Canfield dislikes God, err, Bibles, and Kobach

To the people who booed God, I'm sure someone carrying a Bible or talking about what's inside its pages at work is just short of a high crime. (Democrats are the party that booed God, after all.)

Now they've taken their show on the road. This time, it's one Courtney Canfield, who is suing the Kansas Secretary of State's Office because there are Christians who work there. And sometimes, they talk about being Christians, and other times, the Christians in the office pray and have Bible study. (Also, she was canned. She says it's for not attending Bible study, but it appears lots of people who didn't attend the Bible study continue to be employed in the office.)

Last Friday, the Secretary of State's office admitted that Bible studies did in fact take place there. Staff members were not required to attend or take part. 

In a sane world, that would be enough. But that's not the world we live in. We live in the world of the perpetually offended Whining Whiners Who Whine™ and they would like to see all Bibles burned and practicing Christians put into re-education camps.

Americans for Separation of Church and State is not impressed. Vickie Stangle, president of the local chapter, told an Associated Press reporter that Bible studies in the workplace cross the line.

"I look at these places as places we are conducting business, and they are not supposed to be houses of worship, and yet it seems to be happening more and more under the guise of so-called religious freedom," she said.

I have to wonder if she would be half as upset if the Secretary of State's Office offered to take a few bucks a month out of its staff paychecks to give to the United Way in exchange for allowing blue jean Friday. Would that be just as offensive or coercive? (Wait. I know this one. Answer, yes, but no one cares because the United Way gives money to Planned Parentood, so it's totally fine.) Or what if office staff organized a golf outing? Is that a lawsuit waiting to happen since I don't golf? (And the one time I did, I was a real embarrassment.)

Stangle said the practice of being Christian in public creates the perception that government is promoting and endorsing religion and that employees feel peer pressure to participate even if they are not required. To which I say, if state employees haven't grown up enough to not be peer pressured, that's their problem. 

I have felt subtle peer pressure to give to United Way. Fridays are awkward when everyone else is in jeans and I'm dressed like a professional. And when someone asks me why I don't give to United Way, I simply tell them. No harm. No foul. 

But let's be honest about this Canfield lawsuit. It's one of three things: Bitterness about being fired, or just another attempt to embarrass the Secretary of State's office, or a combination of the two.

As I wrote previously, I can't imagine Canfield winning anything but 15 minutes of fame with this lawsuit.