America - The Great Theocracy?

[holeinboatoutatsea]

Friday, Mar. 12, 2004. Page 116
Moscow Times
Pin Heads
By Chris Floyd


One of the sticking points in crafting the just-signed "interim constitution" of the Pentagon cash cow formerly known as Iraq was the question of acknowledging Islam as the fundamental source of law. After much wrangling, a fudge was worked out that cites the Koran as a fundamental source of legal authority, with the proviso that no law can be passed that conflicts with Islam.

We in the enlightened West smile at such theocratic quibbling, of course: Imagine, national leaders insisting that a modern state be governed solely by divine authority! Governments guaranteeing the right of religious extremists to impose their views on society! What next -- debates about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin? Oh, those poor, ignorant barbarians in Babylon!

Well, wipe that smile off your face. For even now, the ignorant barbarians in Washington are pushing a law through Congress that would "acknowledge God as the sovereign source of law, liberty government" in the United States. What's more, it would forbid all legal challenges to government officials who use the power of the state to enforce their own view of "God's sovereign authority." Any judge who dared even hear such a challenge could be removed from office.

-more-

If anyone doubts the path this country is going, read this article.

http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2004/03/12/120.html

[ithacan]

www.TheocracyWatch.org

we're almost there. The GOP has been hijacked by the Religious Right, for the details check out this site: http://www.TheocracyWatch.org/

[holeinboatoutatsea]

3. hey

thanks. I'll look into it.

[burythehatchet]

1. My Ayatollah is bigger than your Ayatollah

The Christian Conservative movement really should consider a membership in Al Queda.

[MichaelUK]

2. That's fantastic

Just when I thought that the US might just improve its standard of education, this comes along. Now every religious bigot who happens to have kids and thinks "God's great and Evolution is a tool of Satan" will be pressuring their kid's schools to throw out Darwinian theory whilst stacking tons of snack food (which has approx 25% sugar in it) in their kid's guts and wondering why they have an obesity problem.

It's so funny it's actually sad.

[seemslikeadream]

4. This is one of my favorite from Floyd

Chris Floyd's Global Eye
Vanishing Act

....

The technology had a trial run in the 2002 mid-term elections. In Georgia, serviced by new Diebold systems, a popular Democratic governor and senator were both unseated in what the media called "amazing" upsets, with results showing vote swings of up to 16 percent from the last pre-ballot polls. In computerized Minnesota, former vice president Walter Mondale - a replacement for popular incumbent Paul Wellstone, who died in a plane crash days before the vote - was also defeated in a large last-second vote swing. Convenient "glitches" in Florida saw an untold number of votes intended for the Democratic candidate registering instead for Governor Jeb "L'il Brother" Bush. A Florida Democrat who lost a similarly "glitched" local election went to court to have the computers examined - but the case was thrown out by a judge who ruled that the innards of America's voting machines are the "trade secrets" of the private companies who make them.

Who's behind these private companies? It's hard to tell: the corporate lines - even the bloodlines - of these "competitors" are so intricately mixed. For example, at Diebold - whose corporate chief, Wally O'Dell, a top Bush fundraiser, has publicly committed himself to "delivering" his home state's votes to Bush next year - the election division is run by Bob Urosevich. Bob's brother, Todd, is a top executive at "rival" ES&S. The brothers were originally staked in the vote-count business by Howard Ahmanson, a member of the Council for National Policy, a right-wing "steering group" stacked with Bushist faithful.

Ahmanson is also one of the bagmen behind the extremist "Christian Reconstructionist" movement, which openly advocates a theocratic takeover of American democracy, placing the entire society under the "dominion" of "Christ the King." This "dominion" includes the death penalty for homosexuals, exclusion of citizenship for non-Christians, stoning of sinners and - we kid you not - slavery, "one of the most beneficent of Biblical laws."

Ahmanson also has major holdings in ES&S, whose former CEO is Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska. When Hagel ran for office, his own company counted the votes; needless to say, his initial victory was reported as "an amazing upset." Hagel still has a million-dollar stake in the parent company of ES&S. In Florida, Jeb Bush's first choice for a running mate in his 1998 gubernatorial race was ES&S lobbyist Sandra Mortham, who made a mint installing the machines that counted Jeb's votes.

http://www.sptimes.ru/archive/times/904/opinion/o_10419.htm

[hermetic]

5. Theocracy

I urge you to contact your representatives about these bills which call for using religious law as the basis for our country's laws, the Constitution Restoration Act, or H.R. 3799, and in the Senate as S. 2082.
It's nice that you put so much energy into posting on this board but if you don't let you elected officials know how you feel, well, it's just dust in the wind.
Oh, but don't bother writing to W. He doesn't read his e-mail.

[RoadRunner]

6. Hi enufalready!!

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[newyawker99]

8. Hi enufalready!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[BiggJawn]

9. What should we tell them?

This is one of those bills that is impossible to defend against. if you write your congresscitter against it, you're gonna come off as some anti-Christian whacko devil-worshipper.

I mean, WHO in their right mind can deny that this country is great because GAWD smiles on us. Step out in the sunshine. Don't you feel the warmth of his holy choppers beaming down on you as He cheeses His approval?
That's the mindset we're up against. "You either FOR us, or you AGAINST God, and he doesn't take prisoners" is how I recall one Evangelist putting it...

Stating that this is NOT what the founding Fathers intended is useless, because History has been re-written to the effect that they ALL were "Godly Christian Men" who founded this country on "Christian Principles".

HOW do you counter THAT?

BTW, welcome, and good first shot out of the barrel,enuf...

[JohnOneillsMemory]

11. Counter it with the 1st amendment. If you can find it.... n/t

[BiggJawn]

12. THAT was pretty lame.

Sounds like one of MY usual one-liners.

OK, so I have the First Ammendment here. Which part should I use to combat the Taliborn-Agains? the Seperation clause? That is under attack, and the fundies have THEIR interpretation, and I have mine.

Freedom of Speech? OK, but as we're seeing in the electronic media, the scope of what is considered "obscene" expands almost daily. How long before "Blasphemy" gets included in the "7 things you can't say on TV (or in print)"

I can quote the First Ammendment, and say "THIS (meaning the Domminion Bills) is NOT what our Founding Fathers intended this country to be!" and all I'll get in response is "Well, that's not what my Pastor says the Founding Fathers intended..."..

Maybe Ashcroft will let me keep my copy of the First Ammendment when he sends me to the re-education camps.

[RainDog]

13. I called my representative about it, Bigg Jawn

and I'm also in Indiana. He wrote back and said he supports the separation of church and state...he did not support this act.

So, yes, you can tell your congressperson that it is their job to uphold the separation of powers (legislative/judiciary) and the separation of church and state.

I also told my congrespeople that if the Talibornagain are not stopped NOW that there will be fighting in the streets, because I will not give up my country to a bunch of freaks who are no better than Islamic fundamentalists.

[BiggJawn]

16. Who's your congress-critter?

I'm in Buyer-land. He's not as rabid as McCloskey, but the Taliborn-again have his ear big time.

Steve Buyer, for those of you outside Indiana, made a bit of a name for himself at the start of GulfWarII by taking a "leave" from the House, supposedly because he was being "called up" again. (he was a Reservist in the JAG office during Poppy's War)
The Army denied calling him up. Looks like it was just a PR ploy.

I'll write him, I'll write Evan (even though the last time I did I was NOT nice) and I'll write Lugar.
This is gonna be an uphill battle. We will be painted as "Agents of Godless Anarchy" trying to stop the warm fuzzy Sunday-school "kindly Christian People" from their free worship. Never mind the 6-ton gorrila in the room wearing the hat labelled "Every head shall Bow, Every knee shall Bend"....

[coltman]

14. Hi enuf

welcome aboard

[OneBlueSky]

7. here's more information on this bill . . .

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0402/S00172.htm

[holeinboatoutatsea]

10. kick, thump, nudge

just because

[snippy]

15. Why are there no Christians among the leaders of the religious right?

I can not think of a single one who behaves in a Christian manner.

[hermetic]

17. Thanks

Thanks for the warm welcome. I do feel sorry for those of you whose elected officials are so unapproachable. You did remember to vote last time, right? I am fortunate to have Senators and a Congress woman who actually appear to be on "our" side and it does give me hope.