Although Bill O'Reilly has no breaking the commandments about bearing false witness and telling lies, he does consider himself a man of faith. So, in the spirit of Christian fellowship, he used his Tuesday "tip of the day" to encourage his viewers to stop by a diner, in North Carolina, for a discount if they say "grace" before their meal. But sadly, for Bill, this practice (about which Bill wasn't totally accurate) has been discontinued due to - wait for it - those nasty atheists at the Freedom From Religion Foundation so odds are that we'll hear more about this on Fox!
O'Reilly told his viewers to check out Mary's Gourmet Diner because they take 15% off the check if you say grace (rub adub dub, thanks for the grub?), "a thankful prayer before eating your meal, you get the 15% discount. (If Bill or whoever does his research checked the diner's Facebook page, they would have read that "it's a gift" given "at random" which could either be a prayer or just meditation which, in Bill's Christian world, is strictly pagan.)
Bill provided a bonus tip: "If you believe in something like prayer, for example, make that belief known by being creative." He offered, as an example, the owner of the diner who is promoting her beliefs "in a positive way."
Promoting something in a positive way is one thing; promoting something in an unconstitutional way is another. The Freedom From Religion Foundation references the Federal Civil Rights Act in its informational letter to the owner of the diner. They point out that because the diner is a place of public accommodation, "Mary’s Gourmet Diner may not lawfully offer a discount only to customers who pray." They also say that "any promotions must be available to all customers regardless of religious preference or practice on a non-discriminatory basis."
Because the owner doesn't want a lawsuit, which the FFRF is not threatening, she has stopped the discount. What are the odds that she will be appearing on Fox News as an example of Christian persecution at the hands of evil atheists? I do wonder if O'Reilly will use this for yet another screed about the demise of traditional America, yadda yadda....As the awesome Rachel Maddow would say, "watch this space."
