Al-Haifi, tough on Bush but [Archives:2004/740/Letters to the Editor]

Robert Lindh
[email protected]
Hassan Al-Haifi's article “Boy, is it getting tougher for Mr. Bush” is an excellent work of writing. But however tough it is for Mr. Bush, one must remember that his constituency largely consists of fundamental Christians who, regardless of reason and risk, enjoy bloodshed and revenge. The majority of this group see war as a video game or a Hollywood Western movie. It is the “shock and awe” spectacle of large bombs dropping on people in Iraq and Afghanistan that linger in their imagination as a great fulfillment, with anticipation of more “shock and awe” and thousands more deaths that appeal to their imagination. Just consider the recent film “The Passion” where most of the film is devoted to torture and murder. This film was enjoyed by millions of American Christian families including small children who were encouraged to revel in the brutality of the images. These are the people who probably will see to it that Mr. Bush is elected again.
It doesn't make any difference how much trouble Mr. Bush gets himself into economically as long as he behaves in a brutal manner and promises “revenge” and more “shock and awe” and more killing of “towel-heads”. That's what the majority of Americans want. Bloodshed, and lots of it. It makes them feel good, and Mr. Bush is delivering. This is the aspect that most Moslems and Arabs, including bin Laden, don't understand about America. Yes, it is true that Americans got sick of war in Viet Nan, but the political aspect of war changed completely in America when the draft was eliminated, with a 100% professional army where the dead are hidden from the press, Americans now enjoy the destruction comfortably from their TV chairs. When US soldiers were drafted and came home in body bags, it wasn't fun. Now it is fun, and Mr. Bush promises more fun.
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