By Cheryl Seal
Mt. Vernon, Baltimore

Bush's obsession with attacking Iraq has been attributed to oil, to family vendetta due to his father's confrontation with Saddam, and with over-zealous terrorist-fighting efforts. However, what really lies beneath this obsession is a religious delusion, one shared, alas by many of his government appointees, including John Ashcroft, a devout Pentecostal. Bush, like Ashcroft, believes (and in fact is trying to insure) that the world is in the "end times" called for by the biblical book of Revelation - at least as interpreted by the doomsdayers, who are generally barely functional clinically classical paranoid schizophrenics (Pat Robertson being a prime example). Bily Graham, Bush's much-touted mentor, believes Armaggedon is at hand and has helped to fuel Bush's messianic complex as the "blessed" leader of the righteous in the end times. You can see that messianic complex so clearly in Bush's often inappropriately "rapturous" expression and grandiose body language.

In this fantasy scenario, following a mighty battle in a region the "faithful" have pinpointed as Iraq, about 144,000 "good Christians" will be sucked up into Heaven, while the rest are left to fry in a horrific conflagration. The support Bush has shown Israel isn't because of his pro-Jewish sentiments, it is because the "end times prescription" calls for Jews to be in complete control of all of Israel at the time of the big event. But, according to the fanatics' nasty little scenario, the joke will be on the Jews, who will be left to burn with everyone else, aside from a few perhaps a few last-minute converts to Christianity. Sharon, plainly fully aware of Bush's obsession, is taking full advantage of it. He just asked for - and is expected to be granted, up to $10 BILLION more dollars to help secure Israel and to buy war planes to help secure "Babylon."

In the fanatic's scenario, Iraq plays a special central role as "Babylon," embodying in the fundy's dark fantasies the "false religion" and the empire of the the "anti-Christ" in the end times. Here's a blurb for a book plugged by the "Bible Prophecy and the Rapture Report: "The Two Babylons. Authored by the late Rev. Alexander Hislop. An excellent source of information regarding the beliefs and rituals of the ancient babylonian cult that will dominate the empire of the Antichrist just as it dominated the major world empires and the Roman Catholic Church. "

The Roman Catholic Church, by the way is targeted for the wrath and villification of the righteous rapturists, who condemn it as "a false religion." I doubt if it is any coincidence that since Bush has been in office, the media has aggressively and relentlessly gone after the Catholic Church, fanning the pedophile priest stories into a modern witch hunt, while failing to investigate or expose similar allegations chronically being made by members of other religions, where such abuse may be just as rampant or even worse.

Bush's mentor, Billy Graham, as he grew in international fame, became very adept at appearing far more non-fanatical than he truly is in order to draw a bigger audience, a bigger bank account. Yet Graham attended Bob Jones University for some time, is on record making anti-Semitic comments in phone conversations with Richard Nixon, and, in 1948 declared, "The three gravest menaces faced by orthodox Christianity are communism, Roman Catholicism, and Mohammedanism."

In reality, Graham is still very much a fanatic, promoting the end times zealously. Here's a quote from his website:

"The Bible plainly forecasts the coming of yet another great war. It will be a war to eclipse anything the world has ever seen. It will embrace most of the nations of the world; and its focal point will be in the Middle East, where the armies of the world will some day deploy themselves, centering at Mount Megiddo. This great war has been called the battle of Armageddon. In the midst of this terrifying war that could destroy civilization the Lord Jesus Christ will return to this earth in glory and power to judge the nations of the world and set up His own glorious kingdom.

"The Scripture describes this great battle in the sixteenth chapter of the book of Revelation. The sixth angel will pour out his vial upon the great river Euphrates. We are told that the waters of the Euphrates River will be 'dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.' The dry riverbed will permit unhindered passage of the great armies of the East to the scene of the battle. Unclean spirits, demons, will go out into the world to the kings of the earth 'to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty' (verses 12-14).”

This passage is terrifying because if you use this scenario as Bush's real context for the Iraq war, it fits so well. It explains his total refusal to listen to any sort of reason, to the pleas of traditional allies, to the protests of millions. Who cares if millions protest if you are "figthing evildoers led by the anti-Christ," and the end times are near, anway? Billy Graham has been described by followers (and possibly by himself) as the second coming of John the Baptist. If so, then Bush (God help us all) is being seen by fanatics as the second coming of Christ, who is now in the process of setting up "his own glorious kingdom." The diversion of water from the Euphrates, the river that runs across southern Iraq, seems to play a big role in this prophesy (see also http://www.aboutbibleprophecy.com/revelation_16_12.htm) Don't be surprised if you hear of the Pentagon issuing a demand to divert or pump water out of the Euphrates. If this happens, it will certainly be an ominous signal...the loonies are advancing their cause.

It is not stretching too far to wonder if a good part of the reason Bush allowed "embedded reporters" in Iraq was because he wanted the "glory" he assumed was imminent to be witnessed and recorded - his triumphal entry into Babylon. Hitler, it should be recalled, always had the press on hand to record his "triumphal entries" into France, Poland, etc. It is telling that Bush has granted some of the coveted embedded reporter spots to ultrarightwing Christian outfits,, including Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network. Robertson is one of the most delusional rapturists around. I'm sure he wanted to make sure CBN was in on the "glorious unfolding" of biblical prophecy. Because the mainstream media are unquestioningly supporting Bush, they are, at least by default, supporting his insane fundamentalist motivations. Check out this religious fanatic site. You will see that they proudly list their selected network information providesr: CNN, FOX, MSNBC and the pro-Blair/ush BBC. You will also notice to the right of the page that "Iraq in Bibilical Prophecy" (as in Armageddon and the Rapture) is the subject of popular fundie literature. . http://www.bible-prophecy.com/wariraq.htm

It seems totally unreal that our nation and the rest of the world are being dragged through hell and - hopefully- back again by a band of religious fanatics who have insisted through sheer force and relentless intimidation that the world stage be yielded to them so they can play out their fantasies at everyone else's expense.

In any case, as the Iraqi conflict unflolds, we non-delusional folk see thousands of young, tired, scared, and hungry soldiers struggling through the desert near Karbala. Bush and his band of fanatics, meanwhile, see "God's end times army" marching to glory past the ruins of Babylon.

Billy Graham on Armageddon
http://www.billygraham.org/qna/qna.asp?i=501

"Bush's Messianic Complex" by Michael Oritz, Counterpunch
http://www.counterpunch.org/hill01042003.html

If you have a strong stomach, here's the "Bible Prophecy and the Rapture Report:"
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/7895/aarome.html

The Middle East Conflict: Has It Been Engineered by Rightwing Christian Extremeists and Zionists hoping to Force "the Rapture" - Cheryl Seal, April 2002
http://www.unknownnews.net/cdd040302.html