At Huffpo, Frank Schaeffer says he was a Republican who left the "evangelical subculture." And he blames the Republican Party's fall on religion:
Two religions (in the broadest sense of the term) have destroyed the
Republican Party: evangelical Christianity and Christian/Jewish
Zionism. Evangelical Christianity created the Religious Right which
forever linked the Republican Party to the antiabortion, anti-sex
education, anti-evolution and anti-gay crusades. And both Christian and
Jewish Zionism linked the Republican Party to what became the
neoconservative movement with its roots in such publications as Commentary magazine and their shrill Israel-can-do-no-wrong anti-Arab agenda. (I knew the late editor of Commentary
Norman Podhoretz quite well, and we met several times to build
alliances between evangelicals and the far American Zionist far right.
When it came to Arabs, I believe he was a real racist.)
I would not call Zionism per se a religion, but I'm talking
about secular goals pursued with religious fervor. I would call
Zionism, American-style a politicized version of a religion.
"antiabortion, anti-sex education, anti-evolution and anti-gay crusades." Those issues are all nominal, and most voters probably raise their eyebrows at best, and have mixed feelings about some of them. It was the Zionism, and the attendant wars — and the lies associated with the wars in order to cover up the fact that they were related to Zionism — that destroyed the GOP. Fortunately for the GOP, the Democrats are equally Zionist (if not more so, given the prominent role played by Jewish Zionists and AIPAC in the party) and are also willing to lie about wars for Zionism, as we’ve seen with Iraq; unfortunately for the GOP, the Republican hierarchy is too stubborn and stupid to throw the Zionists under the bus where they belong. If America had a proportional representation parliamentary system, some other party could make political hay on an anti-Zionist ticket. Instead we’ve got a duopoly comprised of corrupt pro-Zionists.
Schaeffer wrote a firecracker! This is going to open the Christian discussion like nothing yet, the Rick Warren crowd. This is a cannon across the USA. This is the mainstream bomb that you've been waiting for, Phil. Schaeffer has an amazing constituency among former Evangelicals but still-devout Christians who did not like Jesus becoming a political candidate.
It is important to understand that historically Eastern European ethnic Ashkenazim are no less racist than other E. Europeans with the qualification that Jewish scholars are already developing voelkisch racial religious systems in the 18th century in advance of the development of such ideas among other Europeans: Gentiles Less Human Than Jews. Schaeffer has difficulty with discussing Zionism as an ideology because he does not know the terminology of Central and Eastern European political Science. Zionism is at least a form of politicized ethnic fundamentalism. Nowadays I could argue that it is more extreme than German Nazism and should be considered a form of politicized ethnic monism: Summary: Chabad and Jewish Political Elites.
"the late editor of Commentary Norman Podhoretz" Whoa, he killed off Podhoretz! But he ain't dead (yet)…
I was also struck by that little inaccuracy. (In fact, I ran to the Commentary Web site to see if I had missed something. Also, I'd like to know on what precisely Schaeffer bases his assertion that Podhoretz is a racist?
Nowadays I could argue that it is more extreme than German Nazism…. Oh, I'm sure you could Joachim (Thors, JES50, Citizen). But then we all know how loony you are!
I think he meant "former" editor, although I too thought he was saying Norm was dead. I'm a little asamed to say that my mind wandered to contemplate how beneficial it will be when the first generation neocon poobahs like Norman Podhoretz and Irving Kristol are gone. Because their progeny, "Fat" John Podhoretz and "Clowny" Bill Kristol aren't nearly as dangerous as their fathers.
By "we" you mean the short-bus Zionists who troll this blog. Typical though, you can't refute Joachim's argument so you troll instead. Bravo! You sure showed him!
They are just as dangerous because they are playing to a dumber audience. America is seriously dumbed down.
"It was the Zionism, and the attendant wars — and the lies associated with the wars in order to cover up the fact that they were related to Zionism — that destroyed the GOP." Which wars are being referred to? Seems to me our present wars in Afghanistan/Pakistan and Iraq have much more to do with the 1991 Gulf War, fought to defend decidedly non-Zionist Saudi Arabia, and the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan, that with Israel or Zionism. "Zionism is at least a form of politicized ethnic fundamentalism. Nowadays I could argue that it is more extreme than German Nazism" What group or groups does Zionism seek to physically exterminate? If your answer is "the Palestinians," how do you account for (1) the growth of the Israeli Arab population since 1949? (2) the growth of the Arab population in Gaza, Samaria, and Judea since 1967?