[Buddha-l] Re: fundamentalism

[Richard P. Hayes]

On Fri, 2005-07-01 at 19:44 -0400, StormyTet at aol.com wrote:

> Having spent my life studying religions from the inside, there is
> nothing more powerful or insidious than a fundamentalist belief
> system. These people will die, cheat, steal, rape, pillage and murder
> in the name of god.

What gives me optimism is simply the fact that people who will die,
cheat, steal and murder will ultimately turn against one another with
all this viciousness they turn against what they currently perceive as
their enemy. Those who have integrity and who can co-operate will lose
many battles, but ultimately they will win the war. So it has usually
worked out in history in the long run. The thing is, you must be a
distance runner, not a sprinter.

> They won't give up.

This is something they have in common with liberals.

> They will always think in us/them terms.

True enough, but their "them" keeps changing. Today's friend is
tomorrow's foe.

> Rove understands their mindset quite well. The republicans know how to
> get them motivated.

Yes, Rove understands paranoia exceedingly well, because he himself
suffers from it. But he will sooner or later alienate many of the very
people he is now courting. By 2008, if not by 2006, the Greens and
Democrats will learn how to motivate liberals. They may not have to work
hard to do it, because Rove has already motivated them most powerfully,
albeit against him.

> Culturally speaking, many african americans in the inner city are
> turning toward a conservative politics in the name of their faith.

Almost all of this is due to one issue: homosexuality.

> They have to be addressed wisely and I am not sure that most rational,
> humanitarian people have enough tolerance to really see the ways to
> shift these sheep into a more thoughtful modality of being.

Just since November 2004 I have seen enormous changes among religious
(and secular) liberals. Don't worry. They are learning very rapidly. 
Within a short time, the battle will not seem nearly so one-sided. After
all, the liberals have the full force of buddha-l behind them. And we
never lose.

-- 
Richard Hayes