There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground that joins church and state, confuses science and superstition, and it lies between the depth of faith and the summit of ignorance. This is the dimension of fundamentalism. It is an area which we call the Religious Twilight Zone. (Apologies to the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation)

Satan: If the Religious Right gains dominion over society, we will all have to deal with Satan because he plays such a dominant role in their belief system. Anyone who is not born-again is vulnerable to Satan, for they are lacking the protective shield of Christ. The world is clearly divided into "good" and "evil", "Christ" and "Satan." R.J. Rushdoony, the man who is considered the father of Reconstructionism called on his followers to "administer justice upon all disobedience in every area of life where we encounter it. To deny the cultural mandate is to deny Christ and to surrender the world to the devil." (The Institutes of Biblical Law, 1973)" -Theocracy Watch http://www.theocracywatch.org/satan2.htm

would be the best thing in the world for these people. I see the ePissSelfPalians as so desperate for something to whine about that they are driving themselves increasingly batshit trying to find persecution which, in this country in these times, isn't remotely there. They need some real persecution to make themselves feel better and get the fuck back in touch with reality.

A few months or a year in a place where their religion is flat-out illegal would do wonders. They could come up with little symbols and codes to seek out co-religionists, and arrange to meet in underground cells...why, perhaps even catcombs, if they have such things in the Land of Sa'ud!

Unable to decorate these hidey-holes with fancy adornments, much less graven images which will get them arrested and executed on the spot, they would have to keep their voices down. Bring loaves of simple bread to share in their ceremonies. Demonstrate the teachings of their faith by cheerful demeanor and acts of love and charity. Holy crap, before long they'd be, like, actual Christians!

Really, I can't think of any religion that gets better by any definition when it becomes the majority faith of a country or attempts to involve itself in temporal affairs. I seem to recall that our current batch of Pests were actually warned about this in their holy book, something to do with rendering unto Caesar? Being a heathen I could of course be mistaken about this.

Let us sing.

+++

Considering that the Utah Republican Party consists primarily of Mormons, somebody should ask...

Utah Republicans are a piece of work. Remember Enid Greene? Well, she's back. Fron the linked article:

In a speech, Enid Greene, state Republican Party chair, announced to applause that she will remarry in a few months. Greene's first marriage came to an infamous end during her tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives when her husband, Joe Waldholtz, who was her campaign manager, was charged with embezzling. He eventually pled guilty to campaign fraud and other charges.

Greene said she was disappointed in BYU professors who protested Dick Cheney's visit to campus, calling them "self-appointed intellectuals."

"I'm not calling for BYU to fire them but if no one signs up for their classes ..." she said. "If they say the Vice President doesn't have anything to say we want to hear, I'm not interested in having my daughter learn from them."

We'll save the argument over whether other Christian denominations regard Mormons as Christians for another day.

...for the rest of us

When I was a kid, our next door neighbors were Mormons. One of my daughter's high school friends was a Mormon and over time I got to know her family. A couple of guys I have worked with in the past several years are Mormons. They are all good people: honest, hard working, great neighbors and co-workers, and possessing the other characteristics of people who make society better. Sure, I can't imagine the suspension of disbelief required to accept the Book of Mormon seriously, and the gyrations of the LDS church over the past century and a half are not something about which I would be proud if I were in their shoes. All were a little on the authoritarian side, and let's just say that their notions about sex need professional help. None were from Utah.

The Utah Mormons are different - and not just on the basis of the comments of Enid Greene. I don't think that it is the theology, but the theocracy instead. This sort of thing is what we are being driven to by the Robertson, Falwell, Dobson crowd. I think that it is useful to identify instances such as the Utah County Republican's comments, where the lunacy is inescapable, and tie it/them to broader theocratic concerns.

Self-invasion? That's quite a thing. How do I invade myself? That's like inserting a foreign object into an orifice.

downstreamer

They have medication for this now.