Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Puritans and Neocons
Perhaps the most terrifying aspect of W's election is the degree to which the credit for his victory is going to the Christian right wing. These are people, millions of them, who will vote for an administration that will rob them and their children blind - as long as we keep the gays from getting married. People for whom death is too good for jailbirds, Arabs and even our own soldiers - as long as we don't donate a handful of cells to scientific research. People who can't admit to evolution, people with a seriously delusional view of the world.
In today's Guardian (UK), George Monbiot has some fascinating observations about the Bush administration's underpinning ideology. He takes us all the way back to the 1630's and English Puritans to explore the roots of their worldview. His observations concerning the economic ramifications of the Reformation say a lot about the modern United States and our obsession with Christian religion in our political life.
Monbiot writes:
"Puritanism was primarily the religion of the new commercial classes. It attracted traders, money lenders, bankers and industrialists. Calvin had given them what the old order could not: a theological justification of commerce. Capitalism, in his teachings, was not unchristian, but could be used for the glorification of God. From his doctrine of individual purification, the late Puritans forged a new theology. "
He draws a keen conclusion that should be a warning for those on the left who believe that capturing the "morals" vote is the key to achieving elected office:
"So why has this ideology resurfaced in 2004? Because it has to. The enrichment of the elite and impoverishment of the lower classes requires a justifying ideology if it is to be sustained. In the US this ideology has to be a religious one. Bush's government is forced back to the doctrines of Puritanism as an historical necessity"
The ideology of Christian Puritanism is ideally suited to the American mindset, and it cannot be coopted. It must be destroyed if we are to save our society and the Earth it threatens.
In today's Guardian (UK), George Monbiot has some fascinating observations about the Bush administration's underpinning ideology. He takes us all the way back to the 1630's and English Puritans to explore the roots of their worldview. His observations concerning the economic ramifications of the Reformation say a lot about the modern United States and our obsession with Christian religion in our political life.
Monbiot writes:
"Puritanism was primarily the religion of the new commercial classes. It attracted traders, money lenders, bankers and industrialists. Calvin had given them what the old order could not: a theological justification of commerce. Capitalism, in his teachings, was not unchristian, but could be used for the glorification of God. From his doctrine of individual purification, the late Puritans forged a new theology. "
He draws a keen conclusion that should be a warning for those on the left who believe that capturing the "morals" vote is the key to achieving elected office:
"So why has this ideology resurfaced in 2004? Because it has to. The enrichment of the elite and impoverishment of the lower classes requires a justifying ideology if it is to be sustained. In the US this ideology has to be a religious one. Bush's government is forced back to the doctrines of Puritanism as an historical necessity"
The ideology of Christian Puritanism is ideally suited to the American mindset, and it cannot be coopted. It must be destroyed if we are to save our society and the Earth it threatens.
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