The Myth of Security

As the evil murders of the two adolescent boys in Iran continues to percolate in my mind and dominate my thoughts, I am reminded of this essential reality: while every human being on this planet seeks security and safety, neither will ever be guaranteed. Such grace is not an aspect of reality (e.g. What would pass as a youthful indiscretion, or a consensual sexual act protected by the rule of law in one place, is your death sentence in another). And it really doesn’t matter who you are. Tomorrow your world could be ripped away from you. As a friend recently said, "Freedom of religion no longer exists in the U.S. Conservative Christianity is quickly becoming the religion of statehood, and we are all being forced to live under its tenets. I keep thinking things will change. And then they do--for the worse."

And still, I’m thinking in the broadest possible context here. When, for example, a natural disaster redefines our world, we are shocked, but we know that such things are (usually) within the realm of possibility. And while the regime that oppresses the people of Iran could well be argued to be even more trustworthy in this particular tragedy than ANY natural disaster, the basic premise is the same: inspite of our faith in history or institutions, our individual security is a myth.

A mere seven years ago, who (no matter which side of the political spectrum where upon you stand) in this nation could have honestly imagined the present reality of this precipice of history on which we now teeter? Rights most Americans have taken for granted for nearly a generation are now back in question – and rather than advancing and expanding our freedoms, the present regime is “heaven” bent on limiting and molding rights into the narrow box of their theological world.

There was a time when the thought of pure democracy in some societies was not tenable because the majority of citizens beliefs and desires would clearly oppress the minority. In such countries, this desire to create an idealized society based upon the majority’s well-defined and exclusionary doctrines was labeled in more “civilized” nations as Fascism.

The world witnessed these ideological social experiments in places like Italy, Kampuchea, PDR China, and the Soviet Union, and opposed them. Eventually, the very citizens of these nations rebelled against their oppressors. And more often than not, looked to our nation as an inspiration.

So imagine my surprise, as I now I realize fully how the United States is becoming the very thing it has long stood against? We are being driven toward a theocratic state that is actually hell bent on reversing and denying personal freedoms. The state is assuming authority in our lives based upon a singular understanding of who and what God is. An understanding that logically demands of it’s adherents either the conversion of the infidel, or their annihilation. I am not speaking hyperbolically. And I am not a citizen of Iran....or North Korea, or Burma, or the Sudan -- or any another Facist nation.

Wake up, America! Those of us who still want, for ourselves and for others, a nation based upon hope and FREEDOM are not yet in the minority here. We must rise to this moment and make our voices heard. We must oppose the forces that seek to impose their cultural paradigms upon us. While those who feel that our present direction is the right direction must be allowed to live in a nation where they may experience this in the privacy of their own homes and social circles; every other citizen of the United States must ALSO be free to expect nothing less.

"One nation....with liberty and justice....for ALL."