Doubtless the myriad ways in which Baghdad Bush has invoked "God," (thereby breaking the 2nd Commandment, but nevermind that, now) have been enumerated on Kos before. But I haven't seen it since I've been here, so this diary is a compendium of many (though not all, they are literally inumerable) statements by Baghdad Bush that evoke his Almighty in ways which variously highlight his
a) Thorough disregard for the Separation of church and State
b) Utter lack of comprehension -- or deliberate obtuseness -- regarding basic American history
c) Total dismissal of anyone who is not a Christian
d) Complete belief in the government's role of moral authority, as posited earlier in Slade's thought provoking Diary, titled Ideo-Logic:"
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2004/4/18/24355/0712#2
The body of the quotes (and the comments thereafter) were found at www.positiveatheism.org.
Taken in toto, it's pretty clear to me that if Bush gets his way, the United States of America will be a fascist state. Slade clarified it beautifully in his Diary, so I'll just steal his words: "...remember that fascism, although it's become a perjorative by virtue of its association with Nazi Germany, refers to very specific practices in terms of the role of government in economy and society. In a theoretical sense, fascism calls for an authoritarian, not totalitarian, government. The distinction is significant."
And guess who the Authoritarian Government answers to in George W. Bush's vision of America's future? Yup.
Before you embark on this harrowing journey through the mind of a Pseudo-Christian, let me give you his own disclaimer:
"There's Adam Clymer, major league asshole from The New York Times."
-- George W. Bush, to running mate Dick Cheney, who replied, "Oh, yeah, big time," at a campaign rally in Naperville, Illinios: both were unaware that the podium microphone was on. September 4, 2000.
(To be fair, Karen Hughes, the communications director for the Bush campaign said, "It was meant to be a whispered aside to his running mate. It was not intended to be a public comment.")
"God told me to strike at al Qaida and I struck them, and then he instructed me to strike at Saddam, which I did, and now I am determined to solve the problem in the Middle East. If you help me I will act, and if not, the elections will come and I will have to focus on them."
-- George W. Bush, according to Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, from minutes acquired by Haaretz from cease-fire negotiations between Abbas and faction leaders from the Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular and Democratic Fronts (circa June, 2003).
"To date, we've arrested or otherwise dealt with many key commanders of al Qaeda.... All told, more than 3,000 suspected terrorists have been arrested in many countries. Many others have met a different fate. Let's put it this way -- they are no longer a problem to the United States and our friends and allies. [Applause.]"
-- George W. Bush, State of the Union message (February 4, 2003).
"Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."
-- George W. Bush, echoing the either-or, black-and-white thinking practiced by the Jesus character of the Christian Gospel stories ("He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." -- Matthew 12:30) and thereby leaving room for no other options, in his September 20, 2001.
"These demands are not open to negotiation or discussion."
-- George W. Bush, in his "war whoop" speech to Congress, September 20, 2001.)
"[T]o give law enforcement the additional tools it needs to track down terror here at home."
-- George W. Bush, promising to chisel away at our most cherished freedoms, in his "war whoop" speech to Congress, September 20, 2001.
"The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral between them."
-- George W. Bush, in other words, God is on our side (heard that before?), in his "war whoop" speech to Congress, September 20, 2001
"This crusade, this war on terrorism is going to take a while."
-- George W. Bush, using a loaded term that recalls the Christians' Medieval wars against Muslims in the Holy Land, after stepping off the presidential helicopter on Sunday, September 16, 2001.
"[I encourage] employers to permit their workers time off during the lunch hour to attend the noontime services to pray for our land."
-- George W. Bush, ordering the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance which was held on September 14, 2001.
"We come before God to pray for the missing and the dead, and for those who loved them.... Our purpose as a nation is firm, yet our wounds as a people are recent and unhealed and lead us to pray.... This world he created is of moral design. Grief and tragedy and hatred are only for a time. Goodness, remembrance, and love have no end, and the Lord of life holds all who die and all who mourn.... Neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities, nor powers nor things present nor things to come nor height nor depth can separate us from God's love."
-- George W. Bush, in his sermon for the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance which was held on September 14, 2001, wherein Bush quoted the New Testament passage of Romans 8:38 (angels? principalities? powers?).
"Through my Faith-Based and Community Initiative, my Administration continues to encourage the essential work of faith-based and community organizations. Governments can and should support effective social services, including those provided by religious people and organizations. When government gives that support, it is important that faith-based institutions not be forced to change their religious character."
-- George W. Bush, shamelessly promoting the idea that government ought to overturn decades -- centuries -- of civil rights progress by paying religious organizations to discriminate on the basis of religious adherence -- one of the very reasons why our Constitution's Bill of Rights forbids our government from "respecting an establishment of religion" -- in his Proclamation: "Religious Freedom Day, 2004" (January 16, 2004)
"Catholic schools carry out a great mission, to serve God by building knowledge and character.... By teaching the word of God, you prepare your students to follow a path of virtue."
-- George W. Bush, helping to soften the blows of justice in asking (requiring, really) taxpayers to bail out Roman Catholic schools through a publicly funded voucher program after numerous Roman Catholic parishes and dioceses being held financially accountable for clerics who terrorized and molested young boys and girls over a period of decades in the pedophile priest scandal, at a White House ceremony whose audience included more over 200 Roman Catholic officials; quoted from American Atheists Press Release, "Bush off Key in Singing Praises of Parochial Schools" (January 12, 2004)
"[Immigrants] bring to America the values of faith in God, love of family, hard work and self reliance -- the values that made us a great nation to begin with. We've all seen those values in action, through the service and sacrifice of more than 35,000 foreign-born men and women currently on active duty in the United States military."
-- George W. Bush, forgetting his history (again) in the fact that many came to America seeking freedom from religion, needlessly dividing the nation, and marginalizing tens of millions of Americans who have no belief in deities and practice no adherence to creeds, from his speech, "President Bush Proposes New Temporary Worker Program" (January 7, 2004)
"About 14 percent of our nation's civilian workforce is foreign-born."
-- George W. Bush, almost completely ignorant as to the makeup of his constituency, he is oblivious to the fact that about 14 percent of the people in our nation's workforce hold no god-beliefs of any kind, from his speech, "President Bush Proposes New Temporary Worker Program" (January 7, 2004)
"I am mindful that we're all sinners..."
-- George W. Bush, speaking for -- uh, somebody -- umm, and, uh, showing just how out of touch he really is with everybody (except Evangelical Christians of the politically idolatrous variety). Bush is saying that there ought to be a law that would deny Americans the basic right to enter into a union with a partner of their choice and receive the same benefits as anyone who practices the Christian rite of monogamous heterosexual marriage -- even though there already is such a law, the Defense of Marriage Act, signed by President Clinton in 1996; speaking at a Rose Garden news conference on July 30, 2003. Quoted from Neil A. Lewis, "Bush Backs Bid to Block Gays From Marrying" (The New York Times: July 30, 2003)
"We waited for Congress to act. They couldn't act on the issue. So I just went ahead and signed an executive order which will unleash -- [applause] -- which says the federal agencies will not discriminate against faith-based programs. They ought to welcome the armies of compassion as opposed to turning them away."
-- George W. Bush, unleashing -- uh, something -- umm, to the citizens of the United States (who, um, er, uh, used to be progected by this thing called the Bill of Rights, a document we cannot remember Mr. Bush ever having mentioned, much less obeyed) speaking to a select group of "Urban Leaders" (selected, obviously, because they eagerly anticipate getting their hands on some of this money) in Room 450 of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building, quoted from the White House's official text of the speech, "President Bush Discusses Faith-Based Initiative with Urban Leaders" (July 16, 2003)
"Tyrants and dictators will accept no other gods before them. They require disobedience to the First Commandment. They seek absolute control and are threatened by faith in God. They fear only the power they cannot possess -- the power of truth. So they resent the living example of the devout, especially the devotion of a unique people chosen by God."
-- George W. Bush, blaming the Holocaust on godlessness, rather than on Christian anti-Semitism of Martin Luther, St. Paul, and the Jesus of Matthew's and John's Gospels, and ignoring the fact that Adolf Hitler repeatedly called himself a Christian, pretended to be obeying Christ, and cannot be shown to have been an atheist, at the National Commemoration of the Days of Remembrance at the U.S. Capitol on April 19, 2001.
"I really appreciate leaders from around the globe who have come to share in prayer with us today. It reminds me that the Almighty God is a God to everybody, every person."
-- George W. Bush, making a welcoming gestu-- er, uh, claim, in which he speaks on behalf of you and me -- on behalf of everybody, every person -- even though the very Supreme law of the land protects us from such abuse at the hands of our elected leaders, during his speech before the 51st Annual Congressional Prayer Breakfast, quoted from "President Bush Addresses the 51st Annual Prayer Breakfast" (February 6, 2003)
"It is fitting that we have a National Prayer Breakfast. It is the right thing to do, because this is a nation of prayer. I know, from firsthand knowledge, that this is a nation of prayer. See, I work the ropelines a lot, and I hear all kinds of things on the ropelines. But the thing I hear the most, the comment I hear the most from our fellow citizens, regardless of their political party or philosophy, is, Mr. President, I pray for you and your family, and so does my family. That's what I hear. I turn to them without hesitation and say, it is the greatest gift you can give anybody, is to pray on their behalf."
-- George W. Bush, although the Encarta World Dictionary of the English Language displays noknown meaning for the word ropelines, this is where our President tells us he obtains his "Statistics of Small Numbers" with which he backs up his claim that such a large percentage of the populace practices the religious ritual of prayer to such an extent and with such fervance as to justify describing the United States as "a nation of prayer," during his speech before the 51st Annual Congressional Prayer Breakfast, (February 6, 2003)
"We should fund the armies of compassion, we should not discriminate against faith-based programs."
-- George W. Bush, still confusing the constitutional mandate of government neutrality toward religion, at Notre Dame University on May 24, 2001
"Scripture says: "Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted." I call on every American family and the family of America to observe a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance, honoring the memory of the thousands of victims of these brutal attacks and comforting those who lost loved ones. We will persevere through this national tragedy and personal loss. In time, we will find healing and recovery; and, in the face of all this evil, we remain strong and united, "one Nation under God.""
-- George W. Bush, directing the religious exercises of his constituents and proclaiming a strange unity which omits at least ten percent of the population: "National Day of Prayer and Remembrance for the Victims Of the Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001" (September 14, 2001)
"God's signs are not always the ones we look for. We learn in tragedy that his purposes are not always our own. Yet the prayers of private suffering, whether in our homes or in this great cathedral, are known and heard, and understood.
There are prayers that help us last through the day, or endure the night. There are prayers of friends and strangers, that give us strength for the journey. And there are prayers that yield our will to a will greater than our own....
On this National Day of Prayer and Remembrance, we ask almighty God to watch over our nation, and grant us patience and resolve in all that is to come. We pray that He will comfort and console those who now walk in sorrow. We thank Him for each life we now must mourn, and the promise of a life to come."
-- George W. Bush, "President's Remarks at National Day of Prayer and Remembrance" at the The National Cathedral (September 14, 2001)
"My administration will be more supportive of the good works done here than any administration in the history of this country because I understand the power of faith, that faith can change lives."
-- George W. Bush, still refusing to admit that "faith-based" programs have not been shown to be more effective than secular programs, and yet still ignoring the facts that (1) "faith-based" programs are typically unfair in thier administration and hiring and (2) "faith-based" programs more often than not exploit thier often-captive audiences to make sales pitches for "The Lord," at Notre Dame University on May 24, 2001
"And I strongly support the faith-based initiative that we're proposing, because I don't believe it violates the line between the separation of church and state, and I believe it's going to make America a better place."
-- George W. Bush, making a muddled reference to the Establishment Clause (February 28, 2001).
"I appreciate that question because I, in the state of Texas, had heard a lot of discussion about a faith-based initiative eroding the important bridge between church and state."
-- George W. Bush, proving that he has it backwards: it's a "wall" separating religion from government, not a "bridge" joining the two, during a question and answer session with the press, January 29, 2001.
"Take the life issue. This issue requires a president and an administration leading our nation to understand the importance of life. This whole faith-based initiative really ties into a larger cultural issue that we're working on. It begins to affect the life issue, as well as the human dignity issue, because when you're talking about welcoming people of faith to help people who are disadvantaged and are unable to defend themselves, the logical step is also those babies."
-- George W. Bush, unaware that a press microphone was on, telling Roman Catholic "faith-based" subsidy supporters that they are "vital allies" because they won't "be eroded by political correctness or whatever," and assuring them that his scheme to give tax money to religious groups will help them promote opposition to legal abortion, at the White House on January 31, 2001.
"We've got a cultural issue in America. We've got to change the whole way the issue is looked at. That's the mission. Some in the political process don't have enough patience for that, and I probably don't either."
-- George W. Bush, unaware that a press microphone was on, while telling Roman Catholic "faith-based" subsidy supporters that his scheme to give tax money to religious groups will help them promote opposition to legal abortion, at the White House on January 31, 2001.
"The days of discriminating against religious institutions simply because they are religious must come to an end."
-- George W. Bush, willfully misrepresenting, once again, the whole point of state-church separation, at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"Faith crosses every border and touches every heart in every nation."
-- George W. Bush, with a slap in the fact to the ten percent of Americans who are not religious, at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"We do not prescribe any prayer; we welcome all prayer."
-- George W. Bush, promoting religion over nonreligion at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"It has sustained me in moments of success and in moments of disappointment. Without it, I'd be a different person. And without it, I doubt I'd be here today."
-- George W. Bush, promoting the Christian faith at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"Our plan will not favor religious institutions over nonreligious institutions. As president, I'm interested in what is constitutional and I'm interested in what works."
-- George W. Bush, promoting his scheme to funnel tax dollars into religious "charities" which will not be held accountable for discriminating against nonreligious and other-religious workers, and the validity of which religious groups are worthy of being funded will be decided by the government (Bush has already stated that the Nation of Islam will not qualify), at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"We have set out to promote the work of community and faith-based charities. Government cannot be replaced by charities, but it can welcome them as partners instead of resenting them as rivals."
-- George W. Bush, softening the criticism against his scheme to funnel tax money into religious "outreach" organizations (read: evangelistic efforts), at the annual National Prayer Breakfast, for which organizers refused to release a full list of attendees, February 1, 2001.
"It is one of the great goals of my administration to invigorate the spirit of involvement and citizenship. We will encourage faith-based and community programs without changing their mission."
-- George W. Bush, establishing a White House office dedicated to encouraging faith-based organizations to seek federal funds to help solve social problems like drug addiction and homelessness, while allowing organized religion to continue to exploit its new captive audience through evangelistic efforts, and potentially allowing state-funded religious groups to discriminate both against those who seek help and those who seek employment ( January 29, 2001).
"And this is my solemn pledge: I will work to build a single nation of justice and opportunity. I know this is in our reach because we are guided by a power larger than ourselves who creates us equal in His image."
-- George W. Bush, showing gross insensitivity to the constitutional principle of government neutrality on religion, as well as showing that he's oblivious both to the diversity in the nation he now leads and to the very concept of unity, in his Inauguration Address, January 20, 2001
"I ask Americans to bow our heads in humility before our Heavenly Father, a God who calls us not to judge our neighbors, but to love them, to ask His guidance upon our nation and its leaders in every level of government."
-- George W. Bush, National Day of Prayer Proclamation, January 20, 2001, one of his first acts as United States President.
"And some needs and hurts are so deep they will only respond to a mentor's touch or a pastor's prayer. Church and charity, synagogue and mosque, lend our communities their humanity, and they will have an honored place in our plans and laws."
-- George W. Bush, Inauguration Address, January 20, 2001
"In every instance when my administration sees a responsibility to help people, we will look first to faith-based institutions, to charities and to community groups that have shown their ability to save and change lives."
-- George W. Bush, at a rally in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 22, 1999.
"We will keep a commitment to pluralism [and] not discriminate for or against Methodist or Mormons or Muslims or good people with no faith at all."
-- George W. Bush, promising equal opportunity to all religious groups for receiving tax money, at a rally in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 22, 1999.
"I don't see how we can allow public dollars to fund programs where spite and hate is the core of the message. Louis Farrakhan preaches hate."
-- George W. Bush, reneging on the above promise, on being asked by a reporter if the Nation of Islam would be eligible for federal money, but failing to distinguish between the "hate" that he says Farrakhan preaches and the hate (against atheists and other non-Christians) that many Christian churches preach, while speaking with reporters on March 1, 2000.
"I support voluntary, student-led prayer and am committed to the First Amendment principles of religious freedom, tolerance, and diversity. Whether Mormon, Methodist, or Muslim, students in America should be able to participate in their constitutional free exercise of religion. I believe it is wrong to forcefully expunge any mention of religion, or dilute its impact and importance, when discussing world affairs. Religion is a personal, private matter and parents, not public school officials, should decide their children's religious training. We should not have teacher-led prayers in public schools, and school officials should never favor one religion over another, or favor religion over no religion (or vice versa). I also believe that schools should not restrict students' religious liberties. The free exercise of faith is the fundamental right of every American, and that right doesn't stop at the schoolhouse door."
-- George W. Bush, responding to an October, 2000, Associated Press questionnaire.
"I believe God did create the world. And I think we're finding out more and more and more as to how it actually happened."
-- George W. Bush, interview, U.S. News, "George W. Bush: Running on his faith," December 6, 1999
"After all, religion has been around a lot longer than Darwinism."
-- George W. Bush, quoted from Aaron Latham, "How George W. Found God," George Magazine, September, 2000
"In spite of conflicting signals -- and in spite of a popular culture that sometimes puts down their innocence -- most of our kids are good kids. Large numbers do volunteer work. Nearly all believe in God, and most practice their faith. Teen pregnancy and violence are actually going down. Across America, under a program called True Love Waits, nearly a million teens have pledged themselves to abstain from sex until marriage."
-- George W. Bush, during a November, 1999, campaign stop in Gorham, New Hampshire. Bush stated later that under his presidential administration, funding for Christian chastity outreaches will soar from $80 million to $139 million per year, sending public money to Bible fundamentalist groups such as True Love Waits, a Christian chastity advocacy group which conducts "Bible studies, discipling experiences, worship services, ring ceremonies, retreats, DiscipleNow weekends, campus club Bible studies and other experiences to prepare students for a commitment to purity." December 24, 2000.
"We need to have mentoring programs energized by government, paid for by government, but who exist not because of government. Teen Challenge is a way to get people off drugs and alcohol. Teen Challenge is a faith-based program that changes people's hearts."
-- George W. Bush, in a campaign speech, May 25, 2001. Teen Challenge executive director John Castellani testified before Congress on May 23 that many of the Jews who complete the Teen Challenge program become "completed Jews," a phrase common in fundamentalist circles to refer to Jews who later convert to fundamentalist Christianity -- strongly implying that regular Jews are somehow "incomplete."
"Our priorities is our faith."
-- George W. Bush, Greensboro, North Carolina, October. 10, 2000.
"We will allow private and religious groups to compete to provide services in every federal, state and local social program."
-- George W. Bush, to an audience at an Indianapolis church when he announced his proposal for an "Office of Faith-Based Action" as a "clearinghouse for information on effective religious organizations and assisting them in their dealings with the federal government."
"Our new faith-based laws have removed government as a roadblock to people of faith who hear the call."
-- George W. Bush, quoted from Aaron Latham, "How George W. Found God," George Magazine, September, 2000
"We should -- we will -- welcome people of faith into the political process.... It is essential that believers enter the arena. Your involvement in politics helps determine how well our democracy works. We have finally learned that government programs cannot solve our problems. Government can hand out money, but government cannot put hope in our hearts or a sense of purpose in our lives."
-- George W. Bush, quoted from Aaron Latham, "How George W. Found God," George Magazine, September, 2000
"I've heard the call. I believe God wants me to run for president."
-- George W. Bush, quoted from Aaron Latham, "How George W. Found God," George Magazine, September, 2000
"Do I think faith will be an important part of being a good president? Yes, I do."
-- George W. Bush, interview, U.S. News, "George W. Bush: Running on his faith," December 6, 1999
"I think you can judge from somebody's actions a kind of a stability and sense of purpose perhaps created by strong religious roots. I mean, there's a certain patience, a certain discipline, I think, that religion helps you achieve."
-- George W. Bush, interview, U.S. News, "George W. Bush: Running on his faith," December 6, 1999
"When you turn your heart and your life over to Christ, when you accept Christ as the savior, it changes your heart."
-- George W. Bush, in Des Moines, when three of six candidates named Jesus Christ as role models, December, 1999.
"I understand religion is a walk, it's a journey. And I fully recognize that I'm a sinner, just like you."
-- George W. Bush, quoted from Aaron Latham, "How George W. Found God," George Magazine, September, 2000
"I urge all Texans to answer the call to serve those in need. By volunteering their time, energy or resources to helping others, adults and youngsters follow Christ's message of love and service in thought and deed.
Therefore, I, George W. Bush, Governor of Texas, do hereby proclaim June 10, 2000, Jesus Day in Texas and urge the appropriate recognition whereof,
In official recognition whereof,
I hereby affix my signature this
17th day of April, 2000.
-- George W. Bush, "Jesus Day 2000" Proclamation.
*Subverting Religious Liberty by Redefining the Word Religion:
"Religious freedom and tolerance is a protected right. I am committed to the First Amendment principles of religious freedom, tolerance, and diversity.
Whether Mormon, Methodist, Jewish, or Muslim, Americans should be able to participate in their constitutional free exercise of religion.
I do not think witchcraft is a religion, and I do not think it is in any way appropriate for the U.S. military to promote it."
-- George W. Bush, second remark, October 15, 2000, Web, White & Blue 2000, Rolling Cyber Debate question: "With religious diversity increasing, what are your thoughts on the protection of religious freedom and the separation of church and state? Should religions like Wicca be banned from recognition by the military, as some legislators suggest?" Bush honors diversity, but only within certain bounds, saying nothing in favor of one's Constitutional right to freedom from religion (he's against it: see below) and speaking out once again against Americans' right to practice the Wiccan religion with the same freedoms enjoyed by those who practice Bush's own religion of Evangelical Christianity.
Notice how Bush does away with the Wiccan's right to religious liberty by redefining Wicca as not a religion and further denigrating it with the term witchcraft. In the same way, atheism, that is, the freedom from government-imposed or government-sponsored religious intrusion, being not itself a bona fide religion, is twisted by Bush to become a viewpoint or practice or right that is not covered under the First Amendment guarantee of religious Liberty. (To be fair and honest, Bush's opponent, Al Gore, slyly answered every other element of the same question, but silently passed over the part about Wicca.)
"I don't think that witchcraft is a religion. I wish the military would rethink this decision."
-- George W. Bush, earlier remark, June, 1999, to ABC News, regarding Ft. Hood's decision to allow Wiccan rituals just as all military bases allow rituals of the Christian faith (in a letter to Cliff Walker, the Bush Campaign HQ backpedaled, calling this Bush's personal opinion; later, however, it becomes an integral part of his campaign)