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March 5, 2007
Rank and File
by Nova Stubbs, insurgent49

Indoctrinate Your Neighbor

     Yesterday evening my husband, my stepson and I sat down to enjoy a documentary film entitled Jesus Camp.  I had many reactions to this film, as it explored modern day indoctrination of children in the Episcopal Christian church.

     According to the film, characters such as Harry Potter are evil, along with all Muslims and other non-believers. This has, and always will, outrage me about the use of power wielded by the church. Fortunately, the film also gave the perspective of other Christian denominations, and their reaction to this cult like indoctrination. They are just as pissed of at this line of thinking as liberal non-believers, and rightfully so.

    Indoctrination is rampant, and unfortunately not just in religion. The Iraq War is also part of this right wing ‘Indoctrinate Your Neighbor’ campaign, which continues to sweep across our country as religion and politics remain entwined. The good news is that they are losing, as more and more left wing officials are elected. The bad news is that Americans continue to be victims as they buy into this illogical train of thought.

    At Jesus Camp, a cardboard cut-out of “hero” George W. was brought to the stage, and the children swarmed like bees around it, kneeling down and praying that he make abortion illegal. Separation of church and state does not exist in this house of God. These right-wing indoctrinators are everywhere as they promote only a black and white type of thinking. In other words, “do what you’re told, and don’t ask any questions that we can’t answer.”

    It is this black and white line of thinking that is really stopping our society from evolving as a whole. For instance, if I hear one more person complaining that peace protesters don’t support U.S. troops, I am going to explode. In simple language, peace protesters support peace, not wars, but peace for humankind, including U.S. soldiers. This is called good old-fashioned logical and rational thought.

    The black and white thinkers can’t seem to grasp this concept, as they think that people who protest war are pro-Iraq, pro-terrorism, anti-soldier and anti-American. For crying out loud … this is not a football game, with one team pitted against the other, and it is certainly not a black and white issue.

    The U.S. troops are not fighting for our nation’s freedom, because as I recall, Iraq was not hurting any other country at the time of the U.S. invasion. Yet, there are those who are being indoctrinated into thinking otherwise. And they are victims of a system that preys on people and their inability to think critically.

    These are the same type of people that told me when I was a child that my mother was going to hell because she was not a Christian, the type of people who circle the block one more time in order to flip off the protesters. Are they ignorant? Or are they merely a byproduct of a system that won’t fund education, and promotes a sick and twisted sense of nationalism?

     Jesus Camp and the Iraq War. No wonder many people throughout the world consider Americans ignorant.
   

      

     

      Nova Stubbs is a freelance writer and activist, and is co-founder of Insurgent49. Nova resides in an undisclosed location in downtown Anchorage and may be contacted at nova@insurgent49.com.

     'Rank and File' appears on insurgent49.com every Monday.
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in-sur-gent (in sur'jent), n. 1. a member of a group which revolts against the policies of its leadership.