http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/07/opinion/07wed1.html
I think you might have to be a member to be able to see that, but hey, why not just sign up?
Anyways, the article above discusses whether or not it's considered a violation of the 1st Amendment to place a large cross on federal land. Need I remind you, the 1st Amendment guarantees free speech and the right to protest the government.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars erected a cross in 1934 in the Mojave National Preserve (San Bernidino, CA) to honor fallen soliders, and since then the cross has been replaced a number of times. The park has also denied any request by other religious organizations to erect symbols of their faith (i.e. Buddhism), therefore challenging the first amendment.
The above map shows the location of the Mojave desert, and the cross.
In my opinion, if the park allows one strong expression of religious faith, it should allow ALL forms of religious faith. By allowing one such form of Christianity and denying other religious that right, the government is favoring one religion over another and also sending the message that state and church are intertwined. Church and state should ALWAYS be separate, so there should be no religious expression of any kind on government owned lands.
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