To any Canadian who looks south and realizes that the jockeying for the Republican presidential nomination is something more important than a tedious soap opera, the workings of the American congressional system are scarcely comprehensible. In the race for the privilege of ousting the present Democratic president, every Republican contender, even the Mormon, are simultaneously courting Christian fundamentalists and ultra-conservatives. Persons of other religions or no religion and of other economic faiths don't seem to count.
The sole female challenger in the presidential sweepstakes proudly boasts that she is a "born again" Christian. In my view, this is not a qualification for the highest political office.
I know about "born again" Christianity. At the tender age of eight, I responded to a pulpit call from a spellbinding radio evangelist. I then set out to become his pint-sized clone. I recall telling all my friends, of which I had more than a few, that they and their parents, dogs and cats and sundry other pets would all burn in Hell unless they immediately changed their allegiance to the church owned by my mentor. In trying to follow his example, I think I also asked for money.
My friends deserted me in droves. In desperation, I asked God to nullify my second birth and let me do it again at a more convenient time. That time has never arrived. Although I have earned a reputation as a church-going Christian, my belief in the separation of church and state is as strong as my religious faith.
My life philosophy is out of tune with Christians who reject the evidence of the fossil record. Nor can I accept the religious credentials of any self-advertised Christian who approves of both the torture of water-boarding and the continued use of force as an instrument of international policy.
The most engaging of the debaters was thrice-married Newt Gingrich. He smiled a lot and identified himself as an historian. He is, but a selective one. He didn't talk about how, except through divine intervention, any nation could gain permanent ownership of any part of our planet's surface. For most thinking human beings ownership is based on the length of uninterrupted occupancy. The people who succeeded Israel and Judah in the land of Canaan have been there for a much longer period than were the descendants of Father Abraham. In the opinion of ultra-conservative Republicans, people who subscribe to this view are godless heathens, even more evil than socialists.
It seems strange that in a country where the separation of church and state has long been a respected doctrine, biblical literalists should have so much influence. One contestant, Ron Paul, wasn't much interested in religion. His presence in the debate was refreshing; he gave the most succinct answers to his questioners and avoided self-glorification. He is a Libertarian, which means he wants to see the structures of government everywhere reduced to spindly skeletons of their former predominance.
To rousing applause, he lambasted lawmakers who try to protect citizens from themselves. Apparently for many in his audience, behaviour based on personal moral standards is superior to rules made by governments. Their enthusiasm is misplaced. Would they really want to live in a country where there are no enforceable contracts, where drivers travel where and as they choose, and all apothecaries sold diet pills containing tapeworm eggs as their secret ingredient?
In fact, it was Libertarian philosophy which caused the deregulation of banks and other financial institutions in the United States. This deregulation produced the financial crises which threatens the whole world. Barack Obama didn't do it. When his political opponents criticize him for not being able to wave a magic wand to make overnight repairs to everything which is wrong in the country, they are dealing in half-truths and outright lies.
It is impossible for Canada to be isolated from the dangerous political circus south of the border. As Pierre Trudeau opined, we are sharing our space with an elephant. And a very big and very sick one it is.
