Arlington, Washington - December 5, 2008 - Larry Stickney, President of the recently formed (October, 2008) Washington Values Alliance, criticized Governor Christine Gregoire today for allowing an out of state atheist group to set up a display under the capitol dome "for the sole purpose of antagonizing Christians and disrespecting the sacred holiday of Christmas."

"Here is where Gregoire and other Olympia liberals' erroneous interpretation of free speech and the 1st Amendment breaks down," said Stickney. "In their world, it's okay to verbally pummel tens of thousands of Christians and disrespect their holidays, but don't you dare open your mouth disparagingly about a minority religion or a deviant sexual lifestyle or you will likely be fired and/or charged with a hate crime. In other words, the constitutional right to exercise free speech anytime and anywhere applies to liberals and their politically correct causes and classifications only."

Responding to the atheist's display, the Washington Values Alliance is fighting back with a Christmas display of its own for the capitol rotunda, submitting an application with the State Capitol Visitor Services on Thursday morning. "We are hoping our display (see below) will help neutralize the atheist's negative message of despair with the sacred Christmas message of hope for all mankind," said Stickney. "I was told we should receive our permit and be allowed to set up our display up on Monday, December 8."

"Freedom of speech was never meant to be a license for fringe groups to insult and antagonize the rest of us. While we must all do our best to respect the opinion of those we don't agree with, the 1st Amendment also guarantees our constitutional right to carry on our nation's religious culture and traditions and we should be able to do so without petty harassment," Stickney continued.

"The bottom line is this: The atheist's display is in bad taste and it was a bad call to give them a permit at this time of year. There remains something in this world called civility. Allowing groups like these to thumb their nose at those who believe in God during the sacred Christmas holiday season runs counter to sensible decorum and keeping the peace. There are many appropriate forums, both public and private for these folks to promote atheism, this isn't one of them."

Contact: Larry Stickney
Washington Values Alliance
P.O. Box 501
Arlington, WA 98223
360-631-1894