The Last Crusade: Religion and the Politics of Misdirection

by Barbara Victor

Book Overview

There are 80 million born again Christians of voting age in the United States, including George W. Bush. Jesus Christ is a personal friend of every one of them. They know that Jesus wants them to vote... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1841199559
• ISBN13: 9781841199559
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: Constable & Robinson
• Length: 312 Pages

Customer Reviews

Seminal review of the wisdom of 'Separation of Church and State'

Barbara Victor's editorial reaction to a political revolution that has occurred in the United States over the last three decades draws strength from first-person interviews and experiences with people of all stripes. It is a book from which both religious and secular can learn. Or, one can chose to interpret it in support of whatever one favors. Victor's bias is the inappropriateness of religious dogma driving political governance. Those on a frenzy of self-feeding, absolute certitude are dangerous be they Islamic fundamentalists, Christian fundamentalists, or whoever. It is interesting that a political cartel is subverting the deliberate structure of the American democratic republic and calling itself patriotic. Somehow, that which made the United States great for 200 years is no longer appropriate and is deemed weakness. We are in the process of no longer being "a Government of the People, by the People, and for the People" but instead "a Nation under God." I suppose it does sound better. However, separation of church and state was installed by wise Founders to unite a diverse populace into a great nation, unity considered critical to survival of the Republic. Consequently, We have had the freedom to be a God-full people who could trust in God without fear of intimidation by the God of others. Victor believes what has been happening in the United States in her lifetime is not in Our interest. The Founding Fathers feared that the greatest threat was from within, the potential of a single, powerful group to dominate governance, quite simply the breakdown of democracy when 'ins' are more worthy than 'outs.' Democracy is fragile, and most have failed. The brilliance of American democracy is the complex mechanism of safeguards built into the Constitution. Some of Us still cherish the notion. Victor believes the United States is in peril. Even Righteous special interest cannot be given the nation. This book is her educated and experienced interpretation. She should be able to express her opinion without being labeled a conspirator. The book is well-done and important. Brava!

A Revealing Book

All forms of fanaticism are ugly, dangerous and evil. Barbara Victor's is no different. Ms Victor is an anti-Christian fundamentalist. Her book is essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the inner-workings of a zealot's mind. She pulls numerous 'rhetorical fast ones' to present a deliberately false picture in the reader's mind, and oftentimes in doing so, her black propaganda runs directly in tandem with that of Al Qa'eda and encourages the enemy to kill American soldiers at time of war. Ms Victor informs us on p.24 that "It is a tragic irony that the Christian media campaigns so tirelessly against pornography ... [while] US soldiers in Iraq were generating vast quantities of sadistic pornography as part of America's crusade for democracy". This reads like something written by an Al Qa'eda spin doctor. It is a classic example of the bratocratic values that permeate western media. At time of war, with the lives of US Coalition soldiers on the line, we simply can no longer afford the luxury of indulgence of such behaviour. Ms Victor and her bratocratic colleagues really do need to be forced to face their adult responsibilities. Intriguingly, in her next paragraph, she states "As we shall see, the media, when covering the war, have taken to marching in sync with the Bush doctrine that combines state and church". Leaving aside her polemic over 'the Bush doctrine', anyone with half a grip on reality would by utterly bewildered by her statement. Needless to say, untrue to her word, she does not say how the media has been acting as a Bush cheerleader over Iraq. Elsewhere she claims that George W Bush has mobilised the United States in a war against Islam. I dont know. Maybe she's forgotten how in the wake of 9/11 President Bush and his Administration bent over backwards to stave off revenge attacks against American Moslems? Maybe she's forgotten how Presdident Bush stood shoulder to shoulder with American Muslim leaders in the Washington Mosque and declared "Islam is about peace" and that the terrorists who attacked America did not represent Islam? Or maybe there's no lie too big for her to tell to discredit a Christian American President, even if it means promoting enemy black propaganda that gets Americans killed? On p.92 she states "Enmity between Christians and Muslims dates back to the Crusades of the 11th Century". Maybe she's unaware that Muslims invaded Spain and much of Europe in the 8th Century? Oh, but hold on, in the same paragraph she mentions that Spain was invaded but she doesn't give a date. Yep, it's the Christians to blame for the enmity Moslems feel towards the West. Hey, let's not just do away with the State of Israel, let's do away with Christians as well, then all will be fine with our Moslem friends. Once more Barbara Victor gives credence to Al Qa'eda black propaganda that gets Americans killed. At the end of Chapter 2 she equates Christian fundamentalism with Islamic fundamentalism. Honest

Well-written political potshot against born-again Christians

This is a fascinating history of the rising influence of evangelical Christians in American politics. There are 80 million born-again Christians of voting age in the United States, including George W. Bush, who became President only because he gained their support. Author Barbara Victor is not an evangelical herself, and her book suffers from an anti-Christian bias. She reports on Christian influence as though it is a bad thing. She mentions powerful Christians, wealthy Christians, and influential lobbyist Christians as though someone should stop these people having influence because they are Christians. But from the Christians' view, of course, a strong Christian influence will ensure a better society. For them, it is a good thing. Even though I disagree with the author's fears, and her bias, I think this is a good book for Christians and non-Christians alike. I learned a lot from her research. I learned about Christian people and organizations I had never heard of before, and it made me realize there is a lot more good going on in the world than I thought. As we would expect in the rapidly changing world of politics, some of the information Victor presents is already out of date in the short time since the book came on sale in 2005. Some of the key players have died, some have retired or stepped down because of illness, and some of the support has changed in some areas. Even so, it is still a reasonably up-to-date account of evangelical influence in politics. I think it is good reading for anyone who wants to find out some little-known facts about why Christianity has become a growing influence in American politics since Ronald Reagan's election in 1980.

On the increasing power of Evangelicalism ...

Barbara Victor has written about MADONNA (GODDESS, Inside Madonna ) or about the plagued Burmesian politician Aung San Suu Kyi (The Lady: Aung San Suu Kyi: Noble Laureate and Burma's Prisoner), she investigated to the topic "marital force" (Getting Away with Murder: Weapons for the War Against Domestic Violence ) as well as about Islamistic female suicide assassins (German: SHAHIDAS, the daughters of terror; English: ARMY OF ROSES - Inside The World of Palestinian Women Suicide Bombers -- also as a TV documentation ). Now Barbara Victor starts to discuss the fundamental American Christian crusade, which spreads from Washington (The Last Crusade: Religion and the Politics of Misdirection). The book author and journalist Barbara Victor worked for 15 years for the TV-channel CBS, in addition for U.S. News and World Report, Elle, Femme (she lives in Paris at times) or Madam Figaro. She has interviewed many important politicians in the Middle East and in the USA (among other things the legendary Libyan tent enthusiast Moammar Ghadaffi). So she splits gradually between the description of Islamistic rage on the one hand and on the other hand of mentioning the missionary Texan evangelicalism. Besides the inestimably dangerous foreign policy consequences an analysis is definitely worth what donation monies arises and is moved in the inner American cultural war. Barbara Victor lines up many involved by: the evangelical preachers Billy and Franklin Graham, the strictly religious John Ashcroft etc.- Next to the known backgrounds (the "immoral" Bill Clinton was brought into discredit by the moralists well versed in the Bible with his liberal political direction, there is order again now: against abortion is proceeded and against stem cell research or against the nature scientifically oriented biology lesson) - next to the known backgrounds there are discussed less known but nevertheless very informative topics: With God at their side (such an also interesting book title of the author Esther Kaplan) the religious right-wings have the veto power over the president candidates of the Republican party. One can absolutely comprehend in the course of the reading: The " September Eleven " is sorted as God's alarm call - and the Evangelicals (Bush belongs to these people all the time) feel now particularly motivated, to support Israel against the Islam. (Evangelicals support ideologically and financially [ annual approx. a billion Euro ] for example the incorrigible settler movement which was not easy to send away of the Gaza-era.) Mainly well known for their lively rhetoric regarding a war against the evil ones has to be said at the side, moreover, the influence of these 80 million U.S. fundamental Christians will also noticeably gradually in Africa and Latin America and perhaps one will soon have to add that: also in Europe ...