Somewhare in all these dusty law books...

Remember the ads for Hyatt Legal Services? " Somewhere, in all these dusty law books a great idea got lost. The idea that law is for people." Well, somewhere in 3 pages of proposed legislation and the din of noise from media outlets and partisan hacks, a great idea got lost. The idea that our freedom to practice religion (or not practice it at all) was a fundamental cornerstone of this nation. SB 1062 was not about gay rights or business rights. It was not about hate speech or discrimination. It was not about the rights of a religion over the rights of a protected class. It was not about gay marriage (or gay anything for that matter) or Christian bigotry. SB 1062 was about the right of redress. Our ancestors fled England because the government was setting the parameters of their faith and it's free practice, not the people. In our founding documents, in order to protect that right in a new nation, laws were set forth so that when those freedoms were breached, the oppressed would have the right to challenge the oppressor. That simple principle applies throughout or laws both criminal and civil. SB 1062 simply ensured that a person or group who could establish "unreasonable burden" had the opportunity to seek redress. It didn't mean that we had to agree or disagree with that person or group, it just meant that they had the right to petition the courts and let the merits of their individual situation decide the outcome. Isn't that what we all desire? What is offensive to some is acceptable to others and what is permissible in some faiths is strictly prohibited in others. Since we are a nation that respects ALL faiths, then we should stand equally for the protections of each one. This was a sad display of our legislative system at work. A simple bill that at it's core protected all of us regardless of our faith of lack thereof, was hijacked and propelled to the point of being tried in the court of partisan hackery, not on it's merit, but on the agendas of both sides. When state legislation is held hostage by the threat of the removal of a Super Bowl, hope is lost. Three simple pages when read over and over, reveal an idea we should all have been behind...but somewhere in all those dusty law books...