The nativity display stays, and it stands alone.
The City Council voted Tuesday night to leave it in place until Dec. 26, and to impose a moratorium on any other religious display until the City Council and Schmitt could develop a set of guidelines.
The council voted 6-6, with Andy Nicholson, Chad Fradette, Guy Zima, Tom Denys, John Vander Leest and Tom Weber voting to keep it. Mayor Jim Schmitt cast the tie-breaker with a "yes" vote.
Passions ran deep on both sides of the issue Tuesday as Christians, non-Christians and the City Council debated what to do about the nativity display placed on City Hall last week.
Twenty-seven members of the public spoke, with some praising the city for putting up the nativity scene and others condemning it for excluding other faiths and nonbelievers.
"This is crazy," said Tim Entringer of Green Bay. "It's Christmas. I'm sad in my heart. There is only one God, and you've got to keep him up. The only way to get to God is through Jesus. It's the true religion. You have to do it."
Mike Layden, also of Green Bay, told the council, "If I were a Hindu — and I'm not — and I had to pay my water bill and walk under that overhang, I'd be terribly insulted. ... I'd say, 'Did I make a mistake in coming here? Does this country still respect the sanctity of the constitution?'"
Some also criticized the acts of the mayor and Advisory Committee for agreeing last week to put it up.
Sean Ryan, the man who had asked last weekend to display a Festivus pole, patterned after an episode of the TV show "Seinfeld," told the council he did it as a joke, meant to point out that religious displays don't belong at City Hall.
...A Wiccan display was installed Friday. It is a white five-pointed star encircled by a wreath. Early Monday morning, someone flagged down a police officer to report seeing someone on a ladder at City Hall, taking down the display. The suspect fled, leaving the ladder. Police later found the damaged display in the shrubs.
Schmitt on Monday declared a moratorium — no additional displays and no replacement Wiccan display until the council could meet and decide a policy. Schmitt said several people were making a mockery of the display by suggesting pop culture symbols such as the Festivus pole.
Because Schmitt cast the tie-breaking vote, he's likely to receive the praise but also the criticism for the decision to keep only the Nativity scene on display at Green Bay's city hall.
It came down to Schmitt. I credit him for not buckling under the pressure of ridiculous demands by the PC crowd and the loon fringe.
Would Mayor Tom Barrett have had the jingle bells to side with Christians and upset the freedom from religion contingent and Jesus bashers?
It's possible. He did agree to refer to Milwaukee's city tree as a Christmas tree, but I doubt he would have allowed the Nativity scene to stand alone.
Filling campaign coffers, even when running virtually unopposed, probably would be more important than filling the manger.
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