Government of the Antichrist, By the Antichrist, For the Antichrist.

Artist: Mr. Fish
No, I haven't lost my mind, however, this thought of the Antichrist, right here, right now, has emerged, so, instead of letting this insanity fester, I'd rather blog it out of my system. In other words, I want to broadcast my insanity, in hopes that the shame (Yes, even though I'm anonymous ...I've told a few people about this blog so that I may very well be standing naked only thinking I'm fully clothed) will allow me to exercise the power of reason once more. I'm just going to throw this line of "reasoning" out there and see if it sticks to something that prohibits this ghastly thought from returning. Here it goes:

Some, including Pope John Paul II say President George W. Bush is the Antichrist.

"...people close to the pope claim that amid these concerns, the pontiff wishes he was younger and in better health to confront the possibility that Bush may represent the person prophesized in Revelations. John Paul II has always believed the world was on the precipice of the final confrontation between Good and Evil as foretold in the New Testament."

Granted, the Pope did not utter the word, Antichrist, nevertheless, he came as close as he could without actually saying the word. Now, why would a smart, educated man like Pope John Paul II call Bush the "Antichrist", when men who appear to be far more evil - Joseph Kony, Saddam Hussein, Adolf Hitler, Idi Amin, etc. - exist and have existed for as long as man has walked the earth?

Sounds a little harsh. After all, President Bush doesn't threaten to put "we the people" through shredders, throw us in torture chambers, cut off the limbs of our children, brothers and sisters. He doesn't force us to bow down in his presence, forbid us to say nasty things about him, starve us to death or anything like that. So, how could the Pope, of all people, even consider President Bush to be the Antichrist?

While there is no question that the aforementioned men and countless others have etched the essence of their evil into existence for all eternity to gasp in horror, two questions come to mind. The first question, what is the extent of this person's power and influence? The potential magnitude of his evil doings? The second question, how conspicuous is the evil doing?

Pervasive evil is never apparent right away. In fact, many of these men charmed themselves into power, but it didn't take long for the people governed by these egregiously evil men to realize how egregiously evil they were. With the exception of Adolf Hitler, in modern history, the command these men had over others was limited to the country or nation they ruled. Their ability or capacity to perform or act effectively did not extend past their own borders for the most part.

In contrast, President Bush's power far exceeds the fifty states he was elected to lead. In addition to spreading his idea of "freedom" and "democracy" across the oil-enriched part of the globe, the President has taken it upon himself to increase the authority of the Executive Branch as much as possible. Although, the President has made some bold statements regarding his authority, he mostly operates under the radar, circumventing laws and expanding presidential power subversively, using signing statements, instead of the veto, for example.

President Bush, unlike other evildoers, wants "we the people", at least "we the people" who matter - those with any type of political clout - to live it up, have a good time, and shop until we drop. Suffering is the last thing he wants "his" people, the ones who matter, to associate with him.

And, that's the way it "appears" to most of us. If anything, President Bush may have made some mistakes, however, he was only doing his best to keep us safe and out of trouble. Maybe Bush is not the bulb with the highest wattage readily perceived by the eye, but the man's heart is in the right place. Right? Well, how about, does it exist in the first place? None of the evidence thus far suggests that President Bush has a heart.

Keep in mind, the worst kind of enemy is the deceitful kind who operates in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way, but in actuality, is committing atrocities that appear to be the fault of someone or something else, and all the while, laying the groundwork for that which causes harm, misfortune, and destruction to become infectious and spread sort of like a cancer or disease, without marked symptoms, but ready to become active upon the slightest unavoidable change.

The seeds have been sown, and the harm, misfortune, and destruction have more than started to spread; it's just that it hasn't spread to the people who matter, us. An infinitesimally small part of our population, our soldiers, and their families, have box seats to witness and feel the horror that is taking place under this administration. Fortunately, for President Bush, most of the horror takes place in another world as far as we're concerned...another galaxy.

A much larger part of our population also suffers the effects of this Administration's actions directly, but have no voice...the poor, the "near poor", the uninsured...the segment of the population that "doesn't matter". This part of our population is growing at an alarming rate, however, and those of us who sit back in judgment, saying they brought it upon themselves may have to think twice as they find themselves joining the ranks of the marginalized.

Combine insidious with "all powerful" and the Pope's thinking starts to make a little bit of sense. Going to war with Iraq; overturning habeas corpus; authorizing and encouraging torture; domestic spying; imprisoning over 2500 children, held since 2001 as “enemy combatants”; Katrina; denying American children health care; expanding the gap ever wider between the haves and the have not’s; simultaneously cutting funding for veterans while cutting taxes on our wealthiest citizens; his callous attitude toward capital punishment...even his AIDS plan, President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is duplicitous.

Consider this quote from President Bush's speech in November of 2001:

"This new enemy seeks to destroy our freedom and impose its views.

What are we doing over in Iraq? Our idea of freedom may not be the same as another nation...what right do we have to destroy their way of life to impose our views of freedom, democracy?

We value life; the terrorists ruthlessly destroy it.

Is sending young "men" and "women", barely out of school, over to fight a war, based on lies and greed, that is certain to either kill them, injure them beyond repair or psychologically damage them, valuing life? Is killing and injuring thousands upon thousands of innocent civilians, including children, valuing life? Is holding the record for executing the most people as Governor valuing life? Is smirking while commenting on ordering a person to death valuing life? Is letting a bunch of people drown just because they don't happen to have the right color skin, and the status and wealth of white suburban America valuing life?

We value education; the terrorists do not believe women should be educated or should have health care, or should leave their homes. We value the right to speak our minds; for the terrorists, free expression can be grounds for execution. We respect people of all faiths and welcome the free practice of religion; our enemy wants to dictate how to think and how to worship even to their fellow Muslims.

I guess No Child Left Behind is an example of the way we value education, education for the sons and daughters of the people who can afford affluent surroundings, that is. Our system of school finance is one of the most unequal among industrialized nations, having major consequences for the educational achievement of students from low-income families and "No Child Left Behind" reinforces that 100%.

This enemy tries to hide behind a peaceful faith. But those who celebrate the murder of innocent men, women, and children have no religion, have no conscience, and have no mercy.We wage a war to save civilization, itself. We did not seek it, but we must fight it -- and we will prevail."

Aha! "Celebrate" is the key word here. President Bush doesn't celebrate the murder of innocence, in public. President Bush just doesn't give a damn. He's completely indifferent.

"Indifference elicits no response. Indifference is not a response. Indifference is not a beginning; it is an end. And, therefore, indifference is always the friend of the enemy, for it benefits the aggressor -- never his victim, whose pain is magnified when he or she feels forgotten. The political prisoner in his cell, the hungry children, the homeless refugees -- not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering them a spark of hope is to exile them from human memory. And in denying their humanity, we betray our own.
[...]
The end of evil and the notion of redemption begins when indifference ends."-- Elie Wiesel

Well, I'm not convinced President Bush is or isn't the Antichrist because I wouldn't know the Antichrist if I tripped over him, however, I understand why Pope John Paul II wondered whether President Bush may indeed be the Antichrist. He may not be the devil or Lucifer or born of a jackel, but he stands for everything Christ condemned and brutally destroys everything Christ epitomized. I'd call that Anti-Christ, wouldn't you?