There are many people currently spewing accusations at those they consider “enemies of the state,” by using “isms” that elicit fear, anger, and righteous indignation. I’m afraid rhetoric in the form of hate speech is a prelude to violent actions—I’ve lived to see the assassinations of President Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr., and have seen the ugly consequences of hate speech. Those in power know the buttons to push to divide and conquer people and motivate them to act against their own best interests so they become pawns in a game that keeps the establishment in control of the money and resources. The adage, “Just follow the money,” explains all.

These “isms” create a frenzy of hate and fear. Those leveling these accusations, both unintentionally and intentionally, create a social climate of division while claiming to be on the right side of history, true Americans, real Christians, or simply righteous people exercising their sacred (often referred to as “God-given) First Amendment rights.

#1 Racism as defined in Wikipedia is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and those racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race. In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment.

Is Obama a racist?

Okay, with everyone calling everyone else a racist, will the real racists please stand up? I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon. I believe we all have hints of racism or judgments about groups of people, but what matters is do we actually attempt to take away or deny others the same rights we have on the basis of race? We have Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, and others calling Obama a racist. I just don’t get this one. Has Obama tried to pass legislation denying anyone of any race equal rights or protection under the law? Has he spoken disparagingly about any racial or ethnic group? Obama is not white or back—he's bi-racial, and if you’ve read his autobiography Dreams from my Father, you grasp his struggle to embrace his multicultural roots, to form a personal identity that integrates his blackness and whiteness. It is evident Obama loves both sides of his family, including his half sister whose father is Asian. Those calling Obama racist never site reasonable examples to support this fantasy—they pulled it from the air, or from some other place I prefer not to name, as that would be bad manners.

#2 Nazism as defined in Wikipedia is officially known in Germany as National Socialism. It is the totalitarian ideology and practices of the Nazi Party or National Socialist German Workers’ Party under Adolf Hitler, and the policies adopted by the dictatorial government of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945.

Does wanting health care reform make you a Nazi?

When Glen Beck and his followers call Obama and anyone who wants health care reform, Nazis, and compare Obama to Hitler, I simply don’t get the metaphor. For one thing, Nazism stood for a belief in the superiority of the Aryan race, or the true German people, and committed itself to destroying Jews, people of color, and anyone they deemed racially impure. As addressed above, there is no evidence Obama is a racial purest. Being bi-racial, that would be hard for Obama to pull off. Hitler was responsible for murdering six million Jews, invading numerous countries, and trying to achieve world domination. I don’t see the connection between those heinous acts and trying to get decent affordable health care for Americans. Do these same name-callers consider the leaders in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Scandinavia, Japan, and other western countries and all who support and benefit from national health care plans, Nazis?

Guantanamo Bay Naval Base – 21^th Century Concentration Camp

The Nazi party stripped people of habeas corpus, arrested and detained anyone anytime at will, practiced torture of its opposition, and controlled all aspects of society—the press, the arts, education, industry, the military, etc. Now, many of the same Right Wingers who accuse Obama and the left wing liberals of being Nazis supported the Bush/Cheney administration that created GITMO (the concentration camp where people labeled terrorists have been denied legal recourse.) We were told its okay to detain unlawful combatants or unprivileged combatants or belligerent civilians who directly engaged in armed conflict in violation of International Humanitarian Law, indefinately without charging them—they have no rights under the law. To question this practice is un-American or seen as siding with the terrorists. Here is the dangerous Catch 22. This gives the military complete control over the process of arresting, detaining, and sentencing people deemed unlawful combatants without any legal checks and balances. This is chilling in its similarity to the tactics practice by Nazis in World War II. It means we have given the military the right to arrest and even torture on mere assumption of guilt. Of course, when Obama promised to close GITMO, he was called naïve and accused of putting us at risk and making the world dangerous--he was accused of being un-American and siding with terrorists.

The Patriot Act – designed to deter and punish American terrorists

The very thought makes me nervous. The Right has been big supporters of The Patriot Act that gives law enforcement rights to arrest anyone suspected of being or supporting terrorists without just cause. There have been so many hideous abuses of The Patriot Act, including: government insisting public libraries turn over their records to monitor the public’s reading material, wiretapping of news-media outlets and civilians without warrants, arresting of innocent civilians on mere suspicion—this could fill up 20 hubs! This reminds me of the political climate in Germany during World War II. It means the government has the right to pick you up off the street whenever it feels like it—they just have to say they have reason to believe you may have terrorist intentions. I love the arguments offered by those who think this is perfectly acceptable because if you have nothing to hide, you should be perfectly okay with giving over your civil rights to the government. Such justification for real totalitarian tactics is Orwellian.

#3 Socialism as defined by Wikipedia - Most socialists share the view that capitalism unfairly concentrates power and wealth among a small segment of society that controls capital and derives its wealth through exploitation, creates an unequal society, does not provide equal opportunities for everyone to maximize their potentialities, and does not utilize technology and resources to their maximum potential nor in the interests of the public.

Hum…given the recent tax payer bailouts of Wall Street, companies too big too fail, the financial industry, the health care industry, the insurance companies, it sounds like the Socialists make some good points. However, Obama and the Democrats in Congress and most left wing Americans, aren’t Socialists in the way the Right accuses them. This was demonstrated by the government's willingness to bail out the big players in order to keep capitalism from being flushed instantly down the toilet. Obama is all for a healthy American economy that gives people incentives to climb the ladder, get out of poverty, and keep buying stuff like cars, houses, cable T.V., fast food, junk that falls apart, and all the good stuff like washing machines and dryers, blue jeans, pet clothing, and other necessities. But those of us on the left, and plenty of sane people of all persuasions, just want decent health care and a fair shot at the American dream that is being eroded by the greedy emperors that rule the United States of Corporations.

A very dangerous “ism”

Fundamentalism as defined in Wikipedia refers to a belief in a strict adherence to a set of basic principles (often religious in nature), sometimes as a reaction to perceived doctrinal compromises with modern social and political life.

Are we really one nation under God with liberty and justice for all?

I believe fundamentalism stems from the inability of people to think metaphorically. For example, there is Christian Fundamentalism, a religion where the Bible is taken literally, and therefore, Noah did indeed build an ark, and miraculously managed to take two animals, two insects, two birds, and two of every possible life form upon the ark to save them from the flood. Okay, we have freedom of religion, thank god, in the United States of America (sort of), and we are free to believe in the tooth fairy if we choose—I only ask believers to keep their religion in the appropriate sphere and not in public schools, not in front of public court houses (such as tablets of the Ten Commandments), and out of the government. Please stop calling this a Christian nation—we are a nation of all religions, including lots of atheists and agnostics. And, please don’t use your religion to make up laws that take away the civil rights of others who do not share your religious views—such as denying the rights of Gays to marry and serve in the military if they come out of the closet. Not everyone believes as you do, that homosexuality is a sin. No one is forcing you to be Gay. Learn to live and let life.

Is Jesus the only way?

Not everyone believes that Jesus Christ is the only savior and the only path to God, and that if you are a non-believer you are going to hell. Some people are by nature more eclectic and like to think all of the teachers had something good to say. Some people like to think of all Gods as essentially the same God (kind of like wearing different costumes) who has taken lots of different forms at different times in history to help people learn how to be kinder to their fellow man. Some people look at spiritual writings, such as the Bible more metaphorically, like stories that teach lessons or share insight rather than literal occurrences. And, some people do believe in science and the importance of teaching science to children in schools even if it conflicts with your religious beliefs—remember we do have separation of church and state in this country. And some people don’t like religion at all or aren’t sure if there is a God—is that really such a sin?

I'm certainly not saying Christians are the only group with fundamentalists.There are fundamentalists in all religions and in all political movements and they are usually very intent on fighting with those who don’t think like they do, and seem willing to throw someone under a bus if scripture or their dogma authorizes them to do so. They seem more attached to the word of God in their scripture than to peace, tolerance, compassion, and the very values their religions are supposed to preach.