GOD AWFUL

Where's the dividing line in Pompeo’s brain between his evangelical fervor & lust to see the USA dominate the world? 

If we could see Pence’s thoughts would they be free from zealous ambition to spread God’s word & smite His foes?

These are questions that could also have been raised regarding George W. Bush and Tony Blair. To what extent did they embark on a semi-religious crusade against the nations of the Middle East they would bring to ruin? How easy for them was it to exaggerate the facts and find the most barefaced lies attractive to their cause due to the belief they were doing God’s will?

It’s not as though there were no precedents for mass slaughter due to religious beliefs. History is full of such horrific atrocities and full scale wars.

And the use of very similar propaganda was used to demonize foes in those ancient times also. The army of Saladin and those Muslim believers who were loyal to him were said to kill the babies of Christians and drink their blood. This helped enormously as those heading to Jerusalem through Europe sought additional knights to join them. You can imagine the alacrity with which they joined and the hatred they carried with them on hearing this piece of archaic fake news.

The most infamous case in recent times was that of the Iraqi soldiers said to have ripped babies from their incubators dashing their infant heads on the floor. A little girl stood in front of American Senators and told this tale. Why shouldn’t they believe her, hadn’t those who brought her before them vouched for her credibility? But it was only much later they found that she was the daughter of a prominent Iraqi dissident and was lying (convincingly) through her perfect teeth.

God-fearing men were incensed. As they were meant to be. The age old ruse had worked once again and even the president would use the lying girl’s words to convince others that war was the only solution to end the evil being done in Iraq.

When you are primed by your beliefs to consider yourself motivated by all that’s good in this world and in the knowledge that God is working through you to destroy the evil-doers and face down the sinners then those in lands far away with strange cultures can easily make you curl your lip. And the fact that they have brown faces, wear strange clothes and have habits that are not yours and worship what to you are false gods makes it a no-brainer for you to want them obliterated.

When you are perfect. The rest of the world (save for a VERY few who are in full agreement with you and your ways) are imperfect. In this position you look down on almost everyone. You are in an exalted position in a land under God, his works to do.

That you cause death, destruction and misery... well, that was just a price that had to be paid and who could blame you, you were only doing what the Lord God commanded, were you not?

And what of Trump? The obviously irreligious Trump. Why has he these two holy roller regime changers as his two minions? Why indeed? Because he needs such zealots to keep the religious right sweet. In the case of Pompeo we have the wily preacher with all the sophistry that, that entails. Pence is as yet more difficult to fathom, he has as yet still to reveal his inner demons. It is clear what Pompeo is. We may yet see Pence revealed in full if Trump fails to survive his well deserved run-in with Covid-19.

It’s all pretty God awful. Two religious zealots with a serial liar, sexual abuser and ultra-arrogant egotist as boss. A suitably hypocritical trio. But for Bolton being given the bum’s rush they would have made a suitable Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

But even with madcap monster Bolton out of the picture the remaining three still squat foursquare in the middle of a country that in religious terms can only adequately be described as... God Awful.