The End of America

Naomi Wolf the author of "The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot" and this interview, "The End of America? Naomi Wolf Thinks It Could Happen" is well worth the read, considering how she warns that Americans must be vigilant about protecting our freedoms and Democracy. Wolf is a well-known author and feminist and was a White House consultant in the Clinton era. Recently, she has been studying historical fascism and her new book outlines the ten steps fascist regimes have taken in order to gain control. She then she parallels these with current (and recently instituted) United States policies. Notably, she cautions that we can not expect an open, transparent, and accountable election in 2008 and we can expect hyped terrorism threats and purged voter rolls.

Now, don't get all uppity, my conservative friends. It is of great confusion to me how Liberals (and others) who cry for change are often decried as unpatriotic. In our great country of America, the soul of our honorable forefathers was not one of complacency, but of tolerance and freedom, consequently some of the greatest lessons in Christianity (and heck, just about every other meaningful, world religion) and in my opinion the hardest religious lesson to learn. I once had a conversation with a family member about patriotism and rebellion. Can one be a liberal and a patriot, while experiencing the throes of rebellion? I outlined my argument thus: what if one lived in Georgia in the terrible days of segregation? To be outraged at the segregation, would that make one disloyal to the great state of Georgia? Or would that love of Georgia make one activate on its behalf, to right the wrongs of an unfair authority and restore Georgia's honor through protests and rallies, in the hope of making one's state greater? Are not these the actions of true patriots?

Tangentially, the current instability in the U.S. (and a recent viewing of Children of Men) have forced me to look at our modern society through more emotionally charged, spiritual glasses. Specifically, to one forced into years and years of Bible study (think what you like, I rather enjoyed it and at the end of the day, nothing shuts up an overzealous, intolerant Bible-beater like a good counter knowledge of the Bible) one can't help but compare the idea of the Biblical "Time of Tribulation" with the good ole'-fashioned, godlessness of now (of course, I think "The Millennium" is a spot on reference to Star Trek, The Next Generation, as well).

For more ideas on why the end might be near, see my post from Cracked.com about apocryphal prophesies. Even if you have something better to do you should probable read it. Heck, you should read it even if you've read it before.