Fear and Loathing Among the Semi-Literate

Summary

The article "Fear and Loathing Among the Semi-Literate" critiques conservative politicians like Michelle Bachmann for misinterpreting the First Amendment to support their opposition to gay rights under the guise of protecting religious liberties.

Abstract

The piece, titled "Fear and Loathing Among the Semi-Literate," delves into the misuse of the First Amendment by certain right-wing politicians, particularly focusing on Michelle Bachmann's conflation of gay rights with an infringement on religious liberties. It emphasizes the First Amendment's clear separation of church and state and highlights Bachmann's failure to understand this fundamental principle. The author argues that Bachmann and her contemporaries, such as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Ted Cruz, manipulate both religious scripture and the Constitution to fit their agenda, fostering a climate of fear and hate. The article suggests that such leaders lack wisdom and make decisions driven by negative emotions rather than reason, which is detrimental to the country's well-being.

Opinions

The author believes that politicians like Michelle Bachmann use patriotism and religion as tools to deceive and oppress, echoing the sentiments of Eugene Victor Debs.
Bachmann is criticized for equating the push for gay rights with an attack on her religious liberties, despite the First Amendment's protection of religious freedom.
The article accuses conservative elements within Christianity of twisting scripture to suit their views, a practice that extends to their interpretation of the Constitution and American history.
The author views the actions of right-wing politicians as a form of "batshittery," indicative of incoherent and illogical reasoning.
Fear and hate are seen as the driving forces behind the political strategies of figures like Bachmann, Greene, Cruz, and Gaetz, which the author considers harmful to the nation.
The author suggests that decisions made out of fear or hate are inherently flawed and that wisdom is lacking among certain right-wing political figures.

Fear and Loathing Among the Semi-Literate

Photo by Anthony Garand on Unsplash

“In every age it has been the tyrant, the oppressor and the exploiter who has wrapped himself in the cloak of patriotism, or religion, or both to deceive and overawe the People.” ― Eugene Victor Debs

The First Amendment to the Constitution: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Read that first part again. “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof….”

Michelle Bachmann didn’t read that part. It’s the First Amendment. I can only wonder if she has read the rest of them.

“If you want take away my religious liberties,” she once said in a radio interview with Lars Larson, “you can advocate for that but you do it through the constitutional process and you don’t intimidate and no politician should give away my religious liberties or yours.”

Somehow, in that muddled brain, she equates the call for gay rights as a move to take away her religious rights, and then assures us that her religious rights are ensconced in the Constitution; those human rights are a violation of her interpretation of the Constitution. Can she perceive why the term “batshittery” was invented to describe her incoherent ramblings?

Some of the more conservative elements within the Christian religion have translated Bible verses in any manner that they feel promotes their views. It doesn’t matter what the scripture in question actually says, it only matters how it can be twisted, spun, bent, and mangled. That same thinking drives those Christians into reworking the Constitution, our history, the words of the Founders, and the pronouncements of political figures. Anything can mean anything to semi-literate, and it does.

Michelle Bachmann and her current cronies-in-kind — Marjorie Taylor Greene, Ted Cruz, Matt Gaetz, among a legion of others — thrive on fear and hate, the two-sided coin that drives the reactionary right.

A wise man once told me, “Do not ever — ever — make a crucial decision when you are in the throes of fear or hate. Nothing good can come of it. Wait until your senses return, and then decide.”

It’s unfortunate for our country that many of our right-wing politicians have not had a wise man or woman in their lives.