I actually think that far too many people, especially conservative evangelicals, write off too many events as some kind of "act of God," rather than a product of human choice. Today, Joe Barton famously apologized to the BP CEO in an attack on Obama--one that the rest of the Republican leadership didn't much care for. After all, it makes them the party defending BP. And outside their immense lobbying campaign, no one wants to be in that position.
But here is the funny thing. While talking about Barton's error, the house leadership referred to the spill as a "natural disaster." Really?
Reminds me of how people approached the collapsed bridge in Minnesota or even Katrina. Instead of seeing them as at least partially about failed choices, they wrote them off as "acts of God." In an "act of God" after all, figuring out who is to blame is a fool's errand. Certainly the hurricane was not human created, but the depleted marshes and wetlands, the poorly maintained levies, and the horrible response to those harmed by Katrina--those were all human choices.
Just an interesting look into the mind of many Republicans about their world.
1 comment:
Well, if it wasn't just some random act of God, it must have been Obama's fault somehow. :(
This well has been having severe trouble for weeks and months before it finally blew, BP ran fast and loose with safety before it blew, it is most definitely human error here.
God gave us stewardship over this earth and made us fellow workers in His creation. We don't seem to have repaid His trust very well.
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