The 'New School Prayer': A Response In Kind Jeff Ivy (10-00)

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The 'New School Prayer':
A Response In Kind
Jeff Ivy

Resource: 'New School Prayer' Exposed As Lies John (Buddy) McClean (the original chain letter of which this is a satirical response)
Perspective: Immoral Because We Don't Follow A Religion Drew Lyons (a look at the same original chain letter one year earlier)
Resource: Popular Misconceptions About Prayer in Public Schools from the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance

From: "Jeff Ivy"
To: "Positive Atheism" <editor@positiveatheism.org>
Subject: request for John (buddy) McLean
Date: October 15, 2001 12:46 AM

While reading the "New School Prayer" piece, I was intrigued with the idea of writing a reply in kind, that is, in verse as well. I was thinking that's what Buddy really wanted, so I quickly tossed this off while I was reading the article at the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance page.

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Response to
The New School Prayer

And so, you're sitting down at school
You think that praying's kinda cool
But what you'd really like to do
Is make all people think like you

If prayers are forced to all in sight
It does infringe the Bill of Rights
But never did it mean, nor now,
That you can't fold your hands and bow

And though strange colored hair you hate
Make sure that you don't overstate
The law, and all it does imply
To do so, knowingly, is to lie

For stating these mistruths as facts
Is one of the more heinous acts
Another one, I'll quickly state
Is demonizing those you hate

The ones who curse and dress real cool
Last time I checked, were not in school
You'll find that dress codes are the norm
Some make you wear a uniform!

And children, sometimes, make mistakes
You chastise them, for heaven sakes
For things most teens do when they're young
Protecting them's not so far-flung

You bristle at what you perceive
You'd silence those who don't believe
What of the Hindus, Buddhists too?
Why should they have to bow to you?

And what's the evil that you see?
I see, instead, a litany
Of fears, of superstitions told
Why fear the totem poles of old?

You must be blinded by some shroud
The Ten Commandments are allowed
As long as they're accompanied
By words from someone else's creed

Your argument is strained and weak
Your points are old, and what you speak
Is lies, and truth be told, it's sad
And by the way, your meter's bad!

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If you could give me the address where I can write or send this to Buddy, or do it yourself, if you're wary of sending out addresses (who isn't these days!), I'm thinking it might be a fun thing to polish this up and send it along to the newspaper in question!

Just a thought.
John Ivy

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