Plato's Playground
One of the blogs on my blogroll had a post recently making fun of Powerpoint by trying to turn the Gettysburg Address into a Powerpoint slide presentation. I couldn't help but notice that Lincoln did use the phrase "one nation under God" in his Gettysburg address and if that was its source and the intent in altering the Pledge of Allegiance was to echo Gettysburg, it makes sense that that phrase would precede the word "indivisible". While I'm not impressed by the historical accuracy of much of what is written about the Civil War, I'm still pretty sure that the Union won. But I'm not entirely certain that America in the Bush era has a clear idea of what precisely was determined in that outcome.
Banquo's Ghost---thanks for the info about "one nation under god" in the gettysburg address.
the problem isn't political leaders who are religious of course, it's when they attempt to incorporate into governance a religion that views and treats non-members of their sect as second or third class citizens, or, in the extreme, non-humans.
I've been looking at a speech Hitler delivered in Danzig in 1939, a few days after the 18 day blitzkrieg usually referred to as his "invasion" of Poland. I printed it out two years ago during the run-up to the "invasion" of Iraq as I wanted to compare Hitler's rhetoric with the arguments for war on offer from the Bush administration. What struck me about the speech was that it was so lucid, rational and conciliatory. Imagine for a moment, hypothetically, that Germany had won the first world war. Imagine that, because the U.S. allied itself with Britain and France in a losing cause, the terms of peace dictated that Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California would all be annexed to Mexico as thanks to Mexico for allying itself with Germany. The Americans living in those states would be allowed to stay, but they would all be subject to Mexican law. Their property would have been subject for twenty years to whatever laws the Mexicans might have devised to deal with foreigners in their midst. Imagine then that World War II began, not when Germany invaded Poland, but when the U.S. reasserted its claim to the American southwest.
My German speaking ancestors came from a part of present day Poland that had been called East Brandenburg for nearly two hundred years. The Germans had come there by invitation following the 30 Years War, a religious conflict between Catholics and Protestants, which had decimated the region, killing 80 per cent of the former inhabitants, many of whom had been of Ukrainian ancestry. The Poles claim to that region dated back to the time of the Norman Conquest as far as the Polish royal family was concerned, but Poles had never successfully occupied or governed that territory. Ceding it to Poland in the Treaty of Versailles was a calculated and quite deliberate insult to the German people.
"Danzig was to return to the Reich. An exterritorial road was to be built to East Prussia--at our expense of course. In return Poland was to receive the most extensive Free Port rights, and similar exterritorial access. I, on the other hand, on top of that, was prepared to guarantee the existing frontiers, hardly bearable as they were, and finally to let Poland participate in guaranteeing the safety of Slovakia. I cannot imagine what a state of mind the Polish Government was in when it rejected these proposals. I do know, however, that untold millions of Germans gave a sigh of relief because they were of the opinion that in making these proposals I had gone too far."
"Poland's reply was to order the first mobilization, immediately followed by ferocious terrorism. My request to the then Polish Foreign Minister to visit me in Berlin in order to discuss this question with me once more was rejected. Instead of coming to Berlin, he went to London!"
Adolf Hitler
Danzig, 1939
Hitler's crime lay in being neither of noble birth nor answerable to the ruling families
I got sliced.
Hitler's crime lay in being neither of noble birth nor answerable to the ruling families of the Prussian and Austro-Hungarian Empires. Both empires were defunct as the result of WWI, but the question was how defunct were they and what were the implications for the German speaking peoples in making the transition from monarchial empires to the modern nation-state. Christianity and pagan German folk spirits were a part of the rhetoric Hitler used to try to effect that transition, but the megalomania was not all his. Centuries of megalomania had gone into those empires. Hitler merely enabled or allowed the cultural and historical dynamics at work in the German-speaking world to take their course and he condensed it into a fairly narrow window of time. Calling it a "thousand year reich" was a good way to ensure that it only lasted about a decade.
It is indeed true that Germany got seriously screwed at Versailles and the humiliation and resentment felt by the German people was an essential ingredient in Hitler's rise to power.
What is screamingly strange and, in my view, particularly frightening about our present situation is the lack of any evident basis in reality for the persecution complex of the American religious right. They evidently feel oppressed, humiliated, angry, resentful. But why? They are citizens of the wealthiest and most powerful nation in history, have always been politically influential and presently control the government, are absolutely free to worship as they please and say whatever they want, to proselytize, to raise and spend money on religion and politics. But they are on a desperate quest for vengeance against the rest of the world for -- what exactly?
What is screamingly strange and, in my view, particularly frightening about our present situation is the lack of any evident basis in reality for the persecution complex of the American religious right. They evidently feel oppressed, humiliated, angry, resentful. But why?
I don't know why so many Americans abandoned pragmatism and common-sense secular humanism. I'm not sure have. I think the level of conservatism may be trumped up in recent polling and the last presidential election.
I do think that a small vocal gang feels as oppressed as you describe, and they felt that way long before September 11. All across the Bible Belt--the groundwork for this bizaare extremism began in the era of the Scopes monkey trial became stronger in response to the New Deal (pairing increased taxes with East Coast godlessness) on up through the 60's.
With the death of the Communist & Socialist oppostition to free market capitalism, the only boogeyman Rove and all can manipulate is secular humanism and the infidels of the East.
I used to spend a lot of time talking with well-intentioned white conservative christians about how they make a mistake in identifying themselves with the old testament Israelites, when who they need to recognize themselves as is the Egyptians. This message that WE are the oppressors, not the oppressed doesn't go over well at all.
Getting into the head of the White Christian Conservative, and really grasping their world view would allow you to either manipulate them terrifically -- as in Ralph Reed & Karl Rove-- or reach out and offer a worthy alternative-- like Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo.
I suppose American culture will only mature once the manipulation of symbols can be recognized as manipulation and poo pooed.
Well, maybe they aren't as numerous as they seem, but the Republicans in Congress evidently believe otherwise, they're just pandering to them more and more. They are evidently convinced that will get them all reelected.
I'm afraid I will never be able to grasp their world view, to me they just appear completely nuts. I don't even know where to begin trying to figure them out. I guess the first question is, why are people who call themselves Christians far more interested in the Old Testament -- and in particular, the oldest parts of it -- than the New? What is the appeal in the modern world of the vengeful, bloodthirsty, hate-filled and self-absorbed god of a bunch of pre-literate goat herders?
But I think you're right, they don't see themselves as the vengeful, bloodthirsty etc. etc sorts that you do. They see themselves as the victims. Perhaps why doesn't matter as much as what. Think victim, think shrill and angry victim...no, you're right, I don't get it either.
It's bizarre. Maybe delusions are more attractive than their present reality. There's so much knotted together here, macho, flag waving, Apple Pie Americana, mawkish sentimentality about who stepped on or descrated "our flag," rural vs. cosmopolitan world-view, flat earth vs. interconnectedness...Karl Rove and co. just deftly cut through that Gordion Knot, and then hung it round the neck of the Democrats.
Of course back in the 80's when politicians started to run from the word liberal we should have known we were heading into strange territory.
Okay, I'm going to be a bit more sympathetic now. Obviously the pace of change in the world today, including technology and scientific revelations with undeniable metaphysical implications, including discoveries in cosmology and biology, are just too much for some people. Change is disconcerting, frightening, challenging. It's far more comforting to cling to the past, to believe that the future is ordained and knowable, to cling to talismans that fend off the demons in the dark forest.
But instead of political leadership, we have pandering and exploitation of these immature, reactionary impulses.
"But instead of political leadership, we have pandering and exploitation of these immature, reactionary impulses."----cervantes
well put. one of the perils of democracy. we get demagogues instead of actual leaders. sooner or later though, reality gonna bite us in the ass--or another dark age, which is a very stark reality.
sooner or later though, reality gonna bite us in the ass--or another dark age, which is a very stark reality.
I often wake up in the morning and wonder, is this the day reality's going to bite back...or something to that effect.
Though sometimes reality doesn't bite back for many generations. Right now we should be paying back for the stuff our great great great grand parents failed to do. Makes one feel shamed about what our great great greart grand children may suffer on our account. But I hold to the hope that the sins can be expiated. That true peace is possible...still hunting for the large scale "how" though.
Philathetes has a terrific re-post on his sight concerning the manipulation of illusions for the benefit of the few. It ties in so well with what the dread pirate has posted here.
I made pretty much the same point there as I'd make here. We need to look deeply at what myths are being manipulated to create the imperiled sense which so many Christian conservatives are responding to.
How one gets down into the depth of mass hysteria and allays the fear, kills the demons or reveals that the named demons are not demons at all is difficult work.
i was a bit surprised at the back and forth between people who were really on the same side of the bigger picture
I'm feeling very down on the Capitalist system lately, and it occurs to me that someday, all the fighting and arguments between American liberals and conservatives are going to be laughable, when they see how all of (us) these folk for all their idealogical differences, are actually all on the same side of sucking dry every resource available and keeping those on the outside of the circle of wealth firmly on the outside. Liberals and Conservatives all buy their burglar alaems from the same dealers. The big picture and the little picture both are filled with sad irony.
Aleams was alarms. Anonymous was me. I have more similar rantings over on my blog...Happy Mother's Day you mothers....
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