In September, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to remove two symbols from the county seal. A cross, and an image of the pagan goddess Pomona.

Following the vote, Ernesto Vasquez, filed suit against the board claiming that his First Amendment rights were violated.

He alledges, according to an Associated Press story, that removing the cross "sends a message that Christians are not full members of Los Angeles County." Yet, he also claims that the cross "was a historic and cultural symbol that did not convey a religious message."

So which is it Mr. Vasquez, is the cross sending a message or is it not? It seems to me that Mr. Vasquez has taken George Orwell's vision of doublespeak to heart.

We also have to consider that since Vasquez believes that removing the cross is sending the message that Christians are not full members of the county, does that mean he believes leaving the cross would be sending the message that anyone who is not a Christian is not a full member either?

He is quick to cry foul when he believes his First Amendment rights have been violated, but he fails to see the other side.

I believe the First Amendment to be very clear in that government can not respect any religion and that government can not impede any individual's free excercise thereof.

Having a Christian cross on a county symbol is showing respect to religion. The definition of respect is "to feel or show deferential regard for; esteem." How can you show more esteem to a symbol than by placing it on a seal that would be on every government document and in every government building? It was a clear violation of the First Amendment. So, for that matter, was the image of Pomona.

But how can Vasquez claim that his right to free excercise is being impeded? Does he worship the county seal in some way?

I applaud U.S. District Judge S. James Otero for throwing out Vasquez's suit this past Tuesday stating that claims made were contradictory.

The issues concerning church and state are simple, at least they ought to be.

The founding fathers knew that politics and religion didn't mix. A great deal of them were fleeing religious persecution. They wanted a land where no one would experience that. They knew that, to be fair, a government that endorsed one religion, would have to endorse all religions.

Can you imagine the halls of every government building in this nation plastered with the precepts of every religion in the world? And the seals of every county containing symbols of every religion?

It would be impossible.

Vasquez and others of his ilk would do well to remember that there are other people in this nation who don't believe the same things they do.

It's like my mother always said, "If you can't play fair, you can't play at all."