Recent news of Barack Obama's frustration with what he calls the "inexcusable" Democratic voter apathy that threatens his party's hold in Congress combined with news that most Americans are religious illiterates provides an interesting irony at a time when both situations underlie profound realities.
Obama is not the first to realize that, barring some unforeseen miracle or sweeping change in the political, social, and economic winds of this country, the Democrats are about to watch how Americans' intoxication with their drivel is never permanent. In fact, recent voting and poll results indicate that Obama and his party will be holding on to power by one hand instead of two very soon, with the hopeful anticipation that Obama will be playing cards with Carter in Home for One Term Democrats very soon.
It is particularly enjoyable that Obama finds this apparent Democratic voter apathy so "inexcusable" since he should be an expert in doing inexcusable things. I, for one, do not find this attitude inexcusable but, rather, expected given the reality that few people can stay motivated when their team has a clueless coach, an arrogant game plan, and spends most of their time pointing fingers at their opponents. In fact, anyone looking for justification of this voter apathy need only review what Obama has and has not done since his election and how he treats American voters, American values, and America itself. The only thing that Obama's reaction to this situation tells me is that he will most likely blame everyone but himself for his upcoming election loss. After all, one cannot expect the average American to stay intelligent enough to elect an obvious genius, ethical role model, and overall Marxist messiah twice in any decade, right?
A new survey being released today by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life suggests that large numbers of Americans know little about the world's major religions, including their own. As a Catholic, I am both ashamed and unsurprised that American Catholics are as clueless about their faith as one can get. The fact that Atheists are more aware of their beliefs than Christians, for example, would be amusing if it were not so pathetic. I find a delicious irony in the finding that people who do not believe in God are more versed in that belief than those who do believe in the Lord. Given this finding, it is not surprising why anti-religion forces are doing so well while traditional religious supporters are losing ground. This finding also partially explains why religious frauds like Barack Obama can remotely pretend to be Christian without invoking mass laughter. Snake oil salesmen have always sold more snake oil to those who do not know snake oil from their elbow.
At first glance, these two apathies might seem completely unrelated, but further reflection may reveal otherwise. In both cases, a given group's support and defense of a view, belief, or agenda has faded under the weight of opposing forces. In both faces, that group's future fortunes rests primarily in its ability to somehow revitalize, refresh, or reinforce their message. I suggest that one more observation can be made regarding these two apathies. The first reflects the reason that most Americans can still keep their heads up regarding this nation's future. Unfortunately, the second reflects the reason why those heads will rarely look up to Heaven anytime soon.
