The Bible tells them so

I think I've finally figured out how politics works in America.

I've been following the election debates pretty closely, for a few reasons: for one, the fate of the world is at stake here, at least to an extent; secondly, it's interesting to watch democracy (however compromised it may be) in action; and finally, because this is the first election where the web has become a major factor in what goes on. I find all that interesting.

But what's most interesting of all to me is the battle of ideologies: in a country with two parties (or one party with two right wings, as the cynics would have it) I'm intrigued by the way the battle lines are drawn. What makes a Republican? What makes a Democrat?

They have certain things in common, obviously. Both parties support guns. Both support capitalism and the free market. Both believe America is the greatest country on Earth, and is called to lead the people of Earth to freedom. And both call on God, fervently and frequently.

But it's not the same God. At least, it's not the same version of God. The Republicans are Old Testament types: their God is patriarchal, righteous, vengeful, and operates according to commands chipped in stone. The Democrats, for their part, are New Testament believers; they look more to Jesus than to Yaweh. They want to give the poor a helping hand; they think you should turn the other cheek. They're frightened by lightning bolts from on high.

Who's right? God knows, they're not going to sort that out with something as trivial as an election for president of the United States. They thump and thump on the Good Book, and it's a tough task to sort right from wrong when both sides claim the Bible tells them so.