This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Revelation. Cliven Bundy claims God told him to fight a holy war against the Bureau of Land Management and, if necessary, the federal government. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled, 5-4, that religious beliefs trump federal law. And nothing is deemed immoral, irrational or indecent in a war purportedly against evil (Carl Schmitt), permitting the massive slaughtering of innocents.
Of course, the Methuselah-Midas of all citizens, the corporation (again, U.S. Supreme Court 5-4), could also declare to be God's representative on earth and declare holy war against the federal government. The company could hire militias to roam the land on four-wheelers enforcing biblical law, removing offending people from the earth. And sex must lead to painful childbirth (Genesis 3:16).
Instead of leading the world toward freedom, our nation is being pulled into the bloody vortex of fighting religious wars against "evil," a shibboleth. Such wars make up most of the world's current atrocities. However, American companies will benefit from the sales of weapons and war materials; and the U.S. Supreme Court will support it all, voting 5 to 4.
Michael M. Geer
Salt Lake City