Dear George,

Enjoyed Barnie's reflection on the 105,000.

Mr. Falwell is, ironically, very un-Christian in his support of Mr. Bush's policies as Mr. Day points out. The curiosity is that the religious right has traded their own values in exchange for influence, or at least the hope that they will have influence.

The strategy is military on both sides and it will be perhaps one of the most interesting wars to be waged in the 21st century. The religious right versus the economic conservatives.

Each is trying to hire the others army to fight their battle, just as we try to hire the Iraqi people to fight our war of invasion.

The perception is that they have joined forces to win this past election and they share a common vision for America, but they are as opposed to one another as United Sates and the U.S.S.R. after WWll. They have joined together to defeat a common enemy: liberal America. Now they are basking in the euphoria of their triumph, but each has joined with the other for great self interest, and each believes the other will bend to suit them. This is the foundation of a marriage that will face serious negotiation in the near future.

How will conservatives respond when Christian "values" threaten the corporate bottom line?

How much longer can people claim to be Christian and claim that Mr. Bush is fighting a just war? According to the teachings of Christ, there is no such thing. The Bush administration has appropriately created a mythology that allows the Christian right to believe the war is not an assault on their values, but it is a violent assault. At some point the loss of human life will not be able to be explained away. Insurgents are people who for some reason believe the country has been invaded. It has. In the end , they are people. They believe that America is a dominating force. It is.

The Iraq War is a business take over pure and simple. The loss of human lives in the doing so is simply recognized collateral damage from the corporate point of view. Corporations are responsible to their stockholder's bottom line, first. Loss of human life is a public relations problem and does not show on spread sheets where decisions like these are made.

The Christian Church Mr. Falwell leads is the Church of Obedience. The values he promotes are all rooted in the obedience of others. How will the Church of Obedience fare when conservatives decide not to obey, based on bottom line interests? The conservative right is the Church of the Bottom Line. There is always a formidable reckoning when two parties have sold they're integrity short for personal gain. They inevitably wind up expecting more from the other than they are willing to give.

What we are seeing is the rise of a true Third Party. The Religious Right. Their hope is that Democrats will come courting them next time around - creating a tug of war around moral values. If Democrats do court the religious vote they endanger themselves.

Mr. Falwell, or anyone who believes Mr. Bush is doing the work of Jesus Christ, is mistaken - the actions of the Bush administration are anti-thetical to the social justice mission of Christ. Whether you believe he was a savior, a prophet, or just a historical figure is beside the point - what in fact he taught has nothing to do with Mr. Bush's choices.

Democrats should make a regular point of calling a charlatan a charlatan until he tries to explain his own immoral position. Mr. Falwell has 'No Way Out'. He sold his personal soul , whatever that may be, long ago.

Sincerely,

Joe Clancy (electronic mail, November 17, 2004)