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View Poll Results: Should the Statue of Mohammed be Removed?
Yes 22 39.29%
No 34 60.71%
Voters: 56. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 07-02-2009, 12:07 PM
 
Location: Denver
968 posts, read 1,034,526 times
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In the US Supreme Court building there is a statue of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed included in a frieze. Should it be there?

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Old 07-02-2009, 12:30 PM
 
Location: Michigan
5,376 posts, read 5,328,525 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ramanboy33 View Post
In the US Supreme Court building there is a statue of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed included in a frieze. Should it be there?
If it is him I'm sure the Taliban and any extremest Muslim group would say no it should not.
But it's not him.






Also include are:

Menes (c. 3200 B.C.) First King of the first dynasty of ancient Egypt. He unified Upper and Lower Egypt under his rule and is one of the earliest recorded lawgivers. Menes is shown in the frieze holding the ankh, an Egyptian symbol for life.

Hammurabi (c. 1700s B.C.) King of Babylon credited with founding the Babylonian Empire. He is known for the Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest known legal codes. The first stone of the Code depicts him receiving the law from the Babylonian Sun God.

Moses (c. 1300s B.C.) Prophet, lawgiver, and judge of the Israelites. Mosaic Law is based on the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. Moses is depicted in the frieze holding two overlapping tablets, written in Hebrew, representing the Ten Commandments. Partially visible from behind Moses’ beard are Commandments six through ten.

Solomon (c. 900s B.C.) King of Israel and renowned judge. His name, meaning “figure of the wise man,” has become synonymous with “judicial wisdom.”

Lycurgus (c. 800 B.C.) Legislator of Sparta. Lycurgus is credited with being one of the reformers of Sparta’s constitution. He left Sparta after convincing the Spartan leadership not to change his laws until he returned, but he never did.

Solon (c. 638 - 558 B.C.) Athenian lawgiver. He was appointed archon, an officer of state, and was charged with remodeling the Athenian constitution in 594 B.C. He was instrumental in codifying and reforming Athenian law, often revising the laws of Draco. His name has come to mean “a wise and skillful lawgiver.”

Draco (c. 600s B.C.) One of Solon’s legal predecessors in Athens. Around 620 B.C., he committed an Athenian code of laws to paper for the first time. His code included many strict penalties and death sentences, often for what seemed to be minor offenses. Thus, the word “draconian,” meaning harsh or cruel, is derived from his name.

Confucius (551 - 478 B.C.) Chinese philosopher whose teachings stressed harmony, learning, and virtue. Within 300 years of his death, the Chinese State adopted his teachings as the basis for government. Although officially abandoned by the Chinese government in 1912, Confucianism continues to have an influence throughout the world.

Octavian (63 B.C. - 14 A.D.) or Augustus. First Emperor of the Roman Empire. He brought widespread reforms to many facets of Roman life. He supported the concept of using previous opinions of leading jurists to aid in resolving new disputes.

Justinian (c. 483 - 565) Byzantine Emperor from 527 until his death. He ordered the codification of Roman Law and published Corpus Juris Civilis. This work was instrumental in preserving Roman law and encompassed what has become known as the Justinian Code.

Muhammad (c. 570 - 632) The Prophet of Islam. He is depicted holding the Qur’an. The Qur’an provides the primary source of Islamic Law. Prophet Muhammad’s teachings explain and implement Qur’anic principles. The figure above is a well-intentioned attempt by the sculptor, Adolph Weinman, to honor Muhammad and it bears no resemblance to Muhammad. Muslims generally have a strong aversion to sculptured or pictured representations of their Prophet.

Charlemagne (c. 742 - 814) or Charles I (the Great). King of the Franks and Roman Emperor. Charlemagne was reportedly an avid student who became an eloquent speaker of several languages and supported learning and literature throughout his realm. Under his leadership, most of Western Europe was united by 804 becoming the foundation for the Holy Roman Empire. He was also a reformer of legal, judicial, and military systems.

King John (1166 - 1216) born John Lackland. King of England from 1199 until his death. His policies and taxation caused his barons to force him to have his seal affixed to the Magna Carta. This document, depicted in the frieze as a scrolled document in King John’s hand, is regarded as the foundation of constitutional liberty in England.

Louis IX (c. 1214 - 1270) King of France who was canonized as St. Louis in 1297. He led the 7th and 8th Crusades and created the first court of appeals known as the “Curia Regis” or “King’s Court.”

Hugo Grotius (1583 - 1645) or Huig de Groot. Dutch scholar, lawyer, and statesman. He is depicted holding De jure belli ac pacis (Concerning the Law of War and Peace), one of the first books on international law, which he wrote in 1625.

Sir William Blackstone (1723 - 1780) English law professor and jurist. He wrote Commentaries on the Law of England (1765 1769),
which has had a major influence on English and American Law.

John Marshall (1755 - 1835) Fourth Chief Justice of the United States, from 1801 to 1835. His 1803 opinion in Marbury v. Madison stated that the Supreme Court of the United States had the authority to determine the constitutionality of a law, establishing the power of judicial review for the Court.
Napoleon

(from the Supreme Court website)

Last edited by plannine; 07-02-2009 at 12:46 PM..
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:33 PM
 
Location: NJ/NY
10,655 posts, read 18,613,428 times
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Is it a statue or part of the actual building?
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:35 PM
 
Location: NJ/NY
10,655 posts, read 18,613,428 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by plannine View Post
(If it is representing him) I'm sure the Taliban and any extremest Muslim group would say no it should not.
Actually, probably not.

Quote:
Muslims generally have a strong aversion to sculptured or pictured representations of their Prophet.
Since it's part of the actual building, and sits among many other people on that wall, I say no. Here is a document about the wall:

http://www.supremecourtus.gov/about/...southwalls.pdf

Quote:
Cass Gilbert (1867-1934), architect of the Supreme Court Building, selected Adolph A. Weinman (1870-1952), a respected and accomplished Beaux-Arts sculptor, to design the marble friezes for the Courtroom. Weinman’s training emphasized a correlation between the sculptural subject and the function of the building. Gilbert relied on him to choose the subjects and figures that best reflected the function of the Supreme Court Building. Faithful to classical sources and drawing from many civilizations, Weinman designed a procession of “great lawgivers of history” for the south and north walls to portray the development of law. Each frieze in the Courtroom measures 40 feet long by 7 feet, 2 inches high and is made of ivory vein Spanish marble.
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:37 PM
 
48,505 posts, read 96,546,470 times
Reputation: 18301
Why would we take down historical symbols down? It makes no sense and solves nothing but start controversy.Why not just burn all teh books that you don't agree with that our ancetors wrote;its the same thing really.It like those that want to erase all thew religious influenece that played thru out our history;it just falsifies history.
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:37 PM
 
Location: Charlotte, NC
3,564 posts, read 5,501,921 times
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I woulda thought the lefties would not have any part of this. I mean, separation of church and state, right?
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:37 PM
 
3,153 posts, read 3,581,581 times
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Don't be surprised if one day they replace it with a likeness of our Supreme Commander, BHO.
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:38 PM
 
23,838 posts, read 23,043,889 times
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The 10 Commandments are on the building as well (on the doors if i'm not mistaken). As long as there's no problem with the Commandments, then there's no problem with the Prophet, as far as i'm concerned.
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:39 PM
 
4,657 posts, read 8,687,719 times
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If you look at the frieze, it's pretty non pc and highly offensive to the easily offended types. Islam is called the religion of the sword, i.e. convert or die and Muhammad is holding a sword in one hand and a Koran in the other. There's no way in heck that would be allowed today. lol
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Old 07-02-2009, 12:40 PM
 
Location: NJ/NY
10,655 posts, read 18,613,428 times
Reputation: 2829
Quote:
Originally Posted by CharlottePirateFan View Post
I woulda thought the lefties would not have any part of this. I mean, separation of church and state, right?
It's a part of the architecture. Literally a part of the actual building.
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