Ho, ho, ho: Bill Gates and Virgin Mary share space at Arkansas state holiday display

Stroll by the Capitol building at Little Rock, Arkansas, and you'll come across an unlikely duo: A traditional nativity scene next to an eight-foot "freethinkers" display which features noted freethinkers including Bill Gates, Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, and Thomas Jefferson, among others. The nativity scene has been on display during the holidays for more than 50 years; the freethinkers display was slated to be in place yesterday.

For several years, the Arkansas Society of Freethinkers had requested that it be allowed to put up a display celebrating the Winter Solstice and freethinkers next to the nativity scene. Arkansas officials denied the request last year and this year. But the freethinkers went to court, backed by the American Civil Liberty Union, and won the rights to put up the display.

The display itself is eight feet tall, and features a history of the Winter Solstice as well as photos and quotes from people that the society identifies as freethinkers. The society's president, Tod Billings, told seattlepi.com that

"'Freethinker' is defined as somebody who adopts their beliefs independent of preexisting dogma. Every one of those (people) in some way let it be known that they eschewed organized religion in one way or another. That's why they're on the list."

Gates was chosen because he told Time Magazine in an interview in 1997:

"Just in terms of allocation of time resources, religion is not very efficient. There's a lot more I could be doing on a Sunday morning."

The display has more than two dozen other quotes from a wide range of famous people, from Warren Buffet to Stephen Hawking, Ulysses S. Grant, Lord Byron, Frank Zappa, and others.

The display also includes this introduction, according to the Associated Press:

"As the old year passes and a new year is born, we reflect on that which has passed and hope for a better tomorrow. May the light of reason be a beacon to a brighter future for us all."