There are certain institutions, free speech, public education, free press, the health system, freedom of religion and free elections that we rely on as Americans to protect our democratic way of life. There are probably others, but the aforementioned are under siege.
The basis of these attacks falls to congressional politics. The Republicans, having no ideas of their own, simply attack the Democrats on every front. It’s old hat, but the big lie supported by big liars is almost normalized now. The genie is out of bottle. The guardrails that protect us from unstable elected officials might be out of even Republican control.
Gerrymandering is in place and restrictive voting laws are sweeping through many Republican legislatures. Elected Republican leaders cast doubt on our voting process and outright liars have abused the first amendment to the Constitution. You would think that would be enough, but now church leaders have abandoned their posts. Not even religion speaks to the truth.
One morning, three years ago, on the Concord campus in Mercer County, I was handed a pocket-sized New Testament, by one of the local churches that passes out these small, green texts at least once a year. I asked him if he, as a church leader, supported our womanizing, habitual lying, self-aggrandizing president in office at the time. He responded by saying it was a complicated issue and I wouldn’t understand. Those who want to communicate sometimes have to take difficult subject matter and render it in terms that others can understand. You’re not as smart as you may think if you can’t communicate with others.
Fast forward to Aug. 18. I was on my second cup of coffee watching Morning Joe as he interviewed Dan Darling, vice president of the National Religious Broadcasters. The interview, honestly, would have bored those looking for a good conspiracy. As a Christian his advice was “get vaccinated.” Makes sense, and I didn’t give it much thought. His message was reasonable and getting vaccinated fits with the science we know. On the following Saturday, he was fired, ostensibly for not remaining neutral on this issue. However, he did better than remain neutral. He told the truth.
We all know that big religion means big money. The only people who wouldn’t know the relationship between religion and money would be those who never attended a religious service as they passed the plate. The Catholic Church is rich, the Mormon Church is rich and evangelical megachurches are rich. Before exploiting their oil, the family of Ibn Saud lived off of pilgrimages to Mecca. Some synagogues are richer than others, but they are nevertheless rich. Throughout and despite their wealth, we have relied on our religious institutions to be honest with us. However, it’s clear now they are not honest if it means losing a member or donor. How do you remain neutral when the truth is involved?
The problem is there is no end in sight. The calls for the impeachment of Joe Biden are underway by the Republicans who didn’t vote for impeachment for Donald Trump for his reprehensible communications with the Ukrainian government. With regard to Biden, if presidents are going to be impeached and convicted for bad decisions, we have already missed opportunities to impeach JFK, LBJ, Reagan, Bush ’41, Clinton, W and Trump. I am sure the Republicans would add a few more Democratic presidents and the Democrats would pony up additional Republican presidents. The bigger question is, of course, are we headed in the direction of Italians of the mid-20th century and German counterparts, the unstable governments of Latin America, or the strongman dictators of Asia and the former eastern-block countries?
We assume our institutions and the people who run them would be the guardrails we look to as protection for our democracy. The operative words are the people who front the institutions.
Rep. Louie Gomert, a Republican from Texas, is one of a few pushing for ivermectin, a horse medication, as COVID-19 virus protection. Anything to avoid supporting the CDC even though the vaccines were developed through Trump’s Operation Warp Speed. So, our national health institution is under attack. Trump undermined our trust in a free press — if it didn’t’ support him, it was fake news. A free press is a corner stone of any democracy. He chose Putin over our intelligence community. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., joined in as fast as the wind would blow against his weather vane mind.
Republicans at the state level have not remained neutral, but obstructed educational leaders trying to protect our youngest school children with masks.
Perhaps the most recent attack on our institutions is by McCarthy, who is threatening telecom companies who turn over records to the Jan. 6 Commission. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisc., stated publicly he would only run for two terms. Now, he is considering a third term. Honest service to our country has devolved into “it’s all about me and my party comes first.” The way to solve our problem is clearly term limits for all.
"Opinion" - Google News
September 19, 2021
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Joe Manzo: The trouble within (Opinion) | Op-Ed Commentaries | wvgazettemail.com - Charleston Gazette-Mail
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