The Weird Mental Illness of Consumerism

Rampant consumerism has become the cornerstone of the post-industrial age, and the ever-growing purchasing and consumption of material possessions has become a significant measure of our lives. We consume goods and services as a means to feel good about ourselves,  however, after that brief high that most of us get after acquiring that new car, computer, clothing, etc., the opposite occurs, and we're left feeling more empty than ever.  This desire for, and acquisition of non-essential products is only a temporary "fix", as we try to fill a void that can never be filled with gadgets, "money" and bling, try as we might..

Has our insatiable appetite driven us into “the jaws of the beast?”

“The American economy, having reached the point where its technology was capable of satisfying basic needs, now relied on the creation of new consumer demands--on convincing people to buy goods for which they are unaware of any need until the need is forcibly brought to their attention by mass media." -- Christopher Lasch, The Culture of Narcissism

“As a religion, consumerism is even more powerful than scientism, and its influence holds sway in many circles that are antagonistic or indifferent to science. We might characterize the religion as follows. Its god is economic growth for its own sake; its priests are the public policy makers who provide access to growth; its evangelists are the advertisers who display the products of growth and try to convice us that we cannot be happy without them; its church is the shopping mall. Its primary creeds are “bigger is better” and “more is better” and “faster is better” and “you can have it all.” Its doctrine of creation is that the earth is real estate to be bought and sold in the marketplace. Its doctrine of human existence is that we are skin encapsulated egos cut off from the world by the boundaries of our skin. And its doctrine of salvation is that we are saved – or made whole – not by grace through faith as Christians claim, or by wisdom through letting go as Buddhists claim, but by appearance, affluence, and marketable achievement." -- Dr. Jay McDaniel

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The Resignation of the Pope and the New World Order.

Theories abound now that the first pope, in six hundred years is resigning his office. One of these theories includes the "Prophecy of the Popes" which is attributed to St. Malachy, an Irish archbishop who was canonized a saint in 1190, In his predication, dated 1139, Malachy prophesied that there would be 112 more popes, and Benedict is supposedly the 111th pope. The Prophecy offers brief descriptions about each pope, and some of them align with reality in some way. For example, Benedict is apparently denoted as the "Glory of the Olive," and the Olivetans are affiliated with Benedictine Order. The prophecy stops at the 112th pope ending with a cryptic warning the last pope being a false prophet.

What does this have to do with a new world order? Well, regardless of your belief system, you have to admit the global impact of this event. The Holy See has existed for almost two-thousand years, whereas Vatican City came into existence in 1929, giving the Catholic Church two distinct identities, and the power to switch from one, the leader of a global religion to the other, the head of state, a state that has diplomatic relations with 170 countries. This is important because a one world government needs a one world religion, and the Vatican, over the last fifty plus years started to incorporate the concept of pantheistic monism, the belief that everything is united, and within this belief system there is no room for the individual, perfect for a collectivist New World Order. Believe it or not, this worldview that claims an alien savior, replacing Jesus Christ with a cosmic christ--think Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a mystical Dawinist--is making inroads all over the Christian map.

Remember, collectivism is that concept where individuals are considered discardable, and/or disposable...that the group is more important and the ultimate group, of course, is the state. The state is the all-important unit of society and citizens exist to serve the state.

So, this could possibly mark the end of an old order, and the beginning of a "New World Order." Pope Benedict did profess his belief in a World Political Authority, or New World Order which is ironic, indeed, since the New World Order seems to promote international God-less Common Law Courts.

The late Archbishop Paul Marcinkus, an American prelate who headed the Vatican bank at the time, was charged as an accessory to fraudulent bankruptcy in the scandal, but Italy's Constitutional Court eventually backed the Vatican in ruling that under Vatican-Italian treaties Marcinkus had immunity from Italian prosecution. Marcinkus long asserted his innocence and died in 2006..

In Samuel Zane Batten  book, “The New World Order”, published in 1919, he speaks of the “old order passes from view” and the “new world rises upon our vision.”  Under the cloak of Christianity, he speaks of a new world rising and advocates social control over all the people and all of the resources. He declares a “world patriotism” must be created and it must be a religious faith. “The only alternative is World Federation...with a world parliament, and international court, and an international police force.” In other words, he promotes a World Federation with a World Parliament, and International Court and a global police force.

In Batten’s work, some of its goals are as follows:

• Community: the danger an loss in crime and degeneracy. The determination to make community life safe, sanitary, wholesome, and moral.
• Industrial: the disappearance of class distinctions, and the solidarity of all interests in the economic process.
• National: the conception of the nation’s welfare as the supreme concern with the policy that everything shall contribute to this end, and every person must do some useful work.
• International: the creation of an international mind with a world consciousness and a world patriotism. The destruction of every arbitrary power that can separately and of its single choice disturb the peace of the world.

Keep in mind, Samuel Zane Batten’s book arrived decades before the Council on Foreign Relations, the Trilateral Commission, and the Bilderberg Group. It arrived decades before H. G. Wells’ “The New World Order” and decades before Carroll Quigley’s “Tragedy and Hope: A History of the World in Our Time.” Moreover, over the last hundred years, more than a few people in positions of power have spoken of this New World Order.

Here are a few:

“These are some of the reasons pressing us to lead vigorously toward the true building of New World Order.” -- Nelson Rockefeller

"The world that maybe some people dreamt of back at that conference back in Bournemouth, when it looked as if history would end that liberal democracy would triumph, that free market economics would slowly progress and we would have a New World Order." -- David Cameron, Oxford graduate, Downing Street banker, UK party conservative

“And together they helped to create… were the principle leaders …a New World Order and a winning strategy in the Cold War.-- John Kerry, Massachusetts senator, Chairman of the Senate committee, United Nations lawyer, and now Secretary of State

“We are part of a New World Order and as the recently departed Admiral J. Crowe once said, it’s long on new and short on order.-- Michael Mullen, Chief of Naval Operations, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and NATO commander.

“Walter Isaacson wrote a wonderful book about some of the wise men who helped shape the New World Order following the Second World War.-- Paul Wolfowitz, Deputy Secretary of Defense, author of the Wolfowitz Doctrine, and 10th President of the World Bank

“As we devise a way forward in Iraq, I urge the international community to embrace its responsibility for creating that New World Order, a New World Order based on collective action.” -- Steny Hoyer, Maryland Congressman, House Majority Leader,

“The Transatlantic Partnership was never just the foundation of security, it was the foundation of our way of life. It was forged in experience of the most bitter and anguished kind. Out of it came a new Europe, a New World Order, a new consensus on how life should and could be lived.” -- Tony Blair, former leader of the Labor Party, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Senior Adviser to JP Morgan

“... and just like that it was gone. It was a New World Order. That’s what President H. Bush said. Harvard historian Francis Fukuyama pronounced…the end of history.” -- Tony Blair, former leader of the Labor Party, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Senior Adviser to JP Morgan Chase -- Wesley Clark, Rhodes Scholar, West Point Valedictorian, Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO

“The New World Order which now has been called by some the New World Disorder and by some of a more liberal persuasion the taking over of the world by the Council of Foreign Relations, the Trilateral Commission and the U.N. to put us all into slavery. –Brent Scowcroft

“Looking at the subtitle this morning, Are We Ready For the New World Order? Gives me something of the shudders, that phrase New World Order I’m afraid I’m partly responsible for resurrecting. To me, what that symbolized was perhaps a fundamental change in the character, character of our response to national security issues.” -- Brent Scowcroft, former Vice Chairman of Kissinger and Assoc. and former National Security Adviser under both Ford and Bush Sr.

“Delegates to international organizations, public officials, gentlemen of the press, teachers and educators: All of you must realize you have your part to play in the construction of a New World Order." -- Pope Paul VI

“I mean, we’re talking a New World Order at Georgetown, and we’d like to be very much a part of it and continue to live." – Peter Krogh, Dean, School of Foreign Services.

“This is a world that is likely to be dominated in the near future, and perhaps longer by the gulf War and New World Order, which is the buzz word of the moment. --Maurice East, Dean, George Washington School of International Affairs

“So the secret of a New World Order…and at that point it’s just a slogan but it does have some historical background in terms that orders have succeeded each other over time the secret of this is to learn how to use coalitions. We are effective in the United Nations.” – Joseph Nye, Harvard University

“I find the new term, New World Order very revolting, and not only historically but politically today. I think Hodding is absolutely right and the actions of the administration just after the annunciation of the New World Order put the lie to the fact there is any real substance behind what they say is New World Order. The first act of the New World Order was a.) to make war and then b.) was to sell arms all over again.” -- Rep. Lawrence Smith, D-FL

George H.W. Bush would campaign for a New Wolrd Order like no other president before him. He would openly discuss it in his State of the Union address.

“What is at stake is more than one small country. It is a big idea: a New World Order where diverse nations are drawn together in common cause to achieve the universal aspirations of mankind“

“With few exceptions, the world now stands as one. A year-and-a-half ago, in Germany I said that our goal was a Europe whole and free. Tonight, Germany is united. Europe has become whole and free…The world can therefore seize this opportunity to fulfill the long held promise of a New World Order. We can find meaning and reward by serving some higher purpose than ourselves. A shining purpose: the illumination of a thousand points of light.”

George H.W. Bush would actually declare the birth of the New World Order at a commencement speech at Maxwell Air Force Base.

“And that’s why I wanted to speak to you today about the new world taking shape around us, about the prospects of a New World Order now within our reach. In the coming weeks, I’ll be talking in some detail about the possibility of a New World Order emerging after the Cold War, but today I want to discuss another aspect of that Order…You see, as the Cold War drew to an end, we saw the possibilities of a New Order in which nations work together. It refers to new ways of working with other nations to deter aggression and to achieve stability. As old threats recede, new threats emerg. The quest for the New World Order is in part a challenge to keep the dangers of disorder at bay. We must build on the successes of Desert Storm to give new shape and momentum to this New World Order. Only when this transformation is complete will we be able to take full measure of the opportunities presented by this new and involving World Order."

"The New World Order is really a tool for addressing a new world of possibilities. This Order gains its mission and shape, not just from shared interests, but from shared ideals.”

Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. – Romans 1:22-23

Links:

Prosecutors: Vatican bank defying laundering laws

The Vatican bank was famously implicated in a scandal over the collapse of the Banco Ambrosiano in the 1980s in one of Italy's largest fraud cases.

Roberto Calvi, the head of Banco Ambrosiano, was found hanging from Blackfriars Bridge in London in 1982 in circumstances that still remain mysterious.

London investigators first ruled that Calvi committed suicide, but his family pressed for further investigation. Eventually murder charges were filed against five defendants, including a major Mafia figure, and they were tried in Rome and acquitted in 2007.

Banco Ambrosiano collapsed following the disappearance of $1.3 billion in loans the bank had made to several dummy companies in Latin America. The Vatican had provided letters of credit for the loans.

While denying any wrongdoing, the Vatican bank agreed to pay $250 million to Ambrosiano's creditors.

The late Archbishop Paul Marcinkus, an American prelate who headed the Vatican bank at the time, was charged as an accessory to fraudulent bankruptcy in the scandal, but Italy's Constitutional Court eventually backed the Vatican in ruling that under Vatican-Italian treaties Marcinkus had immunity from Italian prosecution. Marcinkus long asserted his innocence and died in 2006.

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The Way of the Cross Co-opted By the Way of the Sword

Is there a single instance in all of Scripture where Jesus or even a follower of Jesus took up a sword to fight against another man? Oh yeah, once. Peter drew his sword, and Jesus told him to put it away. And didn't Jesus say things like, "turn the other cheek", and "love your enemy"? I do think He did.  Not exactly the actions and rhetoric of a hawk spouting the doctrine of preemptive military operations.

"And behold, one of those who were with Jesus reached and drew out his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. 52Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. 53“Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54“How then will the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must happen this way?” - Matthew 26:51

It's very clear that Jesus' life and teaching were in sharp contrast to the imperial language of war texts, yet, the militarization of Christianity marches on. Since 2004,  the U.S. Military endorsed special soldier bibles, complete with official U.S. military emblems from all four branches circulate as as the official religious text of the military, endorsing a profession that is completely antithetical to the teachings of Jesus. It's called the Holman Christian Standard Bible.

Following a request filed by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) under the Freedom of Information Act, the foundation discovered that the U.S. Military had given authorization to LifeWay Christian Resources, a subsidiary of the Southern Baptist Convention - the largest Baptist denomination in the world, in 2003 - allowing for reproduction of the emblems, an action that stood in direct violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Upon investigation, each branch of the military responded in succession with the notification that permission to use each branch’s imagery had been revoked.

This HCSB Military Bible contained material merging Evangelical symbolism and theology with national and military iconography and anthems. It also contained “quotations, prayers, and inspiration” from figures ranging from George Washington and President George W. Bush to various historical figures from each of the respective branches of the U.S. Armed Services. It is published by LifeWay Christian Resources’ Holman Bible Publishers, a subsidiary of the Evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist Bible Convention.

Official U.S. Military Emblems No Longer Allowed on Holman Military Bibles

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Are We Cultural Hostages to the Technotronic Era and the "New Age Movement"

If you don't know where you came from, it's hard to figure out where you are going, because you have no context. The same is true for concepts, religions, and beliefs to which you subscribe. What is their history?  Where did it come from?  As Aristotle once said, "If you would understand anything, observe its beginning and its development". In other words, knowledge of the past is a key to understanding the present, which brings me to the New Age Movement (NAM) What is it? Where did it come from? Why, all of a sudden, is there no escaping it?

Personally, as a Christian, or more specifically, a Roman Catholic, I am always questioning: What about the vast history of the world before Jesus? Why did He wait so long?   Was the Vatican infiltrated by the Romans after the fall of their empire? If so, how much of Christianity actually remains? What about the vast number of people who have never heard of Jesus? What happens to them? Was Jesus gay? Jesus said rich men have a very slim chance of going to heaven. Well, in comparison to the rest of the world (not the US), I am rich. What's in it for me? If I'm not going to Heaven (that question, right there, will probably send me straight to hell)?

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Poor Abe Had to Come Back and Do it All Over Again?

I don't think I want to believe in reincarnation. I mean, wasn't poor Abe punished enough the first time around?   Well, if JFK was Abe 2.0, at least his reflection was kinder and gentler the second time around.    Anyway, I thought some of the parallels were fascinating.

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God, Gold, and Guns, But Hold the Gay.

Amidst Glen Beck's tearful patriotic schtick, and his dehumanizing talk of cockroaches, rats, viruses and disease, in one of his "lessons", he told his audience about the "three G system" he cooked up for survival should the United States face collapse, and that consists: "God, Gold, and Guns".

The third one is Collapse. That's 'Get out of debt and save,' plus, 'Have a fruit cellar,' plus -- I like to call the "three G system" here for this -- it's, uh, God, Gold, and Guns.

Now personally, you might take God and put him as an umbrella over the whole thing. And then you got your gun and your gold down here too. But that's your choice. -- Glen Beck

However, as much as Glen's devoted to words that start with the letter 'G', it appears he's not to keen on one 'G' word: gay.  He "has surrounded himself with religious and secular figures who share a fervent opposition to the "homosexual agenda."Glenn Beck's anti-gay army of God

Alexander Zaitchik on his book "Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance"

"Right. Well, his more recent controversies are pretty well known. But even going back to the '80s and ’90s, he was known for a racist, sexist shtick. He famously, or infamously, called up the wife of a competing DJ in Phoenix in the mid-'80s and mocked her for having a miscarriage live on the air. He made fun of a guy named Malik Jones in New Haven, who was an unarmed black man shot by a white police officer, and it was quite a big police brutality case at the time. He went on air that week making fun of Jones, talking about how he used to smoke crack with his grandmother. Stuff like this. So, you know, this Glenn Beck that is so divisive today has been there the whole time. And the idea that he had this, you know, transformative experience when he became a Mormon and became a good guy and is this sort of moral beacon is just ludicrous."-- Alexander Zaitchik

Beck said "People don't recognize Obama's version of Christianity", nevertheless, gauging by the numbers that follow Glen Beck, too many people recognize his twisted version, a version that takes everything Jesus stood for, and transforms it to promote the only person who matters to Glen Beck, that is, Glen Beck.

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True Genius, No Evidence Needed.

The ultimate mystery of life is beyond our limited capacity to perceive. We cannot begin to comprehend the incredible vastness of what exists beyond our tiny planet, moreover, beyond our infinitesimally small lives, purely from a logical and reasonable point of view.

Fundamentalists like Richard Dawkins who basically calls anyone who believes in anything without scientific proof, an idiot, is as much a hypocrite as Christian fundamentalists like Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson and the like.

Having said that, I'll take an arrogant atheist over an arrogant Christian any day of the week, because twisting what Jesus said and what He lived, to get what you want, and then persecuting those who don't live up to that twisted "belief" system is far worse than not believing at all.

I am not an Opera fan and I've never heard of Klaus Nomi until now, but this hauntingly beautiful performance of Henry Purcell's "The Cold Song" from the English 17th century baroque opera King Arthur, is all the proof I need that there is far more to life than science can tell us. Unbeknownst to anyone watching, Klaus Nomi was very sick at this time (1982). He died of AIDS six-months later (1983).

From anTONYM2M2:

"Klaus had made an impact on new-wave music in the late 70's and was working to break into the pop mainstream just before he died. His first love however, was Opera.

In this video, Klaus sings Henry Purcell's strange aria The Cold Song from the English 17th century baroque opera King Arthur

The composer Henry Purcell died in 1695 from incurable T.B. aged 36, while in 1983 Klaus sadly died succumbing to complications due to Aids, aged 39. Both men were remarkably talented but died so young.


---------- Purcell's Cold Genius -----------

What power art thou, who from below
Hast made me rise unwillingly and slow
From beds of everlasting snow
See'st thou not ( how stiff )2) and wondrous old
Far unfit to bear the bitter cold,
I ( can scarcely move or draw my breath )2)
Let me, let me freeze again to death.3)

-------------------------------

The Lyrics to this old aria are strangely prophetic. Watching it now, knowing what a difficult time Klaus was having, just adds to its intensity and sadness."

Of course, trying to convey the genius of this man on a youtube video is like trying to give expression to Michelangelo on etch a sketch:

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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?

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