Monday, September 21, 2015

P.Z. Myers says something really dumb about Carson and Muslims

Myers is on a roll.

Ben Carson recently said that he "would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that."

A perfectly sane viewpoint, and one I share.

Myers is shocked--shocked-- that Carson would... wait for it... violate the Constitution(?).

Myers cites the First Amendment, which prohibits Congress from making a law respecting an establishment of religion, and Article IV, which prohibits a religious test for holding public office.

*Pounds head on desk*

The Constitution constrains government from establishing a religion and from imposing a religious test to hold office, but it does not restrain American citizens from voting in accordance with their best judgement and conscience. And a candidate's most deeply held religious views are fair game-- we wouldn't elect a pagan who believed in human sacrifice.

Myers' post is one of the dumbest I've read on his blog, and that says a lot. Now it's perfectly fine to hold the opinion that a Muslim would make a fine president, and it's perfectly fine to hold the opinion that a Muslim wouldn't make a fine president. That issue can be debated, but it has nothing--nothing-- to do with the Constitution.

The Constitution constrains the government, not American voters.

And of course I agree with Carson that electing a Muslim president would be a bad idea. I mean, look how the first one worked out.




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