Justice Gorsuch dissents
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Except for the hymn/choir singing part, I think attending church service is sufficiently similar to watching a movie in a theater that -- again, except for the hymn/choir singing part -- I am sympathetic to Gorsuch's comparison of churches to movie theaters. If there is a way to restrict the communal singing aspects of religious services, I think there is good case to relax churches' occupancy restrictions to match those of movie theaters'. But having the state write "thou shalt not sing" into the rules also carry with it First Amendment issues.
Casinos are a different beast, people sit around (so "not like grocery store") and walk around (also "not like restaurant). It seems to me the practical solution is not to relax church's occupancy restrictions to match casinos' but to tighten the restrictions on casinos' occupancy restrictions.
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Alito and Kavanaugh also wrote dissents.
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/19pdf/19a1070_08l1.pdf
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Except for the hymn/choir singing part, I think attending church service is sufficiently similar to watching a movie in a theater that -- again, except for the hymn/choir singing part -- I am sympathetic to Gorsuch's comparison of churches to movie theaters. If there is a way to restrict the communal singing aspects of religious services, I think there is good case to relax churches' occupancy restrictions to match those of movie theaters'. But having the state write "thou shalt not sing" into the rules also carry with it First Amendment issues.
Casinos are a different beast, people sit around (so "not like grocery store") and walk around (also "not like restaurant). It seems to me the practical solution is not to relax church's occupancy restrictions to match casinos' but to tighten the restrictions on casinos' occupancy restrictions.
@Axtremus said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Casinos are a different beast, people sit around (so "not like grocery store") and walk around (also "not like restaurant). It seems to me the practical solution is not to relax church's occupancy restrictions to match casinos' but to tighten the restrictions on casinos' occupancy restrictions.
Good points, but viral exposure is not only a function of number of people but time of exposure. One infected person sitting at a roulette wheel for an hour or three has the potential of infecting a lot more people than a casual pass at the grocery store.
@Mik: "He makes a good case. What was the majority opinion?"
The US Supreme Court on Friday denied a petition from a church in Nevada that argued a policy limiting in-person church attendance to 50 during the coronavirus pandemic violated the Constitution.
The decision was 5-4.
The church argued that the state policy treated church services differently from other large gatherings including casinos, gyms and restaurants.
A lower court had ruled against the church.
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Apparently the majority opinion was one sentence which I have been unable to find.
“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill
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@Mik said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Apparently the majority opinion was one sentence which I have been unable to find.
Think of it as "we see no sufficient reason to overturn the lower court's ruling" and find the lower court's ruling instead.
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@Mik said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Apparently the majority opinion was one sentence which I have been unable to find.
"This court finds that money talks"
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@Mik said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Apparently the majority opinion was one sentence which I have been unable to find.
"This court finds that money talks"
@Doctor-Phibes said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
@Mik said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Apparently the majority opinion was one sentence which I have been unable to find.
"This court finds that money talks"
The more liberal members of the court agree with you.
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Nolte: Watch Christians Outsmart Dem Governor to Worship God at Walmart
Christian worshippers outsmarted Pennsylvania’s fascist Democrat governor by gathering to praise God inside a Walmart — which, unlike the church, has been deemed “essential.”
The video below was reportedly recorded by a woman named Nancy Halford, a Walmart employee in North Versailles, Pennsylvania, who stopped what she was doing to join the singing and record the event. The video was originally recorded on June 26, but is just now going viral. The 15 minute video has racked up 1.1 million views.
This came almost three months after Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf, on April 3, told houses of worship they were not essential.
“Individuals should not gather in religious buildings or homes for services or celebrations until the stay-at-home order is lifted,” he said.
The governor did not order religious buildings to close, but Wolf’s message was clear: If you don’t close your church, we’ll be forced to act.
The Walmart video is not only beautiful for all the obvious reasons, it also points out the hypocrisy and anti-religious bigotry of these selective lockdowns and guidelines — not to mention their absurdity. Gathering to sing and praise God in a Walmart does not defy these totally unnecessary and useless social distancing guidelines, but gathering to sing and praise God in a house of worship does.
Please do tell me why it’s safe to gather in a Walmart, but not a church, synagogue, or mosque?
I guess the science behind that thinking must be the same science that explains why a Trump rally is deadly but a Black Lives Matter/Antifa riot is totally safe — or why you holding a funeral for your loved one will kill people, but it is perfectly safe when left-wing elites gather for an indoor funeral to say goodbye to John Lewis, one of their own.
This is just more proof that Democrats are determined to make traditional Americans second-class citizens in their own country.
The good news, though, is how the video is also proof that we will not stand for it, especially when it comes to praising our God.
Just try to wrap your mind around the fact that one of America’s major political parties — the Democrats, duh — as well as the corporate media — want to shut down our church but protect abortion clinics and marijuana dispensaries as “essential.” They want to protect the right to gather to loot and riot and burn, even as they use the fascist power of the State to strip us of our First Amendment right to gather together and worship.
The left are monsters who reveal their true selves more and more every day.
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Except for the hymn/choir singing part, I think attending church service is sufficiently similar to watching a movie in a theater that -- again, except for the hymn/choir singing part -- I am sympathetic to Gorsuch's comparison of churches to movie theaters. If there is a way to restrict the communal singing aspects of religious services, I think there is good case to relax churches' occupancy restrictions to match those of movie theaters'. But having the state write "thou shalt not sing" into the rules also carry with it First Amendment issues.
Casinos are a different beast, people sit around (so "not like grocery store") and walk around (also "not like restaurant). It seems to me the practical solution is not to relax church's occupancy restrictions to match casinos' but to tighten the restrictions on casinos' occupancy restrictions.
@Axtremus said in Justice Gorsuch dissents:
Except for the hymn/choir singing part, I think attending church service is sufficiently similar to watching a movie in a theater that -- again, except for the hymn/choir singing part --
The congregational hymns are a lot less worrisome than choir. Congregational singing is not projecting or breathing at the same level as a trained choir member. Heck, most are singing softly under their breath....
