The Godless Also Serve

Just before the presidential election on the October 19, 2008 edition of Meet The Press Colin Powel endorsed Barack Obama for President. Powell seemed particularly dismayed that some Republicans continued to paint Mr. Obama as Muslim. Powell said "He's always been a Christian. But the really right answer is, what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no, that's not America," Powell said. "Is there something wrong with some 7-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?"

He went on to tell the story of seeing a photo essay depicting U.S. troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan which included an image of a mother with her head resting upon the Tombstone of her twenty year old son in the Arlington National Cemetery. On the headstone was the “crescent and star of the Islamic faith”. This reportedly had a great effect on Mr. Powell because it reinforced in his mind that people of all faiths were dying in these wars and to marginalize Mr. Obama with suggestions he was a Muslim was ridiculous and incongruous.

Many in the mainstream media, including Chris Matthews on Hardball, ran with this issue and praised Mr. Powell for making this point; as well they should have as it was certainly a point that needed to be made. What was amazing to me was that no one had made the point sooner.

Fast forward about one week and Elizabeth Dole began running a television advertisement which accused her opponent, Kay Hagan, of being Godless. Immediately there was a strong response from Mrs. Hagan citing the inaccuracy of the statement and the fact that she had taught Sunday school. Good for her. However how much stronger would her response have been if in addition to that statement she had added, as did Mr. Powell, so what if she was.

Surveys differ in estimating the atheist population of the United States but the median seems to be somewhere around ten percent. Can we then doubt that alongside the Christians and the Muslims that there are atheist dying for our country in Iraq and Afghanistan? The spirit of Mr. Powell’s point applies to these men and women as well.

I have not heard one member of the mainstream media make this point although the parallel between the two situations is obvious. I have not even seen this idea expressed by other blogger’s although I am sure it has been.

Christians like to state that they are the last group in America subject to discrimination. The foregoing situation makes clear who the last group in the United States subject to overt discrimination really is.