<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">
<html>
<head>
<meta content="text/html;charset=windows-1252"
http-equiv="Content-Type">
<title></title>
</head>
<body bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000">
Wiccans generally believe in things that mesh well with what many who
are liberal believe, such as the rights of minorities and the
oppressed, that our environment is important, and that freedom of
speech and religion is important (for obvious reasons).<br>
<br>
Wiccans don't proselytize, they don't have a dogma which promotes
religious conversion, or even combining into groups of more than about
a dozen. They are very tolerant of other beliefs, and are very open to
variety in the beliefs of their own members. They are open to the idea
that there are many paths. They are also very fun to be around.<br>
<br>
I had a golden opportunity at one time to become a Wiccan. There was a
coven that would have let me join and a Wiccan High Priestess who
offered to teach me for the standard year and a day. I was interested
and had really looked into it but ultimately I decided it wasn't for
me; however I do feel qualified to have some opinions on the subject.<br>
<br>
Contrast this with the major religions that are constantly trying to
push their religous morals on me through the secular system. I'm not
talking about those who politely try to convert you - I enjoy talking
to the LDS and JW members that come around every so often - but I do
not care for someone who assumes I should believe as they do trying to
"do what's best for me" by legislating morality.<br>
<br>
Paul<br>
<br>
<br>
rvrcowboy wrote:
<blockquote cite="mid002c01c6a059$f40bdef0$a188e942@SHERWINHOME"
type="cite">
<pre wrap="">It is so amusing to see how so many of the libs here in the venom are
embracing Wicca while admitting they know little, or nothing, about it. It
is always the same with you people: Any President but Bush and any religion
but Christianity.
You are so very translucent.
Dick S.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Art Deco" <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:deco@moscow.com"><deco@moscow.com></a>
To: "Vision 2020" <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"><vision2020@moscow.com></a>
Sent: Wednesday, July 05, 2006 8:40 AM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] A New Witch Hunt
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Debi writes:
"Wicca does not have a Central Authority, it does not have Pastors,
Preachers, or Popes. It doesn't seek converts, doesn't proselytize,
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->doesn't
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">reject other religions as non-valid."
Holy Jesus! Are you daring to say that a person can be religious,
spiritual, kind, loving, concerned about humankind/animalkind etc without
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->an
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">organized church to provide detailed instruction and to suck away their
money?
I am sorry but your egregiously perverted view has now placed you among
other major perverts of the past: Buddha, Confucius, Christ, Plato,
Aristotle, Bertrand Russell, Jean Paul Sartre, etc.
Why, if what you say has any truth at all, then a whole lot of
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->egomaniacal,
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">megalomaniacal, and/or just uncritically dumb parasites would be instantly
unemployed.
Art Deco (Wayne A. Fox)
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:deco@moscow.com">deco@moscow.com</a>
----- Original Message -----
From: <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:debismith@moscow.com"><debismith@moscow.com></a>
To: <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"><vision2020@moscow.com></a>
Sent: Tuesday, July 04, 2006 9:17 PM
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] A New Witch Hunt
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Thanks for posting this, Tom. Also to all of you who have taken enough
interest in Wicca to do
a bit of research.
While approximately 1,900 in the military are *out of the broom
closet*, many more do not identify themselves as Wiccan simply to
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->protect
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">themselves.Unless
a base has a fairly large contingent of Wiccans (as did Fort Hood), it
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->can
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">be dangerous to let
others know this religion is the one practiced.
Wicca does not have a Central Authority, it does not have Pastors,
Preachers, or Popes. It
doesn't seek converts, doesn't proseletize, doesn't reject other
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->religions
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">as nonvalid. What
it has is a belief that Diety is imminent, not transcendent, and a focus
on care for the Earth
and all that inhabits Her. It has one basic tenet: And It Harm None.
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->This
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">means anything one
puts out into the Universe will return thrice-fold. If it is good deeds,
there is a return. If, as in my
case, it is snarky e-mails to those I feel it necessary to confront, I
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->get
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">three equally snotty e-
mails back. I'm sometimes willing to take the *karmic hit* and just push
*send*, knowing full
well Dick, Lame-o Doug, Donovan, or one of the over-aged juvenile
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->Kirkers
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">will attempt to insult
me or even start cyber-stalking again.
I am open about my spiritual beliefs. I am open about my political
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->agenda.
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">I am open about
just about everything, because when one attempts secrecy it leaves one
open to blackmail.
One of the v2020 posters, in the not so distant past, attempted to *out*
me (I was already out,
so BFD), attempted to *report* me to a higher authority (there isn't
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->one,
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">so he just annoyed
people who didn't care), and attempted to *shame* me for my out-spoken
behavior (I save
feeling ashamed for when I have inadvertantly caused someone pain--I'm
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->not
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">ever ashamed of
calling it like I see it).
It breaks my heart when I hear that others who share my religious
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->beliefs
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">are disrespected in
the
way Patrick Stewart and his family have been disrespected. While I may
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->not
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">agree with the
religious perspectives of some others, their right to belief is never in
question. Somehow,
Wicca is different than all other faiths?
It is particularly poignant that Wiccan beliefs are likely the most
inoffensive of just about any
religion, yet, through misunderstanding and prejudice, many people still
think Wicca is devil
worship or casting evil spells. These ideas don't have any application
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->to
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Wicca. We don't even
believe in *the Devil*, and (remember Harm None?) just don't do
imprecatory prayers or evil
spells. We spend our time recycling, growing organic food, taking care
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->of
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">others, sharing what
we have with those who have less, volunteering in our community, being
involved in politics,
and paying attention to the changing seasons (both real and
metaphorically).
I am hopeful that the VA will get some sense, stop listening to those
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->who
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">act out of prejudice
rather than information, and allow Roberta Stewart to honor her husband
with the symbol of his
faith. Blessed Be, Roberta.
Debi Robinson-Smith
"Never retract, never explain, never apologize, just get the job done
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->and
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">let them howl."
-------Iron Jawed Angels
(Thanks to Lois Blackburn, a true Iron Jawed Angel!)
From: "Tom Hansen" <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com"><thansen@moscow.com></a>
To: "Joan Opyr" <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:joanopyr@moscow.com"><joanopyr@moscow.com></a>,
"'Moscow Vision 2020'" <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"><vision2020@moscow.com></a>
Date sent: Mon, 3 Jul 2006 16:37:17 -0700
Copies to:
Subject: [Vision2020] A New Witch Hunt
[ Double-click this line for list subscription options ]
An editorial from the July 10, 2006 edition of the Army Times -
For you Wiccans out there. You know who you are.
----------------------------------------------------------------
A New Witch Hunt
Search for recognition falls victim to misconceptions about Wicca
By Charles C. Haynes
The current flap involving Wiccans in the military is a conflict that
should
never have happened. But years of foot-dragging by the Department of
Veterans Affairs have turned an easy case into a major controversy
complete
with charges of discrimination and threats of lawsuits.
All VA needs to do is announce that the pentacle - a five-pointed star
that
symbolizes the Wiccan faith - has been added to the list of 38 "emblems
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->of
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">belief" approved for placement on government headstones and memorials.
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->No
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">big deal, end of story.
Instead, VA keeps saying that it is "reviewing the process" - and will
make
a decision at some indeterminate time in the future.
Roberta Stewart has been hearing this bureaucratic mumbo jumbo for the
past
eight months. She just wants to honor her husband, Patrick, a soldier in
the
Nevada National Guard killed in combat last September in Afghanistan.
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->Sgt.
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Stewart, who was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart,
among other honors, was a Wiccan.
But Stewart's request to have a pentacle engraved on her husband's
memorial
plaque has been repeatedly denied pending review of the VA policy. His
space
on the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial wall remains blank.
Eventually, VA will have no choice but to allow the pentacle. Nevada
politicians from both parties, as well as advocacy groups from the left
and
right, are demanding the change.
Then there is the small matter of the First Amendment: It's clearly
unconstitutional for the government to deny the Wiccan symbol while
permitting symbols of many other religions.
If approval of the pentacle is inevitable, why is VA taking so long to
make
a decision?
For Roberta Stewart, it has been a long and frustrating eight months.
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->But
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">other Wiccans have been pushing for VA recognition of the pentacle for
more
than nine years. (According to the Defense Department, some 1,900
active-duty service members identify themselves as Wiccans.)
At first blush, the years of VA stonewalling doesn't make sense. A
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->glance
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">at
the 38 approved emblems suggests that any religion can make the list. In
addition to all of the world's major faiths, a number of obscure sects
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->are
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">represented, such as Eckankar, a New Age group that espouses out-of-body
travel. Atheists have a symbol, too. If VA is applying some kind of
religious test to keep out the Wiccans, it's hard to fathom what it
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->might
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">be.
Before last fall, VA blamed the rules. Applicants had to provide
documentation from a central authority certifying a symbol as
representative
of that religion. Because Wiccans have no recognized head or hierarchy,
their applications were rejected. Rules are rules.
Bipartisan outrage over Sgt. Stewart's case inspired a new set of rules.
Now, applicants are required to provide historic background and
documentation of use to get a symbol approved. Roberta Stewart has
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->filled
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">out all of the forms. But she's still waiting.
So what's the problem? VA isn't talking. But the delay may have to do
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->with
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">the fact that Roberta Stewart went public. Putting atheists on the list
when
no one is paying attention is one thing, but announcing recognition of
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->the
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Wiccan pentacle in the glare of the media spotlight is another.
Few people have even heard of Eckankar, but almost everyone has an
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->opinion
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">about Wiccans. Unfortunately, most of what people think they know about
Wicca is false. Wicca is a nature-based religion centered on a belief
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->that
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">the divine permeates all life. Wiccans have nothing to do with black
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->magic
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">or satanic worship, but try explaining that to a misinformed public.
VA is probably remembering the last time Wiccans in the military made
headlines. About six years ago, news reports of Wiccan ceremonies at
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->Fort
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Hood, Texas, and other bases provoked some conservative Christian groups
to
call on Christians not to enlist or re-enlist in the Army.
Under the First Amendment, the Army had no choice then, just as VA has
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->no
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">choice now, but to accommodate Wiccans in the same way it accommodates
other
religious groups. But any "acceptance" of witches - who have long been
demonized in Christian history - is certain to stir up trouble for the
military.
It's also possible that VA lawyers are beginning to realize that any
guidelines for government-sanctioned "emblems of belief," however
carefully
crafted, are unworkable. In a nation where people are free to choose in
matters of faith, the government should stop trying to figure out which
symbols are "acceptable" and instead allow each family to choose
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->whatever
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">symbol best represents their convictions.
In other words, cut through all of the bureaucratic red tape and
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->jettison
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">the "emblems of belief" list entirely.
Meanwhile, however, VA should act immediately to honor Roberta Stewart's
request and fill in the blank space reserved for Sgt. Stewart. After
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->all,
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">if
we can't live up to religious freedom at home, we have no business
</pre>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->asking
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">soldiers to die for religious freedom abroad.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Seeya round town, Moscow.
Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho
"Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the
tranquil
and steady dedication of a lifetime."
--Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.
=====================================================
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.fsr.net">http://www.fsr.net</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a>
====================================================
------- End of forwarded message -------
------- End of forwarded message -------
=====================================================
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.fsr.net">http://www.fsr.net</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a>
====================================================
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap="">=====================================================
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.fsr.net">http://www.fsr.net</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a>
====================================================
</pre>
</blockquote>
<pre wrap=""><!---->
=====================================================
List services made available by First Step Internet,
serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.fsr.net">http://www.fsr.net</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</a>
====================================================
</pre>
</blockquote>
<br>
</body>
</html>