Monday, April 24, 2006

Bush and the almighty. Frik gets all religious on you.

President Bush (warning: that link is to whitehouse.gov, click at your own risk) gave a talk today in Orange County California. There were a couple of things he said that really caught my attention.
I based a lot of my foreign policy decisions on some things that I think are true. One, I believe there's an Almighty, and secondly, I believe one of the great gifts of the Almighty is the desire in everybody's soul, regardless of what you look like or where you live, to be free. I believe liberty is universal. I believe people want to be free. And I know that democracies do not war with each other. And I know that the best way to defeat the enemy, the best way to defeat their ability to exploit hopelessness and despair is to give people a chance to live in a free society.
Should it not concern those of us who are sane that George Bush is determining to go to war because of his perception of the Almighty? Looking through the above quote there are several times that Bush prefaces a notion with the words "I believe". What if he is wrong?

History shows us that if George is proven to be wrong that no amount of evidence will sway his view. Let us consider then the consequences of the possibility that President Bush is wrong but dogmatically refuses to be swayed from his incorrect view of the will of the Almighty.

Whenever I describe mans conception of God I like to use the example of the ant on the airport tarmac who happens upon a 747. Now to this ant, that plane is massively powerful, extremely noisy, and could destroy his entire world with no effort whatsoever. That plane is eternal to the ant who will live for a few days and then pass on, while the generations of ants awareness of the 747 remains as it seemingly always has been and always will be. The ant understands the plane only insofar as a brain the size of a pin point will allow his perception to extend. So despite the truths the ant thinks it knows about that plane, the ant is far far far from truly understanding the workings of the jet. That ant has no conception of the mechanics or the economics of the monstrosity it encounters.

To me, mankinds understanding of God can be seen in the analogy of the airplane and the ant. We may think we know, but there is just no way that we ever truly will know the ways of God in our current state. I for one am certain that there will be an enlightenment at some point in all of our existences and when that point comes I can't help but think we will be amazed at the lack of understanding we carried on with in our time on Earth.

So with my belief that humans have no way of truly knowing the nature of God comes a very healthy distrust in those humans who claim to know Gods will. To me, all one can do is do the best you can do to be a good person and the rest will have to sort itself out. But there are those who truly believe they have a pipeline to the will of God, and now it seems one of those delusionals is our commander in chief.

I was raised the son of an Assemblies of God minister so I am very familiar with the apocalyptic traditions of American Protestantism. I find it particularly worrisome that a man who thinks he understands the will of the Almighty has the power to unleash the very type of scenario envisioned in Revelations. What is to stop him if he truly believes that it is Gods will, and he is the servant of the Almighty? Indeed all the recent trials and tribulations of the administration may very well fit with this view of the world. Revelations clearly predicts the persecution of true Christians during the end times. It may be that Bush would see his troubles as nothing more than further proof of his role in doing the work of God.

With the news that the administration is considering a nuclear first strike on Iran, the changing of policy under this administration from nuclear use only in response to an attack to the possibility of 1st use, the Presidents oft stated belief that he is carrying forth the will of God, and the inability of the President to consider that he may be mistaken, my worry meter arrow has gone past the red zone.

I find it interesting the President Bush focuses on the gift of the Almighty to mankind being an inner craving for freedom. There is one overriding drive that all of mankind holds above any other desire, and that is the desire to live. I have no doubt that mankind wishes to live in freedom, but has our President forgotten the whole live part of that equation? I believe it is the condition of humans to desire to live peacefully, and that the desire for a particular form of government is secondary in most peoples consideration. I wonder at the efficacy of our moral standing if we are more than willing to apply the words of Patrick Henry to nations half the world away, and give them liberty while raining death on them. Henry's clarion call was a statement of how he felt about himself, not what he believed ought to be our policy to other nations.

Comments:
"I find it interesting that President Bush focuses on the gift of the Almighty to mankind being an inner craving for freedom. There is one overriding drive that all of mankind holds above any other desire, and that is the desire to live."-Frik

Bush is right to a degree. We humans are a bit stubbornly stuck on the whole idea of making our own decisions in life. A competent adult after all, should be treated as such.

True freedom gives you the choice of giving your life for it, risking your life for it, taking a small risk to your safety for it, merely choosing freedom, or freely giving yourself to the authoritarian of your choice. Freedom does not give you the option to remove the freedom of others by forcing your preferred lifestyle, government choice,religion, or what risk to life you take in regard to freedom on them. Bush is no more entitled to force his view of the Almighty on anyone any more than the Taliban, atheists, or religious right.

All that said, this arguement of life over freedom is troubling.
What of those willing to risk their lives to break free of tyranny? Not everyone is a Patrick Henry but, I bet there are Patrick Henrys here in the US, in Iraq, in Iran, and all over the world. Although it was not my reason for supporting the Iraq invasion, I find it honorable to aid those seeking freedom. During our American Revolution the French probably had a larger agenda that went above freeing us from the King of England. None the less, I am thankful to the god I choose to worship for it!

I'm glad Bush has a love and respect for freedom. Unfortunately, I wish he'd apply it here at home. What good is a thriving economy if you don't have a right to earned property? The Republican Supreme Court really hurt us with Kelo vs. New London. What about privacy or the freedom not to house British troops in your home. British troops spying on Colonialist from their homes, or FISA abusers in our homes via phone or internet. What's the difference?

In a perfect world I believe in open borders but, that perfect world does not include a socialistic society that forces me to pay for healthcare, education, law enforcement, housing, and income support to every immigrant lucky to make it here! If Bush removes this income theft and tightly screens for terrorists, he can have his damn amnesty. Until then, keep the borders closed and allow only legal immigration.

What about patients with glaucoma or cancer? Though I view smoking marijuana as normally a bad "choice", I see no reason to deny some THC to those in agony. I don't see where Bush, the FDA, and War on Drugs find the moral justification for making these people suffer needlessly. Where is their freedom to pursue happiness? Go blind from Glaucoma because Bush is offended?

As competent adults we are entitled to suffer our failures, learn from our failures, and profit from our success without fear. Recreational marijauna use is a bad decison to make because, informed decisions are harder to come by. Pot smoking interferes with memory and self-motivation. When the Bush team, any other administration, or the Supreme Court eats away at your right to live your life, I want you to REMEMBER! I want you to be able to motivate yourself to the voting booth. I want you to remember and motivate so, that you might stand a chance in communicating this theft of freedom to other voters. If you still choose to enhale or try to if you're Clinton, that is your choice as far as I go. So long as your drug use places no risk of injury to my rights, it is your life.....not mine and not Bush's. By the way, not interfereing with my rights includes not forcing me to pay taxes in order to subsidize your drug treatment or welfare check if you can't get off your butt to find a job. Logically I would think Bush would be in favor of everyone getting high. It would makes us all oblivious sheep gelling out and grazing on our munchies while the government of the day takes everything else dear.

I like how Bush claims that freedom should be championed and that he's willing to fight for it. My problem is that I'm having problems believing.
 
If he does think that he and god are chatting, that to me tells me he is insane.
If he's bs-ing about his faith, and I hope for all our sakes that he is, then it's just another in his long chain of lies.

Now if he believes with all his heart that god wants him to invade a country and kill thousands of people, all because of a lie, then that's not a god talking to him, that's a demon.

People who hear the voices of demons are usually treated in a mental health ward.
 
I tell anyone that will listen that if bush is serious about purging the rotten adivsors from his staff, this "god" he's been listening too has got to go. Thats the fella that told him to invade Irag, or so he has reported.
 
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