Roy Moore removed from bench

[ceo_esq]

His Honor is out on His Ass:

http://edition.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/13/moore.tencommandments/index.html

[Tricky]

This is one of the times I am proud to be an Alabamian. I wish they were more frequent.

[shemp]

"ex-Judge Roy Moore, next Governor of Alabama" :(

[arcticpenguin]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/11/13/moore.tencommandments/index.html


Moore said he would discuss the possibility of an appeal with his lawyers and could ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his removal, arguing that it violates the Constitution's ban on religious tests as a qualification for office.


:rolleyes:

[corplinx]

This was just and fair. If Mr. Moore wants people to see the ten commandments, he is free to pass out leaflets. However, putting up that huge monument on the steps of the court building showed a disdain for the constitution of america.

Throw da bum out.

[sickstan]

AAAAAAHAAAAAAA!!!! Stupidity is assessed a 15-yard penalty! I love listening to the impotent rage and bile spewing from that preacher in a judge's robe.

Let freedom ring.

[LawnOven]

good

[DrChinese]

There is justice after all...

(...but he is not one of them hahaha)

[Renfield]

Originally posted by shemp
"ex-Judge Roy Moore, next Governor of Alabama" :(

Ha. Might be right there Shemp. It was the legal system that removed Moore after all, not the citizenry.

How much support is there for Moore anyway in AL? A majority? It wouldn't surprise me, but since I don't know that much about the place I really shouldn't rush to judgement, I guess. It's reputation is, well, backwards, very fundamentalist, but exactly how fundy is it?

[DanishDynamite]

Originally posted by Renfield


Ha. Might be right there Shemp. It was the legal system that removed Moore after all, not the citizenry.

How much support is there for Moore anyway in AL? A majority? It wouldn't surprise me, but since I don't know that much about the place I really shouldn't rush to judgement, I guess. It's reputation is, well, backwards, very fundamentalist, but exactly how fundy is it? I think AmateurScientist is the person to ask. He has previously been quite adament that Alabama isn't the backwater some think it is.

For the sake of Alabama, I hope he's right.

[DrChinese]

Originally posted by Renfield


Ha. Might be right there Shemp. It was the legal system that removed Moore after all, not the citizenry.

How much support is there for Moore anyway in AL? A majority? It wouldn't surprise me, but since I don't know that much about the place I really shouldn't rush to judgement, I guess. It's reputation is, well, backwards, very fundamentalist, but exactly how fundy is it?

I thought he was elected in the first place.

[hgc]

Originally posted by DrChinese


I thought he was elected in the first place. This is what worries me. He was elected after becoming famous for putting the 10 commandments on the wall of his courtroom as a local district judge, and defending against lawsuits that came about as a result.

Was he elected based on name recognition more than on 'bamans backing his position?

Does this round of events put him in the position of having a higher rate negative opinion in the minds of the voters, especially in the minds of those who voted for him last time based on name recognition.

Will 'bamans who backed him specifically on his 10 commandments hijinks be less inclined to back him now, due to his violation of a federal court order and subsequent dismissal -- in significant numbers?

He could very well become governor if the answer to the above questions swing the wrong way. Just how retrograde is Alabama? I'm sure we'll find out.

[corplinx]

I for one don't care if the ten commandments are posted as an homage to the guiding faith of our founding fathers or as example of ancient law and lawgivers (as it is in the supreme court). However, Judge Moore displayed the ten commandments prominently with no context other than their own and on top of it he _flaunted_ that it was there as a religious icon. In other words it was a blatant case of the state endorsing a particular religion.

Yes, it was a state court but I still think it shows a clear disregard for the spirit of the consitution.

Good riddinse to bad rubbish.

[DrChinese]

Originally posted by corplinx
Yes, it was a state court but I still think it shows a clear disregard for the spirit of the consitution.


The US Constitution supercedes. We had a war about this.

[corplinx]

Originally posted by DrChinese


The US Constitution supercedes. We had a war about this.

I didn't know if it did or not, I'm glad the butthole is gone.

[AmateurScientist]

Originally posted by DanishDynamite
I think AmateurScientist is the person to ask. He has previously been quite adament that Alabama isn't the backwater some think it is.

For the sake of Alabama, I hope he's right.

Yes, I have. I still am.

Do I think Moore's political future is limited? Yep. I think that he and the media and outsiders seriously overestimate his political support base in Alabama. Sure, he got elected in 2000, but his opponent was not as well known, was not particularly distinguished, and was a Democrat. Also, he only won by a slim margin, despite what some have claimed.

If you recall, Bush got Alabama's electoral votes in 2000. Moore, a Republican like Bush, could have gotten a lot of votes by persons voting a straight party ticket, or otherwise voting for Republicans in general, especially those who had heard of Moore from his previously well-publicized lawsuit involving his display of the commandments in his courtroom (which is practically everyone).

Also, Moore was not seen as such a fanatic in the 2000 election. Undoubtedly, many of his former supporters who are not fundamentalists have now decided he is not a worthy office holder. The majority of Alabamians are not Christian fundamentalists, despite Baptist being the largest denomination. Not all Baptists are fundamentalists. The persons we keep seing on CNN and elsewhere demonstrating and showing support for Moore and his foolish stance are very much a minority, not representative of the state as a whole, and some of them are literally bussed in from out of state.

This was nothing but a political sideshow and a platform for fundamentalist Christians. It was not the State of Alabama versus the federal government or the First Amendment. It was Roy Moore and his religious puppeteers versus common sense and reason. Think of Moore as a tool, and his political future becomes much more in doubt.

Alabama still has a bad taste in its mouth from the ill-advised election of a Christian fundamentalist preacher in 1986. Guy Hunt, Alabama's first Republican Governor in nearly 100 years, was removed from office in 1993 after being convicted of unlawfully using campaign funds to pay his personal debts. Hunt was the only sitting Governor in the U.S. in the 20th Century to be removed from office for a felony conviction.

Hunt was a huge embarrassment to the state. He also did a lot to reinforce Alabama's bad public relations image as backwards. He was not college educated and he spoke like the hick that he was.

Don't be so sure that Alabama is willing to elect another major embarrassment to the Governor's seat. You can bet that any political opponent of Moore's will beat him to a pulp during the campaign with images of Moore being removed and for defying a federal court order. I suspect it will get his opponent a lot of mileage among Alabama's more educated voters. There will always be backwards, unsophisticated voters who will see everything in terms of black and white, and who will see Moore as a religious martyr.

On the other hand, most of Alabama has had electricity and running water for decades now, and some of us can read too. Believe it or not, not everyone living in Alabama burns crosses and carries a deer rifle in his Chevy pickup truck with a rebel flag hanging in the window.

I think Moore's political viability is poor. On the other hand, he has quite a career opportunity on the lecture circuit. He will remain a martyr to many of his supporters, not just in Alabama, but across the U.S. He just won't be our Governor.

AS

[AmateurScientist]

I should add that Guy Hunt, the fundamentalist we elected in 1986, did not so much get voted into office as his opponent got not voted into it.

Hunt won the Republican nomination for Governor in 1986, but at the time that nomination was not on the radar for the Governor's seat, as Alabama had elected only Democrats to the office for decades. His Democratic opponents had an unprecedented mud-slinging contest during the primaries, even by political mud-slinging standards, which became a daily soap opera. It was truly ugly and unseemly. The Democratic nominee emerged from that contest still muddy and wreaking of the stink. Not only that, but a lot of Democrats were incensed with the party's decision to cherry pick Lt. Governor Bill Baxley for the nomination over his chief opponent Attorney General Charlie Graddick. Only the die-hard Democrats stuck with Baxley in the general election, as the others were turned off by the ugly campaign and the party's choice to ignore their votes from the primary. Essentially, Hunt was elected by default, not out of any overwhelming support from the right or from the electorate in general.

AS

[DanishDynamite]

AmateurScientist:On the other hand, most of Alabama has had electricity and running water for decades now, and some of us can read too. You really expect us to believe this? :D
Believe it or not, not everyone living in Alabama burns crosses and carries a deer rifle in his Chevy pickup truck with a rebel flag hanging in the window.Bet you can't name 10 people in Alabama who don't fit this description. OK...a 100 people. Alright, alright....a 1000 people. I bet you can't name a 1000 people who don't fit this description. I'll also bet that this bet is of no possible significance.

[StuBob]

AmSci,

As yet still another Alabamian, I sure hope you are right. I have much less confidence in the wisdom of the general public, especially in Alabama. What I see is a very popular Roy Moore, and a lot of folks will rally to his cause. He's a Demagogue with a capital D, and I still think (I said this some time back), like Shemp, that he'll be the next Governor.

Again, I hope you are right.

[Ed]

Originally posted by StuBob
AmSci,

... I still think (I said this some time back), like Shemp, that he'll be the next Governor.

Again, I hope you are right.

Point of order. Shemp took over from Curly but was never Governor. Shemp and Curly appeared in one short with Moe and Larry. Know what it is?

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Moore wanted a televised trial in a larger room...

And now his motives become even clearer.....

[StuBob]

Originally posted by Ed


Point of order. Shemp took over from Curly but was never Governor. Shemp and Curly appeared in one short with Moe and Larry. Know what it is?

Hmmmm...no I don't know what that is.

But did I say Shemp? I meant to say Fob, Curly's nephew. Fob was too big a buffoon to make it in show business, but of course fit right in as governor of Alabama.


:D

[Temporal Renegade]

Moore is more comfortable in the role of Wronged Martyr than he was as Judge; he'll go to his grave believing "It's a CONSPIRACY to take God out of our courts and LIVES!" If he wants to push his beliefs on people, let him go on the 700 Club or do a Gene Scott and do cable.

He probably would have come out of this a little better if he didn't try the 'sneak attack' route on putting the thing at the building in the middle of the night in the first place.

By the way, who paid for the damn thing in the first place, him, or the State?

[Cleopatra]

Originally posted by DanishDynamite
AmateurScientist:You really expect us to believe this? :D
Bet you can't name 10 people in Alabama who don't fit this description. OK...a 100 people. Alright, alright....a 1000 people. I bet you can't name a 1000 people who don't fit this description. I'll also bet that this bet is of no possible significance.

I know somebody and I know him very well-- that travels for business to and from Alabama many times a year, for years now. This somebody is a fierce atheist that what he hates most in his life is intolerance and bigotry. Also, he has lived in the most cosmopolitan cities of the world and I trust his judgement when it comes to places and people.

I was having this discussion with him--about Alabama-2 weeks ago when he returned from there. He claims that Alabama is not the place we imagine in Europe.

I am sure that he is in the position to point you 100 Alabamians that will meet your expectations.

[WildCat]

Alabama is a little different, I went to a Bob Dylan concert in Birmingham Nov. 2, 1996. We arrived at the venue (Alabama Th.) 3 hours early (we had come from Atlanta). No problem, we thought. It's 5 pm on a Saturday, the town should be hopping.

In fact, it was a ghost town. Every restaurant (even McDonald's!) and shop was closed, and there wasn't a bar to be found. We ended up buying a few 6-packs at a gas station, and drove back to the venue, parked and drank nervously in the car for 2 hours. :p

Throughout the show, young girls (college-aged) would run onto the stage and kiss Bob, and he sure seemed to like it! No security personnel tried to stop any of this either. Towards the end of the show, there were probably 20 fans standing on the stage, taking turns patting Bob on the back.

It was a great show also. (http://my.execpc.com/~billp61/110296s.html)

[Some Friggin Guy]

Well, some one I work with decided that Moore should run for president. This may sound like a joke, but trust me, this person was speaking in earnest. And if it frightens any of you that there are people out there who think this way, it should.

[DarkPrimus]

Moore keeps citing things such as having to swear on a bible in court as signs of "hypocrisy" in our nation.

Deing a judge, don't you think he would know that you aren't REQUIRED to swear on a bible?

He's just trolling for support from uneducated fundamentalists (is that a redundant phrase?). Unfortunately, that means if he runs anywhre in the South, he'll win.

[Yahweh]

Originally posted by shemp
"ex-Judge Roy Moore, next Governor of Alabama" :(

Roy Moore: Helping put God back into government, where He belongs!

*wretch*

[The Thrasher]

I lived in Alabama for the first 23 years of my life and I left the first time I had a good opprotunity to do so. I can tell you that generally speaking Alabama is filled with more than it's fair share of very backwords, ignorant, and racist people.
However, I would like to point out a ray of hope. Even in idiot filled Alabama there are enough decent human beings in positions of authority that exJudge Roy Moore was removed. If we can beat the Roy Moores of this world in Alabama I know we can beat them anywhere.

[zakur]

Originally posted by Some Friggin Guy
Well, some one I work with decided that Moore should run for president. This may sound like a joke, but trust me, this person was speaking in earnest. And if it frightens any of you that there are people out there who think this way, it should. Scary to think about something like that happening. However, I did find this (http://www.christianforums.com/t58050&mode=hybrid) very encouraging poll over at Christianforums.com:

Would you elect Judge Moore and Jerry Fawell as President/Vice President?

Yes [ 5 ] 15.63%
No [ 25 ] 78.13%
Maybe [ 1 ] 3.13%
Undecided [ 1 ] 3.13%

[RabbiSatan]

Oh my! There's hope for the human race ye ----

*Mind wanders back to the fine folks at rapture ready*

Hhhmm...