I was in Pennsylvania last week just after their Democratic Party primary and the election issues were still red hot. It sort of got me looking at the political landscape a little more closely this past week. So, at the risk of being misunderstood, getting some angry at me and possibly alienating some of you, I thought I might use that as the backdrop for this month’s newsletter. Please remember that I do not speak for anyone but me. I am an ordained Permanent Deacon in the Catholic Church but cannot speak for the Church. I can only maintain my personal views and in doing so attempt to maintain them in a way that is consistent with the teachings of the Church. As I write this, President Bush is in Israel for the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel and today discussed his vision of a Middle East that is democratic at every level.

He was referring to his vision that the people of every individual country in the Middle East would live each in a country with a democratic government where the people have a voice. Bush has always maintained this as his vision, but the rhetoric of politics and the reality of war have often clouded our view of this vision. Israel, although only 60 years old, has a long history. Yet despite this long history, the Palestinians generally reject the notion that Israel has a right to the land it now occupies. This is a serious disagreement to say the least. Now, I am no scholar on the Middle East, but my instincts tell me that somehow there has to be a way to resolve the historical animosity that exists between the two groups. Somehow, the war in Iraq, the issue of a nuclear armed Iran, the Taliban in Afghanistan and the Palestinian-Jewish issue are all related.

I have a sense that this relation has at its center religious differences, and the reality of that spills over into our own country. Further, it has to be an issue in the upcoming presidential election. After all, we have American soldiers, men and women over there, and we must do everything to support them. The issues in the Middle East are held out to be very complicated and rooted in centuries’ old hatred and animosity. My response to that would be that making it complicated might be why we cannot find a way to adequately address the issues that exist between these two groups. The campaigns of all candidates are pandering to that portion of the American public that they are trying to persuade without any comprehensive approach. It is indicative of American politics. As I have said before in these newsletters, how we look at things often determines how we process information. If we look at them through the lenses of a Democrat we look at things one way and if we look at them through the lenses of a Republican we tend to see things very differently.

I have a friend that is a big Democrat and to him the only reason we are at war is so that the Oil Companies can make big profits. To him, Bush and Chaney are crooks and are only after one thing, helping their corporate friends make money. Well, a lot of Democrats feel this way. It is one of the reasons that I can’t stand to have a discussion with them. They have no facts on their side, but are so passionate that they will not look at the facts. Republicans on the other hand will not even consider the possibility that the war effort is taking its toll on the federal budget and will follow their leader like sheep following the shepherd. Both are at fault. There are exceptions and some people are well informed and vote on issues that are very important to them. Notwithstanding this fact, what I see in the voters this time is that the Democrats are so mad at Bush that "Change at any cost" is their motto. On the Republican side I see frustration in the fact that the primary system did not provide a strong candidate.