Yesterday, on C-Span, a woman called to give her reasons for voting for Bush. At the end of her explanation, she added, "Oh, and the God thing. A vote for the Republicans is a vote for God."

What a God this woman worships! One who stands for intolerance, lying, corruption, poisoning children, trashing the land and waterways, sending people off to die for a phony cause, and massive hypocrisy.

It is no wonder that Christianity is "bashed," as the conservatives like to say. This brand of Christianity--which is growing more popular in the United States every year--is really just a stand-in for the white male supremacy that has always been worshipped in every culture. But the joke is on most of the white males who belong to this cult, for they also will wind up victims of the current Republican movement.

Playing to both the Christian right and wealthy corporations shouldn't work, but because of massive levels of ignorance and a need to "take back America," the strategy has been a great success. Even when the White House appears to shift to the middle ("appears" is the operative word here) and right-wing Christians are angered, there is no fear of losing their votes.

The C-Span caller was on to something. It isn't about God, of course, but "the God thing"--the substitute for morality that takes away the work of the mind and the conscience. If you are into The God Thing, you can step over homeless people, deny rights to gay citizens, put two American flags on your car, and have a high old time. You don't even have to be white and male to do it: The God Thing has created enough internalized misogyny that women are once again suspicious of feminism, and African Americans are content to let hundreds of their own die of AIDS.

This is how a political war is always won--make sure the population is fractured, and that its factions fight against each other.

And make sure that God is far removed from the realities of suffering and intolerance.