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Defacing flag, campaign sign is an act of cowardice

August 26, 2024

Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Board Trustee Laurene McCoy

Opinion by Pastor Patrick Sheean

We are saddened and dismayed by the defacing of Paso Robles Joint Unified School District Trustee Laurene McCoy’s campaign poster on Niblick Road. Personal attacks serve no purpose in furthering healthy discussions on policies related to education.

Furthermore, committing such an act of cowardice under the shelter of darkness is juvenile, untrue, and evil when one considers Laurene McCoy’s faith and concern for our children’s education.

We pray for our city, our school aged children, and salvation for those misguided few who took it upon themselves to commit such a crime against our nation, flag, and a good woman who is seeking reelection.

Pastor Patrick Sheean is writing on behalf of the faith community leadership.

 


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These boomer snowflakes are too much. How about you show some respect for the flag and stop using the flag for advertisements?


2

Where did you all think defacing our statues and the liberty bell would lead?…


27

And yet people went and did it.


3

While myself and I suspect many others here disagree with defacing a campaign sign, notably with a defaced American flag, there has not been much “healthy discussion” in education. Remarkably, the “church” certainly bears a significant burden of guilt associated with this, not to mention various other activities which bear more a resemblance to organized crime rather than any purported “freedom of worship”.


As a retired member of the military who has certainly witnessed my share of “evil” and fought for that flag, I find it ironic that a pastor would even mention the word in light of recent revelation (no pun intended)…


To the casual observer, and certainly from my seat in the stands, this “Opinion Letter” would appear to be more an endorsement of a candidate than taking any “moral” position…


3

Those two things aren’t mutually exclusive. For many voters, supporting a candidate does manifest as expressing a moral position.


2

“supporting a candidate does manifest as expressing a moral position.”


So true and shocking that people who perceive themselves as having high morals would support and vote for tax cheats, molesters, felons and liars.


Country over party, Country over personality, Country first.


3

It really is quite awful, most Americans, who are secular, or at worst, having a very minor involvement with various groups, are forced to either “tow the party line” or even worse, become “complicit” in a scheme which is diametrically opposed to their belief system as a consequence of the behavior associated with same.


I find it noteworthy that the defacement of the campaign poster became a newsworthy item, and do wonder “why”, but even more troublesome is the fact that an individual representing a group has made the very subjective statement, “Laurene McCoy’s faith and concern for our children’s education”.


I personally do not know Laurene McCoy, nor do I attend the Family Worship Center, but at best, what we have here is an individual being suggested for “placement” rather than elected on “merit” or “competence”, and thus, merely, another “actor on a stage”.


My last deployment was awful enough, and much of the suffering endured was a direct consequence of the “cross”, but this was nothing compared to the nightmare which was to come upon my return home, and while I never hated “Jesus Christ”, his “Christians” sure made a test of this…


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gpcramins, thanks… one of the most cogent comments on this site… maybe ever.


-4

Voters are often left no choice but to choose between the lesser of the scoundrels who appear on our ballots. It’s a shame that so many defective egos and sociopaths are drawn to political office.


5

It’s your prerogative to interpret Pastor Sheean’s comments as you like. However, condemning disrespectful criminal political vandalism and thuggery is not the same thing as explicitly making an endorsement of a political candidate. That is something Pastor Sheean did not do.


4

“Joint Unified School District Trustee Laurene McCoy’s campaign poster”

“when one considers Laurene McCoy’s faith and concern”

” to commit such a crime against our nation, flag, and a good woman who is seeking reelection.”


It has it all, god, country, flag and a good woman who is seeking reelection.


The opinion article is absolutely a endorsement of a political candidate.


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“Pastor Patrick Sheean” “on behalf of the faith community leadership”


Who is the faith community leadership? I can find nothing online, sounds like a front for church’s to engage in prohibited political activities.


Citizen Patrick Sheean opinion of a candidate is fine, for Pastor Patrick Sheean and other church employees it is Prohibited.


” A church endorses a candidate (by any variety of ways, including verbal or written statements, references to the candidate’s political party, references to the candidate’s distinctive platform or biography, and/or showing the candidate’s picture)

Prohibited  Int. Rev. News Release IR-96-23; IRS Publication 1828


Church employees carry on campaign activities for a candidate within the context of their church employment

Prohibited  FSA 1993-0921-1; IRS Publication 1828″


Support religion free politics, government is no place for talking bushes and flying babies and other imaginary things.


-3

I agree it’s juvenile, probably a couple high school kids under the influence of a liberal adult. I don’t see it as a crime against the nation or the flag but disrespectful and misguided.


3

Thank you Pastor Sheean!

You have summed up the Democrat party and the left beautifully.


3

Perfect example, this citizen thinks  Pastor Sheean is conducting political activity.


“You have summed up the Democrat party”


-2

Well, the IRS never seemed to be bothered by the political-themed speech uttered by the Reverends Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton in the Ebenezer Baptist Church or other houses of worship. Nor did the IRS go after the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Since, in actuality, the Democrat Party is a religion based on extreme leftist ideology, Pastor Sheean is technically speaking on a theological topic and not violating IRS prohibitions on political speech.


12

Political-themed speech is not a violation, endorsing a candidate is.





0

Pastor Sheean is not endorsing a candidate, he is lamenting the unlawful, thuggish vandalism of a citizen’s campaign sign and the associated disrespect directed at a good-hearted, civics-minded concerned Paso citizen. He could speak similarly about any number of other Paso citizens running for public office if similar vandalism occurred to their campaigns.


5

If what you write was true Pastor Sheean would be discussing vandalism not a candidates qualifications.


 “when one considers Laurene McCoy’s faith and concern for our children’s education.”


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