The same 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that ruled the phrase under God in the Pledge of Allegiance to be an unconstitutional imposition of religion on the inmates of the public school system recently ruled that….. Reciting aloud Muslim prayers that begin with “In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful . . ” Memorizing the Muslim profession of faith: “Allah is the only true God and Muhammad is his messenger.” Chanting “Praise be to Allah” in response to teacher prompts. Professing as “true” the Muslim belief that “The Holy Quran is God’s word.” Giving up candy and TV to demonstrate Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting. Designing prayer rugs, taking an Arabic name and essentially “becoming a Muslim” for two full weeks. ……is not. Imagine a teacher asking her class to give up candy in order to better understand Prayer and Fasting week at the local Baptist church. Uh-huh. The lesson in this is a simple one. Public Education is an oligopoly that is largely controlled by a few well-connected individuals and organizations that are in ridgid philosophical lockstep with one another. The debate will rage around what is taught and who gets to pick course material. But the real resolution won’t come until there is something approaching choice in public education. As my husband is fond of saying, lot’s of people are pro-choice until it comes to public education. Whole story here. More here. Hat Tip to Nobody’s Business.