American fascism
Greetings from the sick room.
Back in October, I reviewed Salon writer Michelle Goldberg's book "Kingdom Come: The Rise of Christian Nationalism in America." My review attracted some criticism of its thesis, which I supported: that there is a subset of evangelical Christians bent on turning this country into a Mosaic theocracy. Some commenters insisted that the premise was absurd. I know better, based on my reporting, but there's no convincing some people.
Goldberg isn't the only person who thinks so. Chris Hedges, the author of "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning" (highly recommended), the son of a Presbyterian minister and a graduate of Harvard Divinity School, takes the same position. I haven't read his new book, so I won't assess it here. But I will say that, on the basis of this article, his approach appears to differ from Goldberg's in an important respect. Goldberg, who describes herself as a nonpracticing Jew, expresses primarily political/civic outrage at the trend she documents. Hedges appears to be expressing theological outrage. (I expressed both in my review of Goldberg's book, but, necessarily, in very little detail.) I look forward to seeing to what extent, if any, Hedges' book corroborates Goldberg's.
UPDATE: I've received one comment suggesting that holding American leaders accountable is nowhere near as important as trying to hold accountable more evil but much less powerful leaders in other countries over which we have no control. No, seriously.
