Didn’t They Say God Damn America?

The Values Voters presidential debate kicked off with an interesting bit of hypocrisy. It was led off with a lovely choir singing Why Should God Bless America to the tune God Bless America. The song goes on to note that America has forgotten God, turned it’s back on God, stopped its school children from worshipping in schools and told them that they are God, become baby killers, and completely turned it’s back on what makes America what it was.

So, what is the logical conclusion of the song that began the Republicans little shindig? Well I say it’s that we don’t deserve to be blessed by God and therefore should be damned.

Hey does that sound familiar? Wait it does to me too follow me over the fold.



The Reverend Jeremiah Wright also had occasion to suggest that God might not just bless America, but instead reach for the damnation button. I’m sure a lot of people don’t know what America he was calling on God to condemn Hannity and the rest of the MSM didn’t deign to tell us, but just for comparison purposes I went to the google and uncovered what Wright considered sins of a country worthy of damnation.

And the United States of America government, when it came to treating her citizens of Indian descent fairly, she failed. She put them on reservations. When it came to treating her citizens of Japanese descent fairly, she failed. She put them in internment prison camps. When it came to treating her citizens of African descent fairly, America failed. She put them in chains, the government put them on slave quarters, put them on auction blocks, put them in cotton field, put them in inferior schools, put them in substandard housing, put them in scientific experiments, put them in the lowest paying jobs, put them outside the equal protection of the law, kept them out of their racist bastions of higher education and locked them into positions of hopelessness and helplessness. The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing 'God Bless America.' No, no, no, not God Bless America. God damn America — that's in the Bible — for killing innocent people. God damn America, for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America, as long as she tries to act like she is God, and she is supreme. The United States government has failed the vast majority of her citizens of African descent. The sermon was called confusing God and Government

So there you have it. Republicans are perfectly able to note that damnation and America can go in the same thought process, but for only certain issues important to them. Not the murder and subjugation of its people of native heritage that’s cool. Well how about slavery and all the misery rape and misuse associated with it? Well our Republican friends say sweet to that. Drugs, the plight of women in this country and all the other things that the Rev. Wright mentioned when he warned America to not try and make itself God? They would agree probably if it came from anyone other than Barack Obama's ex-pastor.

I close with some good words from the book of Matthew chapter 15 verse 7 where it says

You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

Update: Tip of my cap to the Kitty's SC and straight Kitty.

Here are the lyrics I should have put them in in the first place.

Why should God bless America?
She’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back
On everything that made her what she is

Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sin and heal our land

The courts ruled prayer out of our schools
In June of ‘62
Told the children “you are your own God now
So you can make the rules”
O say can you see what that choice
Has cost us to this day
America, one nation under God, has gone astray

Why should God bless America?
Shes’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back on everything
That made her what she is

Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sins and heal our land

In ‘73 the Courts said we
Could take the unborn lives
The choice is yours don’t worry now
It’s not a wrong, it’s your right

But just because they made it law
Does not change God’s command
The most that we can hope for is
God’s mercy on our land

Why should God bless America?
She’s forgotten he exists
And has turned her back on everything
That made her what she is

Why should God stand beside her
Through the night with the light from his hand?
God have mercy on America
Forgive her sins and heal our land

(Reading from 2nd Chronicles 7:14) If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land

God have mercy on America forgive her sins and heal our land

http://www.rightwingwatch.org/2007/09/why_should_god_bless_america.html


Update II: From the comments it has been pointed out that this video is from 2007. I heard the video and song from Rachel Maddow last night, and had assumed they played it to lead off this years summit also. Well you know what they say those who assume. So in the interest of accuracy and with respect to the community we are..based in reality I do note that this song was produced then, and have attempted to correct any temporal distortion in the diary.