The theocon weakness and James Watt

The Washington Post has a new op-ed peice by Reagan ex-Department of Interior head, James Watts. It reveals the Theocon weakness to activism by religious liberals.

Ahhhhh James Watt famous for claiming "The Beach Boys" attracted the wrong element.

and these famous quotes:

"I do not know how many future generations we can count on before the Lord returns."
--James Watt, February 5, 1981

"We have every kind of mix you can have. I have a black, I have a woman, two Jews and a cripple."
--James Watt, September 21, 1983
http://ruthlessreviews.com/top10/10bigpricks.html

"We will mine more, drill more, cut more timber."
--Secretary of the Interior James Watt

"A left-wing cult dedicated to bringing down the type of government I believe in."
--James Watt describing environmentalists
http://www.geocities.com/thereaganyears/environment.htm

His articles is timely. It reminds us that today's toxic combination of the religious right and corporationalism (facism) is merely the mature fruit of seeds planted by Ronald Reagan.

The religious left's political operatives have mounted a shrill attack on a significant portion of the Christian community. Four out of five evangelical Christians supported President Bush in 2004 -- a third of all ballots cast for him, according to the Pew Research Center. Factor in Catholics and members of other conservative religious communities and it's clear that the religious right is the largest voting bloc in today's Republican Party.

The religious left took note. Political opportunists in its ranks sought a wedge issue to weaken the GOP's coalition of Jews, Catholics and evangelicals and shatter its electoral majority. They passed over obvious headliners and landed on a curious but cunning choice: the environment. Those leading the charge are effective advocates: LBJ alumnus Bill Moyers of PBS fame, members of the National Council of Churches USA and liberal theologians who claim a moral superiority to other people of faith.

Their tactics are familiar. I encountered them more than 20 years ago as President Reagan's secretary of the interior, when I clashed with extreme environmental groups adept at taking out of context -- or in some cases creating -- statements that, once twisted, were attributed to me as if they were my religious views.

">http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/20/AR2005052001333.html

The article tells us something more important, however, that the Christian left hurts them.  That is way they react so violently. Joan Chittister, Bill Moyers, Waller, and like minded liberal religious folks may be our best warriors against the religious right.

•  Tip Jap N/t

  by mollyd on Sat May 21, 2005 at 09:55:26 AM PDT

•  Early Activism

  The first thing I did that approached activism was when I was twelve I marched at a protest against a speech James Watt gave in Tucson.

  Sample signs:

  We know Watt's wrong!

  How much power does it take to destroy the environment? One Watt.

  His millenialist views painted everything.  He seriously felt like we were the last generation, so lets get while the getting is good.  Makes you wonder what W's long range views are...

  by tedski on Sat May 21, 2005 at 10:11:05 AM PDT

•  Just As Whacko Back Then Too...

  These Watt comments remind us of how whacko the GOP was even back then.  The current nuts in the GOP aren't a new phenomenon.  

  by npb7768 on Sat May 21, 2005 at 10:27:27 AM PDT

•  Good point

  Moyers et al have been fronting this fight for several decades.

  by TeresaInPa on Sat May 21, 2005 at 10:27:54 AM PDT

•  Watt: how many future generations?

  while I'm very much not a fan of Watt, he does make an interesting study of conflicts between different christian attitudes regarding the environment.

  a couple of Watt quotes:
  My responsibility is to follow the Scriptures which call upon us to occupy the land until Jesus returns.
  -- James Watt, The Washington Post, may 24, 1981

  I don't know how many future generations we can count on until the Lord returns.
  -- James Watt, to a Congressional committee in 1981, quoted from "A Brief History of the Apocalypse"

  the second quote is a particularly difficult one--it looks very damning, but it can be read from an imminent 2nd coming view (jesus will be back soon, so the environment doesn't matter) or from a christian stewardship view (we don't know when jesus will return, so it's our duty to preserve the environment)

  that being said, Watt was a disaster as Sec. of Interior--but looking into him and his worldview can provide insights into different aspects of christian thought regarding the environment.  I found the discussions between Watt and Patricia Limerick below very interesting (sorry I couldn't find a more in-depth article)

  interesting watt article on talks between him and historian Patricia Nelson Limerick @ U of Colorado here:

  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1677958

  replies to a Grist article on christian dominionist vs. christian stewardship theories on the environment (with link to the original article):

  http://www.grist.org/etc/letters/2005/01/21/letters-godly/

  by benchcoat on Sat May 21, 2005 at 10:54:24 AM PDT