"What will we be offended by today?" has become a popular slogan on social media.
One answer will be a decision by Missouri sheriffs to place the motto, "In God We Trust," on patrol vehicles.
We are not offended, but we do question whether it is the most prudent expenditure of funds.
The issue is not whether county sheriff's departments can do it; it is whether they should.
The motto appears on U.S. currency, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled nearly 60 years ago that it does not conflict with the Constitution's "establishment clause" that prohibits Congress from establishing a religion and is the basis of church-state separation.
After the Greene County Sheriff's Department added the slogan to its vehicles, the practice began to spread. At a recent meeting of the Missouri Sheriff's Association, a unanimous vote adopted the slogan for sheriffs' agencies statewide.
Cole County Sheriff Greg White explained: "It got national attention when the sheriff's in southern Missouri did this and the issue was brought up to us here at our conference at the Lake, so we took the vote to support the concept."
We're not surprised; who wants to be accused of voting against God?
In addition, we understand and appreciate that the motto will be well-received by many Cole County residents.
But the sheriffs' action invariably will offend some segments of the population. Criticism will include that the motto is unnecessary; violates the spirit, if not the letter, of the establishment clause; and will alienate some residents at a time when local law enforcement agencies must improve public relations.
Our reservations are more practical.
Sheriff White said funds raised from the annual sheriff's barbecue will be used to pay to add the motto to the existing fleet of cars. In the past, those funds have been directed to train and outfit volunteer members of the sheriff's posse and to purchase bullet-proof vests and other protective equipment.
In the final analysis, we believe training, equipping and protecting sheriff's deputies deserve priority over adding a motto to their vehicles.