drastic)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/15 "2002-06-27T13:29:32Z")
I’m just waiting for the frothing spasm that’ll happen if the Supreme Court upholds the ruling. And here I thought faith was supposed to bring people equanimity. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/16 "2002-06-27T13:45:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by spooje \* > \*\*I have NEVER heard “God Bless America” sung at a baseball game. Only the national anthem. And occasionaly, Canada’s national anthem. \*\* They’ve been singing it in lieu of “Take Me Out to the Ballpark” during the seventh inning stretch. Began right after the September 11 attacks. I haven’t noticed it as much anymore, but I flip channels after the third out if I’m watching. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/17 "2002-06-27T13:50:55Z")
I’d momentarily forgotten how much atheists are really loathed in this country till I saw the backlash on the news: Bush calling the ruling “ridiculous;” Senate and Congress members reciting the “entire” Pledge for the cameras; interviewees saying, “if they don’t want to say ‘under God,’ they should move somewhere else;” and of course talk-radio hosts frothing at the mouth. I mean, I wasn’t _surprised_, just depressed. ---
**Author:** ![ElwoodCuse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/edb3f5/32.png) [@ElwoodCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElwoodCuse)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/18 "2002-06-27T13:51:39Z")
I am an American citizen. I vote. I pay taxes. I do not believe in a God. We are NOT “one nation under God”. We are one nation where people believe in many different things, if anything at all. ---
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/19 "2002-06-27T14:10:57Z")
Say what you want about CNN’s coverage. The “fair and balanced” FOX had as their commentators on the subject the “objective” Jerry Falwell and Newt Gingrich. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2002, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175/20 "2002-06-27T16:24:32Z")
> [@](#): > > They’ve been singing it in lieu of “Take Me Out to the Ballpark” during the seventh inning stretch. Having just watched the Royals bullpen blow a three-run lead to the Mets on Sunday, I can tell you that at least in Shea Stadium, it’s sung prior to, but not in lieu of, “take me Out…” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cnns-bullshit-under-god-reporting/116175.md?page=2)