From an Eagle Forum Candidate Questionnaire:

Q: Are you offended by the phrase "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance? Why or why not?

PALIN: Not on your life. If it was good enough for the founding fathers, its good enough for me and I’ll fight in defense of our Pledge of Allegiance.

Beauty and brains, both!  The phrase, by the way, was added in 1954. (I know stuff like that. Shouldn't the next Vice President of the United States?)

But bottom line is this: Hastings has always been a good man. His opponent has not.

As for the issues, Adkins cannot help one there. He does not even know where he stands on them...

Defaced signs? Truly they mean nothing... Their mishap could be construed by either party, or by either party's more fanatical fans.... Alleged late night calls of a threatening nature... unless we have the recordings to play for all,... they too mean nothing. For during a political year everyone wants to play a role, either of the victim or the tough guy, and milk everything they can get out of it.....

But......what you can't hide is character. It shines. If evil is able to overcome it, (which I'll admit does sometimes happen), then it is solely because the community of Millsboro sat back and chose to allow it to happen.

Hastings in one year....has laid more decent bills onto the table, then John Adkins did over his entire career..... Millsboro cannot afford to cut its nose off just to spite its face... Voting for Atkins would do just that....

Every native of Millsboro needs to stand on the corner of Main and State, and ponder this election while looking at the inscription above the old bank building on the corner: In God We Trust.

Politically burying Atkins forever would cause the rest of the state to marvel with well deserved admiration, over what a great town Millsboro has become.

Olga and I have tons of photos, news and exciting things to share with you... and we're actually uploading almost 400 photos as I type this, so while we're all waiting for that, I thought I'd share something my California sis  emailed me.

It's a poll you can take part in if you like (hurry though... not sure how long it's running) about whether or not the "In God We Trust"  motto should stay on American currency.

I've screen-capped the responses so far to share with fraccers. If you'd like to add your own vote to the poll, you may do so by visiting the msnbc site.

And stay tuned to see what Olga was "up" to on our vacation. The little dickens turned out to be terribly bra-ve!

Over the past week or so I've received a bunch of e-mails like the one above. Sorry guys, but I go right for the delete key. My question is; what's all the commotion about?

This quasi-religious motto has become such an 'engraved' part of our national consciousness that it is almost invisible. I seriously doubt if anyone sits and ponders this little prayer before slipping it into the slot machine. (Perhaps each coin and bill are like the little prayer flags of the Tibbetan Buddhists?) But if you are a believer, why would you want to associate God with 'filthy lucre' ? Why would you think that God endorses the money of the U.S.A. any more so than that of imperial Rome's? Perhaps he even finds the implied association with money lenders to be insulting.

And if you are a crusading atheist - get a life. The I.G.W.T. slogan has been appearing on our coins since the mid 1800's. Who cares if there are some lingering superstitious trappings attached to the design of our money? I don't hear anyone on either side of this debate outraged at the inclusion of symbols representing elements of the secret-world-dominating-pagan-cult of the Illuminati. How come it's only the atheists and Christians who are always upset? Why aren't the New Agers demanding something like "IN GAIA WE TRUST"? I guess they're just a bit more relaxed about things. Ommmmmmmmmmmm.

Of course, I could be wrong. Just this past summer one of God's official prophets had a revelation:

While in a trance on the afternoon of July 26, 2008, Bob (Jones) heard the audible voice of God say “America has forgotten Kate Smith’s song……..God Bless America! They are cursing America more than blessing her with their words. Their words have power. I have not forgotten her; I love her. If they don’t begin to bless America, she will go down!

Huh? I guess we should start thinking of her as Saint Kate, patron saint of stadiums. Puts a new twist on the End Times scenario, though - "It ain't over 'till the fat lady sings. Hit it Kate!"

What do you think? Is this issue important to you one way or another? Is the U.S.A. somehow special in the eyes of God, so special that he would consider us before the French or the Chinese or the Iranians? Or is it that some of us are really worshiping a made in America idol?

You can imagine the stir this provokes in the "Christian" community.

Fury.  Outrage.  Disbelief.

Fear.

It is as if removing "In God We Trust" implies that our country, the United States of America, has abandoned its Christian and religious roots.  No wonder this provokes fear.

On the other hand, it seems to me that placing "God" on "Money" can too easily blur the distinction between the two.  It can lead us to delude ourselves, believing that God approves of our religious nationalism, that God somehow feels better about Himself because His name is splashed across Benjamin Franklin's bust.  Rather than reminding us that we should put our trust in God (and not in financial security), the motto on the money slyly implies that God is quite okay with our reliance on something other than Him.

He stamps His approval on our consumerism.

His name validates our ambition.

Worse, it gives the false impression that ours is a “Christian” nation (as if writing something about God on money proves that we really seek to follow Jesus).

I have a better idea.  Instead of indignantly asserting that “this is one more step towards secularism”, let's acknowledge that we Christians have often done a poor job of revealing who Jesus is in a way such that all can be drawn to Him (John 12:32).  Let's decide to show our friends, community – even our nation – that we trust in God by what we do more than what words on paper read.

L'organo giudiziario ha criticato fortemente la moda di dare nomi bizzarri ai propri figli, vietandone alcuni, tra i quali:

• Sex Fruit
• Fish and Chips (per due gemelli!)
• Stallion
  
• Keenan got Lucy
• Cinderella beauty blossom
  
• Fat boy
• Twisty Poi (nome di un piatto Polinesiano)
• Yeah Detroit

Altri nomi strampalati, però, sono ancora permessi in Nuova Zelanda. Tra questi:

• Benson and Hedges (sempre per i gemelli)
• Number 16 Bus Shelter (Fermata del bus numero 16)
• Violence
• Midnight Chardonnay

Ma si sa che gli Stati Uniti, in quanto a bizzarrie, sono sempre i primi della classe: nello stato dell'Illnois è stato permesso al conducente di uno scuolabus di cambiare il proprio nome in In God e il proprio cognome in We trust. Nel New Mexico, però, la stessa autorizzazione non è stata data ad un uomo di nome Variable che voleva mutare il proprio appellativo in Fuck Censorship (Fotti la censura); questa persona, in sostanza, è rimasto vittima dello stesso "abuso" che intendeva denunciare, tant'è che ha caricato un video su YouTube nel quale contesta la decisione della Corte.

Notizie di questo genere mi riportano ad un discorso che affrontai tempo fa con Ex-Stefano. Entrambi convinti che l'appellativo di una persona ne condizioni fortemente personalità e reputazione, convenimmo sul fatto che sarebbe bello poter dare ai nostri figli dei nomi che denotino un impeto focoso, ad esempio:

• Total annihilation
• Nuclear holocaust
• Brutal massacre
• Atomic falcon
• Weapon of mass destruction
  

VOTA QUESTO ARTICOLO SU OKNOTIZIE

I'm wondering if this email is from the same people that want us to believe Obama is actually a Muslim in disguise and has just been acting like a Christian (for the last 20 years or so) to get elected president. Where I'm assuming he'll reveal his true identity as the anti-Christ and that change means he really wants all of us all to get 666 tatooed on our wrist and forheads.

So I started typing up a nice reply to one of my friends that forgot to ask if I wanted to be included on his Christian Spam mailing list. But I thought better, thinking he would misconstru my feeble attempt of Christian charity as a vast liberal conspiracy. So this is why we have blogs.

What I wanted to say was who cares? It doesn't mean anything anyway. It's a lie... We don't trust in God in America. Not the God of Israel anyway. Yhwh. The God of the Bible.

Actually I find it ironic that "in God we trust" is printed on the dollar. Maybe I should vote... But for different reasons.

Actually I propose another vote all together. How about we rename our currency, instead of dollar we call it God. Then it will all make sense. And the printing on our Currency will truly reflect our American values.

What do you think?

First
I was going to devote a post to Rick Warren's Saddleback Civic Forum that occurred on Saturday (check it out on Google or YouTube - it's far too long to post the video here). I watched the forum and strongly encourage you to do so too. I think Pastor Warren did an excellent job, and I am thankful that he made this event happen -- I believe it will be one of the most critical appearances for these candidates throughout this whole campaign. It's also appropriate that it was conducted by a pastor, at a church. As Warren said, Church and State should be separate, but not faith and politics.

Considering that our nation was founded and built in communities of faith and our leaders have often made important decisions in houses of worship, this forum is highly appropriate. So with that I move on to:

The Second Part of my Post
Today I received an email that directed me to this story where once again, another militant Atheist is challenging the appearance of national motto ("In God We Trust") on US currency.
Michael Newdow is at it again, after trying unsuccessfully before to get the words "Under God" removed from the Pledge of Allegiance, and previous tries at banning "In God We Trust" from the public square. He argues that the motto is an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.

His suit alleges that, “The placement of ‘In God We Trust’ on the coins and currency was clearly done for religious purposes and to have religious effects.” The story goes on to note:

Newdow’s latest lawsuit came five days after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected, without comment, a challenge to an inscription of “In God We Trust” on a North Carolina county government building.
In doing so, the justices upheld the Richmond, Va.-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that “In God We Trust” appears on the nation’s coins and is a national motto.
“In this situation, the reasonable observer must be deemed aware of the patriotic uses, both historical and present, of the phrase ‘In God We Trust,”’ the appeals panel ruled in upholding the inscription’s display.

What do you think?
First, what about the Saddleback forum? How was the format? What about Warren as moderator?
Second, what about this suit? Frivolous, or does this suit have merit? I gotta give him one thing--he's persistent.

Cast your vote!

See more of the story here

Should the motto "In God We Trust" be removed from U.S. currency?

As of right now, more than a million votes have been cast, and the race is neck-and-neck. [Update, 22 August: The tally is now nearly 7 million, and the trusters are running away with it.]

For those of you who tuned in late, and possibly are wondering why in hell, with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan etc. etc. etc., the collapse of the U. S. housing market, the energy and grain and credit crises, and Michael Phelps's eight gold medals, anyone (never mind a million of us, and counting) cares about what's on the money except the number and the units, and how many of those numbers and units it will take to buy a stick of chewing gum - we've already given up on gasoline - tomorrow:

Turns out, according to the U. S. Treasury Department's history of the matter, that "In God We Trust" first showed up on American money in 1864, during the Confederate Revolutionary War Civil War. When U. S. Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase, a devout and, ehm, somewhat sanctimonious Christian, wanted to make extra-special sure that Jesus was on the side of the Union. The phrase has been on the money, off and on, ever since.

The U. S. Constitution be damned.

We the People made matters worse by declaring, in 1956, that "In God We Trust" be the official motto of these Untied States, and in that capacity must appear on Our money. Thus do We illustrate the cardinal principle of all Law, code and common: When We write it, We mean what We say. Except when We don't.

Now as it happens, the United States of America had a perfectly good motto, one that exemplifies both the history and the ideals of Our nation and dates back to Our nation's inception: E pluribus unum (One formed out of Many). Only one trouble with this motto (aside from the fact that it wasn't written in God's first language, English, so nobody now knows what it means): no one bothered to make it official. Which gave an opening to another devout Christian, Ike Eisenhower, who was seeking for a catchy way to distinguish the Godly Good Americans from the Ungodly Bad Russians, to whom Die Religion ist ... das Opium des Volkes. (This, in 1956, was a decade before American Baby Boomers dispensed with the cheap substitute Religion in favor of the real McCoy. But there was no way Eisenhower could have known this, and he passed away before he could observe it).

So now we have this argument. Should "In God We Trust" stay on the money, because it's historical and patriotic? Or should it go, because it's an unconstitutional "establishment of religion"?

This is a job for Amoeba's Rule, which states: Whenever people can't find an answer to a question, it's usually because they're asking the wrong question. Or, in this case, maybe, not considering all the available answers. I venture to suggest that the trouble with "In God We Trust" is not that it's wrong, but that it's incomplete. If we merely completed the thought, like it was meant to be, and as it appeared (still appears?) over the cash registers of thousands of little shops throughout this Great Land, all difficulty would vanish.

In God We Trust. All Others Pay Cash.

Hey. Isn't that why we coin money? And besides. What could be more quintessentially American? Especially in the post-Mastercard era.

  - O Ceallaigh
Copyright © 2008 Felloffatruck Publications. All wrongs deplored.
All opinions are mine as a private citizen.

Right now it is a 50-50 results right now... Please help out with your opinion.

Thomas Jefferson professed to belong to no church or congregation in any way . He belonged to his "own" church meaning that he rejected all religious dogma and beliefs and formed his own about how god should be worshiped. He had this to say about religion "Question with boldness even the existence of a god."The following statement proves that the nation was founded to not have one single religion..."Congress should not establish a religion and enforce the legal observation of it by law, nor compel men to worship God in any manner contrary to their conscience, or that one sect might obtain a pre-eminence, or two combined together, and establish a religion to which they would compel others to conform" (James Madison, Annals of Congress, 1789).

The founding fathers would likely be appalled by the addition of "in god we trust" on our money and "under god" as stated in our pledge. These were added in the 50s during the era of McCarthyism and fear of communism. There is so little religious freedom in this nation we were formed to be free from religious domination yet Muslims are discriminated against, jews,even Christian sects saying each other aren't legitimate. Whats happened to this nation we honor the men that formed this nation yet we dishonor their belief that this nation should allow everyone the complete freedom of religion in order to form because they saw how having a state religion was nothing but trouble and a cause of war. Our founding fathers were some of the smartest people in the history of the world. They left us a framework for peace but the common people quickly lost grip on what this nation was founded on. You may not believe this but every year people are killed or tormented for having the wrong religion or worshiping Satan because they don't believe in Christianity. Now yes i know what your thinking this happens all the time in the world. Right? Well im not talking about the world im talking about right here in the united states the land of the free.

People every year are harrassed by Christians because they believe in the wrong god or no god.Those who believe in such things as reincarnation are considered to be new age freaks and Satan worshipers by some churches or Christian extremist. Benjamin Franklin the inventor the man who's face graces the 100 dollar bill believed in reincarnation, He wrote this as an epitath to himself in his early years.

Body of B. Franklin,
Printer,
Like the Cover of an Old Book,
It's Contents Torn Out
And
Stripped of its Lettering and Gilding,
Lies Here
Food for Worms.
But the Work Shall not be Lost
For it Will as He Believed
Appear Once More
In a New and Elegant Edition
Revised and Corrected
By the Author

The last part of this is the most compelling evidence as it shows he believed that like a book he would be "revised and corrected" as an edition of a book would be by the "author" the author Franklin refers to is indeed god. Franklin was a deist. Thomas Paine the man who wrote common sense and made people recognize the tyranny had this to say I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of...Each of those churches accuse the other of unbelief; and for my own part, I disbelieve them all."
From:
The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine, pp. 8,9 (Republished 1984, Prometheus Books, Buffalo, NY)

George Washington rarely went to church and it is unknown his exact stance on god and he never mentioned his religious ideals to anyone. His affiliation with the Freemasons lead to the idea that he must have believed in god.George Washington, the first president of the United States, never declared himself a Christian according to contemporary reports or in any of his voluminous correspondence. Washington Championed the cause of freedom from religious intolerance and compulsion. When John Murray (a universalist who denied the existence of hell) was invited to become an army chaplain, the other chaplains petitioned Washington for his dismissal. Instead, Washington gave him the appointment. On his deathbed, Washington uttered no words of a religious nature and did not call for a clergyman to be in attendance.
From:
George Washington and Religion by Paul F. Boller Jr., pp. 16, 87, 88, 108, 113, 121, 127 (1963, Southern Methodist University Press, Dallas, TX)

As you can see the nation we now live in was indeed founded with Christian morals this is not argued against but it was by all means meant to be a religiously diverse nation by the founding fathers. They tried to set a precedent that it is not right to force people to religion and that there should be not one state religion and for the most part thanks to the separation of church and state in the constitution there is not one single religion but many consider this a Christian nation which is wrong,If you care to do more research on the subject be my guest there is much more information many other founding fathers held the same beliefs as the ones stated above but i chose not to add them due to space constraints

]]> http://anamazingatheist.wordpress.com/?p=14 Thu, 07 Aug 2008 00:23:15 +0000 blizzard242 http://anamazingatheist.wordpress.com/?p=14 This is a very touchy topic for many American Christians. I think the touchiness come from a misconception. Many people believe that that motto has always been on American currency, but this is untrue. The motto was first printed in 1864, and was made official by congress until 1956. Look at those dates and what comes to mind (American Civil War and The Cold War)? This saying is actually used as propaganda during war time. The first was used during the Civil War to try to polarize the people of the Country. Then the US government wanted to paint the USSR as a godless nation; because the USSR had a complete secular state. The question is should we still have the Motto "In God We Trust" on our currency. This is a really hard question to answer. On one side, the majority of our nation is Christian. On the other hand, we do have a freedom of religion (this does not only apply to a believe in a god, but also apples to NO belief in ANY god). Also, the majority of American Currency is held by foreign entities and should we take there opinion into consideration. Well hear is my answer to this question. This may come as a surprise to may of you as I am an Atheist. I think the motto should stay on our currency, but I think the true origin of that motto should be thought in our school. In all my years of primary school and even College level history/poly sci class this fact is never mentioned. I always made of point of this, but it was never in the book or curriculum. Why are we hiding this, are we ashamed of it? What is your opinion please comment.

P.S. Sorry I ahve not posed in a few days. I leave for vacaton on Monday, Aug 11, and have been working alot of hours this week to make up for a week of vacation.

1. This is an old one, but the title of this World Net Daily article says it all: "Soy is making kids 'gay.'" (Via Fundies Say the Darndest Things)
2. Nigerian diners see the name of Allah in a piece of gristle. (Via Fundies Say the Darndest Things)
3. From September, taxpayer-funded "faith schools" in Britain will be able to reserve head-teacher positions for religious teachers and "and voluntary aided schools [will be able to] require some non-teaching staff to follow a religion." (British Humanist Association)
4. Remember Council Nedd and his In God We Trust organisation? They're urging Barack Obama to condemn the Freedom From Religion Foundation's "Imagine No Religion" billboards. In God We Trust, which is responsible for a billboard campaign asking "Why Do Atheists Hate America?," describes the "Imagine No Religion" billboards as "hateful." (CNSNews)
5. Britain's Chief Rabbi blames declining religious belief for "the spread of depression, stress, eating disorders and drug and alcohol abuse." Because religion causes you to do good things, and nonbelief causes you to do bad things. It's so simple! (Mail)
6. The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy is Commanding Contrition from PZ Myers for his Communion Cracker Crucifixion. (Pharyngula)
7. US organisation Pray At The Pump claims that petrol prices have fallen below $4 a gallon because they (*posthoc* . . . sorry, just had to clear my throat) prayed for it to happen. (Norwich Bulletin)
8. A poll of Muslim students at British universities suggests that almost a third think that killing in the name of religion is justified, a third support a worldwide Islamic caliphate, and about a quarter believe that men and women are not equal in the name of Allah. (Guardian)
9. Women were excluded from participating in a parliamentary choir at a special sitting of the Israeli Knesset, held in order to welcome British PM Gordon Brown, in order to placate the cherished beliefs of Haredi parliamentarians. ""I am the director-general of all MKs," said the Director-General of the Knesset, "and I don't have any wish to cause situations that would make MKs get up and leave." Because bigots have feelings, too. (Haaretz)
10. And bigots with delicate sensitivities that must under no circumstances be upset by inadvertent contact with filthy evil menstruating women, also ride buses. That's why Egged, Israel's largest bus company, is continuing to maintain sex-segregation on routes that pass through Haredi districts, where women must sit at the back and men sit at the front. This is in spite of a 2006 incident in which a 50-year-old Canadian woman, on her way to pray at the Western Wall, was set upon by the local Taliban "modesty patrol" who punched, kicked, slapped and pushed her when she refused to sit at the rear of an Egged bus. (All well in keeping with the thesis that religious faith is a prerequisite for moral behaviour, as you can see.) (Jerusalem Post)
    

Sure, I'm making a good deal of money, but I don't even have the time to spend it on anything but food. Or, rather, I blow an obscene amount of money on an adorable onesie from In God We Trust (see below), just to make up for my lack of shopping all summer. Then I proceed to rationalize the purchase to death - I've settled with the conclusion that I deserve to spend my hard-earned money however I please, though I'm trying to ignore the fact that I could've bought myself an iPhone for the same price.

With all that said, I'm deciding whether or not to quit my restaurant job as a hostess and cocktail waitress. I love my internship and the restaurant is only making me too exhausted to function during the day. This past week has been far more stressful and full of what I can only describe as bullshit. Maybe it's the ugly and rebellious, screw-authority side of me that only surfaces when I get scolded for insignificant reasons or reprimanded for things I didn't do. Or maybe I just resent the job because it has taken over many nights which I could've spent with my friends, or at home in New Jersey with my parents. And no matter how good the pay, I have no pressing need to serve creepsters their glasses of drunk (on the rocks) or to explain to strangers why they can't have an eight-person table for a party of three.

I've taken on jobs the way I eat at buffets - by piling spoonfuls of different dishes on one plate without considering that I won't be able to finish the whole mess even if I tried. I'm beginning to realize just how much my time and sanity are worth. Which is to say I can't be the Little Engine That Could(n't Say No To Work) anymore.

We have a weak boundary...I won't even call it a front..that is sagging down our way. You can make the argument that this is the leftover of Hurricane Dolly which went across South Texas and Northern Mexico, into Arizona and New Mexico before getting into the flow and moving back into Oklahoma and then has gotten stretched into the plains around a ridge of high pressure. Now, it is sagging down our way. There may be a little wave that progresses along the boundary Wednesday evening and with afternoon heating could conspire to produce some decent t'storms across the area. While there is no risk area, the SPC does have something to say about it so I have reprinted the part of the discussion that pertains to our region. For

this reason, I have not much more to say since I am tending to a bunch of horses and a goat and a mule. Yesterday, I was mending fences after Snow White and I had to go chase down the mule and the goat after the goat had busted a hole through the fence. I found out that I can make a donkey go where I want it to by simply grabbing its ear and then leading it to Snow White who had a lead rope in hand, whatever that is, and we returned it to its field. The goat was a different story. I wrestled the big goat and won! Here's the SPC report:

...SRN PLAINS TO THE OH VALLEY THIS AFTERNOON... A LOW-MID LEVEL CYCLONE OVER ERN KS/WRN MO WILL MOVE SLOWLY EWD THROUGH THE PERIOD. A LOW-MID LEVEL TROUGH EXTENDS SSWWD ACROSS ERN OK INTO N TX...WHILE A WEAK OUTFLOW BOUNDARY/DIFFERENTIAL HEATING ZONE EXTENDS EWD ACROSS SRN MO INTO KY. SCATTERED STRONG STORMS ARE EXPECTED INVOF THESE SURFACE BOUNDARIES WHERE MODERATE-STRONG INSTABILITY WILL DEVELOP WITH DAYTIME HEATING AND BOUNDARY LAYER DEWPOINTS IN THE LOW-MID 70S. RATHER MODEST MID LEVEL LAPSE RATES AND WARM TEMPERATURES ALOFT SUGGEST THAT ISOLATED DOWNBURSTS WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT THIS AFTERNOON...THOUGH INSTABILITY COULD STILL BE SUFFICIENT FOR ISOLATED/MARGINALLY SEVERE HAIL. THE THREAT FOR MORE ORGANIZED STORM TYPES WILL BE LIMITED TO A NARROW CORRIDOR IN ADVANCE OF THE MID LEVEL TROUGH ACROSS MO/IL WHERE VERTICAL SHEAR WILL BE RELATIVELY STRONGER.

On This Date in History: President Eisenhower signed into law a bill requiring "In God We Trust" be put on all currency and be considered the official US Motto. Since the Civil War the motto had been put on all coins but not paper currency. The "in God We Trust" bill was just two years after Eisenhower pushed for "under God" to be added to the Pledge of Allegiance. Most historians conclude this action was part of a reaction to the Red Scare of the 1950's. Eisenhower himself has been said to have been raised as a Jehovah's Witness, while more modern accounts suggest he was raised as a Mennonite. Sources say that Ike abandoned his family religion but that religion was still important to him and in 1953, he was baptised as a Presbyterian, less than a year into his first term as President. Today people claim the insertion of God into state mottoes and the pledge is a violation of the separation of church and state. Many defenders of the verbiage mistakenly think that the inclusion of God was mandated by our founders when in fact, "under God" and "In God We Trust" did not come along until after the founders were dead and gone. I'll let you make the call.

CNN) -- A New Zealand judge has made a 9-year-old girl a ward of the court so that her name can be changed from Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii, the country's national news agency reported Thursday.

Family Court Judge Rob Murfitt listed a series of unusual names that New Zealand parents had given their children, and said he was concerned that such strange monikers would create hurdles for them as they grew up.

"It makes a fool of the child and sets her up with a social disability and handicap," the New Zealand Press Association quoted the judge as saying.

Among the names Murfitt cited: twins named Benson and Hedges -- after a brand of cigarettes; Violence; and Number 16 Bus Shelter.

Some parents had named children after six-cylinder Ford cars, the news agency reported.

The Registrar General of Births, Deaths and Marriages said in a statement that it had rejected names including Fish and Chips, Yeah Detroit, Stallion, Twisty Poi -- a staple food in Polynesian cuisine -- and Sex Fruit.

A lawyer for Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii said the girl is so embarrassed by her name that friends know her as "K."

Last month, an judge in the U.S. state of Illinois allowed a school bus driver to legally change his first name to "In God" and his last name to "We Trust."

But an appeals court in the state of New Mexico ruled against a man -- named Variable -- who wanted to change his name to a two-word phrase that contains a four-letter expletive and expresses opposition to censorship.