Dumbed down America

One of my frequent rants is about how the Republicans are dominated by those who do not respect the intelligence of the American people.    They think they can tell them lies and repeat them often enough that they become false 'truth.'

And fool the little people into voting against their own best interests.

I used to say that the American people are smarter than that;  they see through such tactics.   Not always and not right away.   But in the end that kind of perfidy will trip itself up.

Now, I'm not so sure.   I'm afraid the dumbed down element of conservative politics may be proving that you can fool the people.   Truth doesn't seem to be winning the battle.

The latest reason for this pessimism:  The response to President Obama's talk before the National Prayer Breakfast, where he touched briefly on a nuanced, intelligent, true discussion about the historical role of Christianity in violence and bloodshed.   As reported in the Washington Post, he said:

“Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history" about tension between the compassionate and murderous acts religion can inspire. “And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ.”

Others have pointed out, in the recent days of global furor over the burning alive of a Jordanian pilot, that lynchings of black men in the South often included being burned alive -- and the Ku Klux Klan styles itself as being Christian . . . remember that?

However, it didn't take long for Republicans to pounce, distorting the president's remarks to make it seem that he was siding with the jihadists against Christians.   Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore (R) cried,  "He has offended every believing Christian in the United States. This goes further to the point that Mr. Obama does not believe in America or the values we all share.”

That is an absolutely scurrilous, shameful distortion.   The president's comments were very balanced and only briefly touched on the violence of Christians in the past.   Here's some of what preceded and then followed the lines quoted above from the president's remarks:

". . . [W]e've seen professions of faith used both as an instrument of great good, but also twisted and misused in the name of evil. . . .  we see faith inspiring people to lift up one another -- to feed the hungry and care for the poor, and comfort the afflicted and make peace where there is strife. . . .  We see faith driving us to do right.

"But we also see faith being twisted and distorted, . . . we have seen violence and terror perpetrated by those who profess to stand up for faith, . . .  stand up for Islam, but, in fact, are betraying it.  We see ISIL, a brutal, vicious death cult that, in the name of religion, carries out unspeakable acts of barbarism . . .  and claiming the mantle of religious authority for such actions.

"We see sectarian war in Syria, the murder of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, religious war in the Central African Republic, a rising tide of anti-Semitism and hate crimes in Europe, so often perpetrated in the name of religion.

"So how do we, as people of faith, reconcile these realities -- the profound good, the strength, the tenacity, the compassion and love that can flow from all of our faiths, operating alongside those who seek to hijack religious for their own murderous ends?

"Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history.  And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ.  In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ. . . 

"So this is not unique to one group or one religion.  There is a tendency in us, a sinful tendency that can pervert and distort our faith.  In today’s world, when hate groups have their own Twitter accounts and bigotry can fester in hidden places in cyberspace, it can be even harder to counteract such intolerance. But God compels us to try."

President Obama introduced a topic that needs national dialogue, helping everyone to understand the difference between extremists claiming the defense of Islam as their justification and the peace-loving, gentle vast majority of Muslims.   Instead, we get pandering from the right for cheap political gain and sensationalist attention-seekers.

And there seem to be no consequences for such willful, indifference to the truth of what you're saying.    It's just one step removed from shouting "Fire !!" in a crowded theater.

Dumb, dumb, dumb.    And dangerous.

Ralph