War’s religious tones begin with Bush rhetoric

A nice, short, logical read for those who believe in the US Constitution and the separation of church and state part. Non-Zen Q: If the fish rots from the head, what happens when the fish head is just plain nuts? — Octa(reallykookoo)fish

War’s religious tones begin with Bush rhetoric

Natalie Storey
Montana Kaimin

Who can blame Gen. William Boykin for saying he is fighting a spiritual war against terrorism and equating terrorists with Satan? He was only following the lead of his superiors.

Boykin, the deputy undersecretary of defense for intelligence and war-fighting supports, said earlier this month that the United States, a “Christian nation,” must fight terrorists “in the name of Jesus,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

But Boykin’s statements don’t mark the first time a U.S. military official has tried to justify a war morally.

It’s true that President Bush has said the United States is not fighting a religious war against terrorism. However, he has tried to justify the war by appealing to Americans’ sense of morality. Surely, administration officials realize the American sense of morality has much to do with religion. Bush might say America isn’t fighting a religious war, but he’s splitting hairs. America is fighting a moral war, a war in which Bush has made America out to be the good guy and labeled the others as “the axis of evil.” From the administration’s perspective, Boykin is right; in Bush’s analogy, Islamic terrorists are like Satan.

CONTINUED...

http://www.kaimin.org/test2.php?ardate=20031023&id=2044

says volumes.

The rest of the world, especially the victims of it, did not need Gen Boykin to inform them that it is a Crusade.

It is certainly more comfortable to express righteous outrage over words than to make Washington look like La Paz did the other day and get rid of the people who are slaughtering, maiming torturing and starving other human beings, in their name, and with their money.