This was my response to an entry on a private message board stemming from a thread about the current administration's slow (or not so slow!) charge into an American Theocracy. Link to the story from American Progress Action Fund's website:
http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/pp.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=100480
All the members are either prior or active military and not too progressive, there are a few of us on the site that try to show them the light but we get drowned out more often than not, this is my first Diary here so let me know how I did.
The Crusades, the Inquisition, the current Middle East situation, the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt, I could go on but it would just be redundant. Religion and politics just don't mix, there are too many examples of it throughout history going wrong.
More across the boarder...
The "Liberals" had it working because they tapped into religious sects without letting those sects set political agendas, think about what is happening now in politics. We have political reps trying to enact spiritual laws, there is a difference between creating laws "inspired" by spiritual morals or guidance and laws created to satisfy religious beliefs. This country was founded by people that came here either to escape persecution or were practicing in hiding and wanted to be free, or where slaves and were dragged here, or saw an opportunity to make money. One of our greatest tenants of our government is the freedom of religion, not that this country is a "Christian State".
By the way what does that mean, from what I see most Christians can't even figure out what all the rules are since there are so many sects, which is right; Roman, Baptist, Episcopal, Jehovah's, Evangelical, I could go on but again I'd be redundant. Look I have no problem with religion, but there is a place for it, and it isn't in our government. I have set foot in a lot of the Christian faiths and I really didn't see anything different except in the way they are led in prayer. I now just read the bible on occasion and confer with God in private, for me it works a lot better than the filter of religion, but that is just me. I don't go knocking door to door trying to convert more to my form of faith or lean on congress to enact my views on the masses. I don't do this because everyone can practice however they want in this country without fear of retribution, regardless of faith at least according to the Constitution which is still the law of the land. So if it means that we are going to have some Satanist, or other unsavory religions, so be it, as long as they don't impede on my rights (i.e. burning crosses in my yard, hanging dead cats on my door) I can live with it cause in the end God Will Sort Them Out.
Oh and for anyone brining up Sharpton or Jackson, here is the reality of it, they conformed to the party not the other way around, and in the end that is the difference. Those two crazies adapted to the political party they joined, what we have now is a whole political party slowly being consumed by the "extreme religious right". Like I said religion guiding politics is ok because we are all shaped by our experiences but, religion dictating politics is a line that should never have been crossed and it is possible that it could end this fine country of ours...
