Letters to the Editor
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I wish that patriotism could act as...
...a laxative to the people, rather than an opiate, because it is clear that many of the people are still more full of fuckin' shit than I'd figured they'd be after five years of war in Iraq.
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manos99
When people divide the world up into us and them, patriotism is a weapon with which to bludgeon people who do not conform to simplistic diatribes of demagogues.
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Free Pulpit and Free Pew Tradition Misunderstood
On 24 March 2008, zeuser wrote:
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"To me this is not about Rev. Wright, but about the judgement of someone who had to on some level agree with the reverend's comments. If Obama disagreed we would expect that he would use his judgement and decide to pray in another Church."
This comments reflects a lack of knowledge about the free church tradition that arose within Protestant Christianity.
This free church tradition is found in the United Church of Christ and in Unitarian Universalism -- both denominations have their roots in historic 17th century New England Congregationalism.
In the free church tradition, the speaker has the freedom to speak the truth as he or she sees it. The person sitting in the pew has the responsibility to test the words of the speaker against his or her own experience and knowledge.
Senator Obama isn't required to agree with the words that Rev. Wright spoke.
Rev. Wright isn't required to preach a message that everyone will agree with either.
For folks who attend church ... if you find yourself agreeing with everything the minister says, either there's one serious case of "group-think" or the minister is playing it safe and not challeging you to think and reflect on the world we live in and what ethical responsibilities we have to fix the problems we find.
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The problem is:
Passing puffed up pride in place of true patriotism is what landed many myopic Americans this endless war in Iraq. Pride is what preceeds the fall, and patriotism is a sense of national purpose, that binds us all. An Excess of ugly pride ain't no substitute true love of one's country.
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Can Anybody Guess What Happens to Religious Leaders Who Challenge the Status Quo?
Check out this blog post from a Unitarian Universalist minister -- imagine how the right-wing blogosphere would misquote and quote out of context a famous religious liberal from the past:
Water cooler conversation
http://www.danielharper.org/blog/?p=1241
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Hillary is well on her way to join Lieberman
To Distract from Videotaped Confirmation That Senator Clinton Lied on Multiple Occasions About Bosnian Landing, Campaign Goes Nuclear in Attack on Obama While Bill Continues to Praise McCain. We are Seeing the Birth of the Second Joe Lieberman. On Top of It, Senator Clinton a Week Late Attacks Obama on Jeremiah Wright in Interview with -- Get This -- Richard Mellon Scaife's Pittsburgh Tribune Review. Clinton is Going to Bring Down the Democratic Party.
http://buzzflash.com/
Hillary is now in bed with Scaife who funded Hillary's vast right wing conspiracy. Bill is now in bed with Rupert Murdoch. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
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thank you
Thank You for saying this. I am increasingly dismayed with the fact that Americans don't realize what an opportunity we have to finally truly deal with our countries issues. If we don't elect Barack we deserve what we get!
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thanks for a great column
You've hit the nail on the head. I had to ask my students today in class if the "shock" that supposedly ran through the nation was real or not, because it seems bizarre that anyone would be shocked by what Wright said. Somehow if you don't find his comments from the pulpit scandalous that means 1) you agree with every word he said and 2) you are a suicide bombing, terrorist lover.
The kind of attacks on people who dare to say, "Grow up. We live in a racially segregated society, so we shouldn't be shocked to discover that Blacks and whites don't see the world in the same manner," exhibited in some posts here are trashy, anti-intellectual bullying. They should be ignored, and the brouhaha over Rev. Wright seen for what it is--much ado about nothing.
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@ Christopher
You wrote ...
"Leaving out the "unforgivable sin" rhetoric, damn straight. Am I to understand we did bring 9-11 on ourselves? Is that what Salon in claiming? When did they take up the line of Jerry Falwell? Who in America is responsible? The gays? The hedonists? The capitalists? "
You made excellent points later in your post regarding the fundamentalist preachers who influence the republican candidates. I agree with you 100% that those jerks should be subject to the same scrutiny as Rev. Wright.
However, I think that you're completely missing the main point of Kamiya's editorial. I apologize if someone else has already said what I'm about to say, but I'm gonna say it anyway. There's a HUGE difference between saying that some actions of the American goverment - specifically in the field of foreign policy - contributed to some of the anger that culminated in 9/11, and in saying that we deserved it and brought it on ourselves. If you see a transcript of Rev. Wright's speech, it seems like the former was the point he was trying to make. Obviously, the terrorists who hijacked the airplanes are entirely responsible for their actions, which were horrible and inexcusible acts of brutality - that's not in dispute. That type of violence is never acceptable. However, anyone who totally denies that American foreign policy has contributed to some folks not liking us very much is burying his or her head in the proverbial sand.
Rev. Wright may have chosen his words a bit more carefully; the "chickens coming home to roost" analogy might not have been the best possible wording to convey his point. However, the point is at least worthy of consideration: while the US has done (and still does) an enormous amount of good in the world, there are some not-entirely-kooky reasons for people to be a bit unhappy with us. In fact, the link between American foreign policy and violence directed toward us is not in dispute. More than one of the perpetrators of said violence has specifically cited American foreign policy as a contributing factor. It's not unreasonable to examine these connections and allegations of (real or perceived) injustices.
Ok - no longer directed at Christopher....
It's infuriating that so may folks equate criticism of the government with being unpatriotic or not appreciating one's country. I love my country, as do most of these other posters. I just happen to think that our government has made some awful decisions, and that those decisions are now causing many people in other parts of the world to see us a big bully. It's precisely because I love my country that I want to see us get our act together and get back on the right track.
Criticism of our government does not make one unpatriotic. And in this same vein, criticism of the US's unwavering support for Israel (a huge complaint of some of the people who want to do us harm) does NOT make someone anti-Semitic. We have to figure out how to discuss these issues in a sane and rational manner without someone crying 'foul!' 'Racist!' 'Anti-Semite!', which is exactly what happens anytime someone powerful is at risk of appearing less-than-saintly.
Supporting bad governance and bad decisions out of blind patriotism is just plain stupid. That's the point.