I would like to think that my father's decision to have his body cremated after he died had something to do about preventing him from rolling over in his grave every time I dropped the ball or went against his admonitions.</p><p>You see, we had two definite 'no-nos' in the Lalley family. In public, we were never to talk about religion or politics! Over the kitchen table or rumbling down the dusty back roads in our Rocket eighty-eight, it was quite a different matter. There, our family was free to bring out the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, casting them against the misoneism of the Roman Catholic Church, or the idiots attempting to run our country. Everyone was fair game, nothing was off-limits - in private. But, publicly speaking about religion or politics was a no-no. "It's bad for business," my dad reasoned, then would mumble something about the customer always being right.</p><p>Well, hold on to your ashes dad, your oldest son is going against your admonition and is about to drop the ball - big time.</p><p>The Roman Catholic Church and the U.S. government simply should put up or shut up.</p><p>Take the stand of the Roman Catholic Church, on Father's Day, no less, there stood priests all over our golden state pontificating the wages of sin attached to our newly implemented gay marriage law. Our local priest even drafted a letter to our governor stating the Church's position on the matter, and encouraging all in attendance to simply sign their name and send it off. Nothing was said, or course, about perverted priests, their countless sins against children of the world, but a whole lot was said about same-sex couples trying to eek out companionship in today's complex society. Not only was religion trying to make a political point, but somewhere in their delusional thinking they forgot the parable of throwing the first stone.</p><p>Our government is not that much better. As constitutional rights are being eroded quicker than Antarctica, our government mixes politics with religion in the way it dolls out justice. It it's good for the soul and body of a man to repent and demonstrate remorse for sins against society; if it's good to lock 'em up and throw away the key; if prison is for punishment and not for rehabilitation; someone please explain to me why prisons aren't working; why offenders usually re-offend, and why so many poor uneducated people are doing hard time when so many Simpsons, Hiltons, Gibsons, Hogans and Spears walk free? If punishment is justice and a jail cell brings one closer to God, why in the name of all that's Holy do we let the rich, the famous, and the powerful receive their justice from a different code of ethics? What would Jesus do?</p><p>I may be tilting at windmills too big to tackle, but at least, I am aware of the blurring of politics with religion; and now that my father's ashes repose snuggly in his urn, I am not afraid to drop the ball.</p><p><i>Jack Lalley is a teacher with the Los Ba&#241;os school district. During his 30 years in education he has taught at all grade levels and was once superintendent of a small school district. He has a master's degree in educational administration/community leadership and holds two U.S. patents for educational games. Comments about Lalley's column can be e-mailed to publisher@losbanosenterprise.com</i>