"Together we stand" is an example of a unifying statement. "In god we trust" is a unifying statement for Christians. If it's not such a big deal, then you wouldn't mind if it read "Together we stand", seeing as it's still a unifying statement. It's pretty clear that the intended meaning is either "Americans believe in god" or "People who use this money believe in god". Money and god have nothing to do with one another. If it really is just a non-religious statement of unity, then it can be removed or replaced so that it promotes equality. I'm staring at a 1935 American dollar right now. It looks pretty neat without a "unifying motto".
I know I said that would be my last post, but I feel I need to clarify some things before I call it a night. I never said your interpretation was incorrect. Stop saying I did. What I said was that the original intent, when it was written, was to convey how America was unified, with the original colonies being combined. Think of a poem. A poem, vague enough, can have many, many different meanings. I could interpret a poem to be racist or sexist while other interpret it to be benevolent and heartwarming; but that's only my interpretation. Now, if I confront the author about the poem and he tells me that his intent in writing it was completely different, I can no longer be angry at him for it, since that wasn't his view - it's just how I read it. Even though I perceive it as being something negative, the author's intent was different. Same goes for 'E Pluribus Unum'. As my sources earlier showed, the original intent was most likely to be about America's past. That doesn't make your interpretation wrong in any way, it just means that it's different. But again, a secessionist or anyone else can't really be offended when they were the ones who interpreted it in that way in the first place. And no, that sense of unity that the phrase refers to can't really be seen as a bad thing. It's in the same sense as if it were about the prosperity of early America (just making something up). No matter what you want with modern day America, there's really no arguing that there was a sense of unity. That's not something positive or negative, it's just a fact.
I agree that "In God we trust" should be removed from the currency, however, I believe this thread should also support discussions such as God-based phrases from things such as the English National Anthem (God bless the Queen), God-based phrases from primary school songs, etc. I believe if everyone's beliefs are to be treated equally, it's all of the phrases or none of the phrases. Also, I do not believe it would require too much money, because even though in a recession (or out of it..?), America is a very rich country with a flourish economy.
ScarecrowXavier, it's pretty obvious that you didn't read all of my argument because you essentially disregarded it in its entirety. You just do not understand my argument. First of all, "original intent" is not the right term because the phrase does not have any intentions. "Literal interpretation" is more accurate. Once again, your logic is flawed. Say you walk up to a store and the shopkeeper has put a sign on the door that says "No dirty Irish allowed." The shopkeeper is prejudiced--he trash talks the Irish in his home, believes every stereotype, etc. He is just so ignorant that he cannot possibly believe that anyone, even an Irishman, could be hurt by the sign on his door. If he is racist and the sign only conveys his true thoughts, you're telling me that you wouldn't be offended if you were Irish? I'm sick of making my arguments.
(1) I say original intent, because what I mean is that it is what the authors were trying to convey. That's not up for debate. The links I posted proved that they most likely intended for the quote to be about the unification of the thirteen colonies. (2) If I see someone who is ugly, I don't go up to them and say "your UGLY!!" and expect them to not be offended. They will be. Regardless of if the shopkeeper thinks it's true or not, it's still insulting and he should know that.
@original post & when they place in god we trust, it is not offending anybody by not agreeing with them, besides satanists(i think) but it is just the popular opinion that god is likable and real, and this was made a VERY long time ago like the right to bear arms, now how this ties into the above, the above would offend because it is prejudice. Though would it offend if it said "All Irish customers are cool,"? as it is not as you are insulting someone, but just favoring, as it will only offend the people who think negativley of irishmen. Now i am not trying to be prejudice against Satanists, but i dont think it is good on any level to hate God(if you believe in him) and i dont study satanism and dont know much about it. BTW im agnostic (look it up) EDIT: I color coated it for a reason, to separate thoughts
A better discussion would be is this actually significant enough for anyone to worry about? My opinion, no.