Cecil Bothwell, Godless Atheist 1. Almighty God 0

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by Paul Van Heden
on Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Asheville's local political scene made national headlines this month when opponents of Cecil Bothwell, a newly-elected city councilman, alleged he was disqualified from holding public office.

Bothwell's critics pointed out that he posted "atheist" as his religion on a MySpace page.

I, for one, find it sad and shocking that anyone who still uses MySpace is allowed a position of civic responsibility. (EDITOR'S NOTE: Paul, that isn't why controversy erupted. Did you even Google this?)

*ahem*

It appears I was mistaken. It turn out that according to Article VI, Section 8 of North Carolina's State Constitution you can't hold office unless you believe in an "Almighty God."

To wit:

You read that right: The writers of NC's state constitution found disbelief in an omnipotent cloud-being so heinous, that atheism has it it's own paragraph as a disqualification for office - listed above treason, corruption, or malpractice.

Thankfully for Bothwell and the voters of Asheville - the Supreme Court already established one's religious beliefs can't disqualify you from office. Since the US Constitution trumps state laws, North Carolina's prohibition against atheists serving for public office is as unenforceable as a ban on poorly constructed social media sites.

So, on December 8th Bothwell took the oath of office without mentioning the Almighty or swearing on a Bible.

On a less positive note, those who use MySpace are still allowed to hold office.

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About the Author - Paul Van Heden

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