Why the Prophet Is and Isn’t a Founding Father

All societies present an entangled mesh of values, with many contradictions that never get sorted out. In America, religion is a particularly tangled strand, and despite the Founding Fahters’ clear intention to provide freedom of religion and the separation of church and state, some Americans insist on re-arguing the point continuously. In their vehemence they contradict another typical value that they hold, an irrational worship of the Constitution. But that’s how society is meant to be when people elect to be free. (more…)

A Chance to Root for the Arab Street, For Once

The history of popular revolutions has been horrifying if we look over our shoulders at Russia, China, and Germany, but you can’t help but hope that Tunisia starts a domino effect in the Muslim world. Fear has kept the West, and the U.S. especially, on the side of brutal reactionary rule in countries where the alternative — fanatical fundamentalism — was even more fearful. No image frightened the average American more than the Arab street portrayed on TV, an angry mob ready to hate us without provocation. But behind those outraged young men lies real grievances that run very deep. (more…)

Can Obama (or Anyone) Make America Purple?

What is commonly called “coming together” is a momentary flicker, a media event that viewers peer at briefly before returning to normal. In that regard, the coming together in Tucson looked to be more of the same. But it’s possible to feel a hint of something different. The intensity of emotion surrounding the shootings, the unusual openness of President Obama’s speech, and a vague sense of turning the corner, all these things may indicate that decades of rancor may be shifting. Even the Sarah Palin “blood libel” scuffle seemed not so much to rile tempers as to occasion a shrug of “go away, already” from the country. (more…)