The Progressives' Handbook

With God on Our Side

''God told me to strike at al Qaeda 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 can help me I will act, and if not, the elections will come and I will have to focus on them." -  George W. Bush, speaking to former Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas in June 2003 

It's one thing for politicians to covet war and destruction, but another matter entirely for the public to let them get away with it. So, why do we?

Leo Strauss, the former University of Chicago professor of philosophy (from 1949-1968), who some see as the father of the neo-conservative movement, valued religion as a form of social control and once wrote, ''Because mankind is intrinsically wicked, he has to be governed. Such governance can only be established, however, when men are united - and they can only be united against other people.''

That would explain Bush administration's perpetual ''war on terror,'' with everyone a potential enemy until proven otherwise. That would also explain the administration's passion for religious references and secrecy - the ''wicked'' masses need their opiate more than the truth.

Bush isn't satisfied merely throwing in the perfunctory ''God bless America'' at the end of speeches. He consistently reduces complex foreign policy issues into battles of good vs. evil, with the United States responsible for carrying out God's will abroad.

Politically, this approach is quite shrewd as it not only feeds the American public's desire for divinely-ordained superiority, but also stifles dissent by portraying the administration's random warmongering as an act of God. As a result, Bush often frames foreign policy in terms of orders from above, rather than as fallible, human decisions.

• September 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."

• January 2003: "Americans are a free people, who know that freedom is the right of every person and the future of every nation. The liberty we prize is not America's gift to the world, it is God's gift to humanity."

• December 2003: "I believe, firmly believe -- and you've heard me say this a lot, and I say it a lot because I truly believe it -- that freedom is the Almighty God's gift to every person, every man and woman who lives in this world. That's what I believe. And the arrest of Saddam Hussein changed the equation in Iraq. Justice was being delivered to a man who defied that gift from the Almighty to the people of Iraq."

• September 2004: ''America is called to lead the cause of freedom in the new century.... Freedom is not America's gift to the world. It is the Almighty God's gift."

And, of course, it's not only Bush who straddles the political pulpit. A number of his administration's foreign policy appointees hold few credentials apart from their fervent religious beliefs, such as Paul Bonicelli, appointed as deputy director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in October 2005. Bonicelli's main claim to fame was having been dean of academic affairs at the fundamentalist Patrick Henry College, where students must sign a 10-part "statement of faith" including the belief that hell is a place where "all who die outside of Christ shall be confined in conscious torment for eternity."

According to the USAID website, Bonicelli's current office is responsible for: ''strengthening the rule of law and respect for human rights; promoting more genuine and competitive elections and political processes; increasing development of a politically active civil society; and implementing a more transparent and accountable governance.''
In other words, a guy who thinks that non-believers ''shall be confined in conscious torment for eternity'' has been put in charge of promoting human rights across the world.

This melding of foreign policy with religious dogma would be creepy enough if many of those marching us into a Middle Eastern perpetual blowout didn't believe in a literal Armageddon. Further complicating matters is the belief that the Messiah can return only if a new temple is built on Temple Mount, one of the holiest - and most contentious - sites for Islam, Judaism and Christianity combined.

That leaves a far too comfortable alliance of some far-right Christian groups, fundamentalist Zionists and neo-cons all pushing for the same basic scenario: Israel occupies the rest of its ''biblical lands,'' the Arab world is engulfed in flames and God's chosen people rule forever more. Oh, and of course, Arab oil is transferred to US hands.
Doesn't do much to create a coherent, diplomacy-based foreign policy, but it sure works well to keep the masses distracted and pliable.

1. Learn more about foreign policy

If you've got access to the internet, you've literally got hundreds of easy ways to explore the topic. One great place to start is the American Foreign Policy Council site (http://www.afpc.org/pub.shtml) which offers mailing lists, free of charge, on topics ranging from ''Eurasia Security Watch'' to ''China Reform Monitor.'' Other great sites include:

• Foreign Policy In Focus  (www.fpif.org)  'FPIF provides timely analysis of U.S. foreign policy and international affairs and recommends policy alternatives &ldots; We advocate that diplomatic solutions, global cooperation, and grassroots participation guide foreign policy.'' Sign up for the site's weekly ezine, Progressive Response.

• International Relations Center (www.irc-online.org)  Information and action center covering a variety of topics ranging from Economic Justice to Human Rights. Sign up for the newsletter.

• Global Issues (www.globalissues.org)  The site ''looks into global issues that affect everyone and aims to show how most issues are inter-related... The issues discussed range from trade, poverty and globalization, to human rights, geopolitics, the environment, and much more.''

• One World (www.oneworld.net)  Brings together ''the latest news and views from over 1,600 organizations promoting human rights awareness and fighting poverty worldwide.'' You can search by country or via topic guides covering everything from child labor to microcredit. Sign up for the One World mailing list, and check out the Action Alert page.

• Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research (www.transnational.org)  "TFF is an independent think & action tank, a global network of over 100 peace leaders and a website. Our mission is peace - learning to handle conflicts with ever less violence."

• Just Foreign Policy (www.justforeignpolicy.org) Just Foreign Policy is "dedicated to reforming U.S. foreign policy to serve the interests and reflect the values of the broad majority of Americans." Listen to the podcasts, visit the Get Involved page and sign up for the mailing list.

2. Understand the Bogeyman

Years ago it was Manual Noriega. Then it became Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. It's always been Fidel Castro&ldots;

Washington's Bogeyman of the Week is often held up to exacerbate the US public's fear and to sound the drumbeat for war. But the next time the Bogeyman appears, ask yourself some questions: What's the hidden link between today's dastardly evildoer and former US administrations? For example, did he receive money, CIA intelligence, or weaponry in the past, and what services did he provide in return? What companies will profit from deposing the Bogeyman, and what ties do those companies have to the current administration? Is the specter of this evildoer being raised at a difficult time in the US, possibly as a diversion?

Digging deeper into the backgrounds of today's Bogeymen yields a lot of important information about the Bogeymen in the US government.

While you're at it, don't forget to give ''the enemy'' a face. When Washington announces its intention to bomb the life out of some hapless country far away, be sure you can at least identify that country on a map. Take time to learn about the people of that country, their history, culture and customs. Put a human face on the land and keep that face in mind when US bombs start falling.