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Commissioner needs civics lesson

The same day he helped kill a stronger ethics policy, Hillsborough Commissioner Brian Blair had the gall to lecture the School Board on "Judeo-Christian" values. It was a typical Blair rant that showed his comfort with wielding the wrong facts, bad history and bigotry. Blair persuaded the County Commission to ask the School Board to reverse its decision dropping vacation days for some Christian and Jewish holidays. The School Board's decision was reasonable, and it should not back down.

That Blair feels compelled to demagogue a sound decision by another agency reflects the extent this commission will go to entangle government with religion. Respecting one's beliefs is one thing; imposing them on the nation's ninth-largest school system is quite another. That's why the School Board was right to get out of the business of sanctioning religion by no longer tying vacation days to Good Friday, Yom Kippur and Easter Monday.

Blair has made a fool of himself and the county the last week, fuming that the School Board's decision betrayed America's heritage. "Commissioners and fellow Americans," Blair implored. "Don't let them take this from us." Fellow Americans, them, us - these loaded words are old reliables for fanning division. District policy already allows parents to take children out of school without penalty for some religious holidays, including the ones at issue.

Blair is one of several commissioners who has hooked his wagon to social conservatives. Already his colleagues have spent more time indulging him than on working with the School Board to ensure the county's 200,000 students have space to sit in their classrooms. Tampa's City Council - save for Shawn Harrison and Kevin White, who are eyeing higher offices - sent the right message Thursday by refusing to join this circus.

Blair does enough damage running off on tangents without meddling in the school system. If he cannot grasp that public schools are nondenominational, and that the law forbids government from sponsoring a religion, then School Board members should give him a lecture on American history. Their decision leaves families to decide which religious holidays to observe, and that's the way it should be.

[Last modified November 4, 2005, 01:40:17]