Bush-style Christianity

and radical Islam are both feeding Middle East violence. Interesting article.

From Asia Times
Jan 13, 2005

Golems of violence
By Mark LeVine

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/GA13Ak03.html

<snip>

First there is the "imperial" and "crusader" mentality that has come to dominate US foreign policy (the words are outgoing National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice's and Bush's respectively, not mine). Next there is the belief among some of the most important political figures in the country, not to mention tens of millions of God-fearing Christian Americans, that the war in Iraq heralds the coming of the Apocalypse and is therefore part of God's plan and beyond criticism (no matter what the human and economic costs). Most important, fin-de-millennium America has witnessed the rebranding of Christianity as a religion of large-scale, divinely sanctioned violence that is specifically wed to a hyper-consumerist market fundamentalism, which, as Thomas Frank demonstrates in his best-selling What's the Matter with Kansas?, has the perverse ability to brainwash tens of millions of Americans to support economic policies that are manifestly against their class interests and violate the most cherished tenets of the Gospels (humility, serving the poor, struggling for social justice).

Making the synergy work is the ability of what could be termed "market-fundamentalist Christianity" to redirect Americans' anger at the life conditions it produces toward a mythological bogeyman called the "liberal elite".

<snip>

Viewed broadly, then, it would seem that a combination of ignorance about the other side and arrogance about its own power and righteousness of its goals has led conservative, even extremist American and Sunni Iraqi leaders alike to create what we could refer to as twin golems of violence to protect and advance their opposing interests. But like the monster in the old Jewish folk tale, while originally created to protect and serve its community, the Sunni and US golems quickly became uncontrollable, instigating more violence than either side could have done on its own.

n/t

and no one challlenges him?

After all, who did more to popularize Xtianity in the 20th Century than Ayn (as in Mine) Rand?

What could be more in the spirit of Jesus than the "screw your neighbor, get yours and look out for #1" mentality Ms. Rand encouraged with her Objectivist bullshit?

some gothic, tweaked up crap...

:hurts:

Justin Crowe = the right-wing neo-cons.

I'm dizzy.