Ten Commandments Park must go

If the reader hasn’t noticed the splendor of the new religious park just a bit east of Columbia Heights, along U.S. 2 en route to Glacier National Park, perhaps you should take a look. This grand spectacle, a blatant example of normal religion gone mad, might be a preview of coming attractions. At least these huge billboards say so. Not to mention history.

If a man in his late 70s can see this unmitigated trash from the road, so can thousands of tourists. My own ideas about tourism are long on expletives, short on compliments; however, if dependent on tourist trade, I might lose sleep wondering what sort of favorable impression these grotesque billboards could possibly make on any unsuspecting visitor in regard to our community.

Tourists are not stupid. And most are undoubtedly more intelligent than the extremists who created this monstrosity for all to see. What are visitors to think when they see the likes of Thomas Jefferson plastered on a sign with words paraphrased, taken out of context or never spoken at all?

Think about it. Thomas Jefferson was our third president. More importantly, he also drafted our Constitution, was never a member of any religious organization or sect, and was foremost an advocate and stanch supporter of state-church separation. So what is he doing in a religious park?

Contest is a problem regarding all statesmen depicted. In Jefferson’s time, statements “inspiring religion, god, lord, the almighty, etc.” were often in reference to Deism. Deism and Christianity are not the same but confused because of the same terms. A huge difference.

The travesty of this Commandment park could also be learned if the images of our statesmen were replaced with raving evangelists, like the Grahams, Falwells or Peter Popoff. But please, not Jefferson and others blazoned in this park of shame.

If this mockery continues, after the current visitor’s memory of Montana’s beauty fades, yet they might rightfully remember the stupid hicks who had the incredible audacity to smear our nation’s finest statesmen in religious mud.

Now, to turn this around, billboards demeaning any religion are also distasteful and not appropriate for any roadway. I do not believe the image of Christ on any billboard with false statements to be acceptable, not to me, and Jefferson might have some ideas about that, too.

This insidious display must go. Lasting impressions taken from our community and state should never include religious views of any sort.

Rick Koerner lives in Columbia Falls.