By Edwin Cooney
I read a commentary the other day in the New York Times by Nate Cohn. The subject was the increasing dominance of sectarianism, the best definition of which is “giving all political movements the status of a religious conviction.” I assert that's what we're getting too close to doing and it's costing our friends and our futures.
Historically, people have disassociated due to race and religion. However, except perhaps during the Civil War, most people on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line seldom refused to marry a Democrat or a Republican. (Note: The families of Presidents Lincoln, Grant, Hayes, and Theodore Roosevelt survived the vicissitudes of the Civil War.) These days it appears that more and more people are disassociating themselves due to political and social mores. Hence politics seems to be as divisive as religious affiliation once was!
It's my guess that the main reason for what I call the “religification" of our political and social differences is due to two factors - advocation versus belief. To advocate, one must explain or justify one's outlook or position. However, to believe something is a sacred right standing on its own! The option to explain can and often is kept to one's self. It's strictly and perfectly private and personal. In short, it's none of anyone's business as much as it is behind one's attitudes and actions.
The world is changing as it historically does and that's part of the reason for so much disquiet. Every theory, every finding, even every understanding has become a religion rather than a mere conclusion. Even worse, we appear on the edge of turning any political entity into a cult!
As Nate Cohn in The Times points out, there are hopeful signs that forces exist that may modify this movement toward sectarianism. The fact is that even in “Red” Texas where the GOP still reigns supreme, big oil is gradually investing in solar or “green” power. Now, that's progress — essential progress.
However, what Conservatives should keep in mind as they seek to control voting rights in the wake of the recent election is the likelihood that soon those very minorities they seek to control will soon be the majority of the voting population. In view of that reality, will atheists, agnostics, Hispanics, Blacks, LGBTQ people and other minorities treat those who are white and Anglo-Saxon the way that they have been treated?
I've never subscribed to the overly simplified conclusion that history inevitably repeats itself because there are invariably different emphases based on the experiences and abilities of different generations.
The best way to get a handle on this is to ask yourself some questions as you study history.
When 16th Century European powers set sail to settle the new western lands, were they capable of wisely governing the new lands they occupied? After all, history doesn't record that they'd had any previous experience in governing other peoples. What forced the Virginians to adopt chattel slavery? (Apparently 17th Century Virginians tried to use Native Americans, but they knew how to get sufficiently lost in the wilderness, so Virginia turned to the slave trade to obtain acclimatized workers.) Were there practical alternatives to our attitudes and policies toward Native Americans? Did we have to slaughter them? What was the dominating political force as we constructed the political framework of our republic? What single factor has governed our immigration laws? After all, they've shifted at least in emphasis from time to time!
As I see it, we're mistakenly passing laws designed to stifle the opportunities and freedoms of people who will soon be the majority in the beloved nation that was designed to serve the majority.
The primary fact is that over the past decade we've made everything we believe into a religion dominated by our understanding of religious orthodoxies. A strong sense of morality is an essential part of who we are, but moral indignation must always be tempered by a sense of moral restraint.
Rules, principles, even some degree of rigidity have their place in our thinking and practical application, but by making all we believe and all we'll personally tolerate into a religion amounts to the single biggest mistake we will ever make!
The separation of church and state must be maintained forever. Church and state working hand in glove spells eternal tyranny!
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,
EDWIN COONEY