A country blinded by the fog of war

Lost in the flag waving, God-euphoria and shouts of self-praise for being the most patriotic in this year’s election season is a love for the guiding philosophy of the Founding Fathers and Mothers.

During a time of terror, uncertainty and utter confusion about social, political and economic “values,” it might be time to get back to basics.

“My country is the world, my religion is to do good,” said Thomas Paine, architect of America’s intellectual liberty. There’s a lot of talk about Iraq – President Bush is its liberator and Sen. John Kerry would still have voted for the war now, knowing the dubious facts that initiated the conflict.

“Godless” communist China brutalizes political prisoners, persecutes thousands of Christians and zealously promotes its sweatshops to Western companies looking to manufacture cheap products. America won’t invade it. China won’t be condemned with the same gusto as Saddam’s Iraq. It won’t have economic sanctions imposed. Although it does have weapons of mass destruction, China is a multibillion-dollar trading partner with the United States.

Cuba, under dictator Fidel Castro, is not likely to have sanctions lifted soon. Economic penalties, existing for decades, have done nothing to shake Castro’s political grip.

Many policy analysts think they should be eliminated so America has a foothold in the country once the aged Castro dies. Still, changing economic policy toward Cuba won’t happen this year. It would upset the key anti-Castro Cuban-American vote in Florida, a battleground state this year.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia has called for the “reintegration” of Ukraine, Europe’s second-largest sovereign and potentially wealthiest country. He has warned the West to keep its “hands off” Russian-Ukrainian relations.

Neither the Bush administration nor the Kerry campaign has expressed any concern that democracy could be lost in this fledgling former Soviet republic. More than 1.5 million Americans with Ukrainian ancestry are spread too thin throughout the country to successfully motivate Bush or Kerry to act.

Of course there are social values. Poverty is at record levels, a living wage is not a serious concern of either major political party, protecting traditional marriage doesn’t involve any effort to curtail a heterosexual divorce rate of 50 percent, and neither Kerry nor Bush has the political courage to call the credit-card industry exploiting working families for what it is – legitimized loan sharks.

Most problematic in the values debate is the genocide occurring in the Sudan. According to reports by CNN, Secretary of State Colin Powell cited a “‘consistent and widespread’ pattern of atrocities – including killings, rapes and burning of villages. ‘This was a coordinated effort, not just random violence.'” The news service quoted British Foreign Office minister for Africa Chris Mullin as saying that “genocide has been committed.”

So why are brave American men and women dying in Iraq? Remember the reason for invading Iraq? It is no longer due to its alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction.

Liberating the Iraqi people is now the single greatest Bush re-election ploy … eh, I mean noble reason. The fact that the United States relies heavily on oil from the unstable region to support a massive consumer-driven economy seems to be an unspoken reality. In addition, corporate interests as evidenced by Halliburton are also a factor in shaping America’s foreign policy, though we want to believe it has something to do with freedom.

“False messiahs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive …,” Jesus warns. It appears, perhaps due to fear, that false ideas, false patriotism and a false sense of what matters have risen and deceived many Americans.

It’s the complacent public that must shoulder the greatest burden for the current state of affairs. Sadly, not even 9-11 has energized citizens to register, get informed and vote. And those who are registered have not always taken an objective, informed look at the nation’s direction. Thomas Paine said we have the common sense to govern ourselves. I’ve been wondering about that a lot lately.

More will be said about values in this year’s election. Paine, although a deist, was a humanist like Jesus. He believed in the goodness of his compatriots to serve the greater good – that’s what makes this country great – and advance values for everyone’s benefit. It’s in this spirit that Americans must embrace what some of the Founders meant by values.

The Right Rev. Paul Peter Jesep, an auxiliary bishop in the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church-Sobornopravna, has studied at Bangor Theological Seminary. The views expressed are his own and do not reflect the church’s position. He may be reached via VladykaPaulPeter@aol.com. Voices is a weekly commentary by five Maine columnists who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.