With atheist bus ads popping up all over the US, there’s bound to be some conflict a-brewin’ (they are kind of intended for that purpose, anyway). The latest controversy comes from Des Moines, Iowa, where bus driver Angela Shiel was suspended after she refused to drive a bus with an atheist banner on the side. She might get fired over this, since the Des Moines Area Regional Transport (or DART) has a policy that drivers are not allowed to choose which buses they drive.

Now before you decide on whether or not she should be allowed to refuse such a simple thing, how would atheists have responded to a non-believer refusing to drive a bus with a Christian ad on it? I don’t know about you, but I would have told that person to suck it up and do their job. We all have to do things we aren’t always comfortable with, but them’s the breaks. At the end of the day, it’s just a stupid ad, and letting people speak their minds isn’t a crime.

This is a tough situation for DART, since firing Angela would only anger theists, and capitulating to her demands would mean that other drivers could follow suit. Their priority is on providing a reliable service, and not having to deal with people’s religious convictions. I think the solution is letting her wear a t-shirt emblazoned with I believe in God while driving the bus if she’s feeling conflicted about the whole thing. Problem solved!