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The Forum > Article Comments > The rise of the Greens: politics and the supernatural > Comments

The rise of the Greens: politics and the supernatural : Comments

By David Castles, published 14/7/2011

The Greens are an alternate religion encroaching on the turf rightfully held by the established churches.

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Being “Green” is a Religion?

Not sure and I am not really interested

“Communism” was not “A Religion”

But I am certain that in not being a religion, it was more devout about its views than even the Spanish Inquisition and treated “heretics” to the ordained “communist view” with the same intolerance as the Spanish Inquisition

So do I care that Being “Green” is or is not a religion

No I don’t

But what I do care about is

The right of non-greens to pursue the religion of their choice

And on this matter, the omnipotent attitude of greens to impose their “collectivist” minority will over everyone else is the danger (just as the adoption of Sharia law in Australia presents problems)

Environmental activism is one thing, spouting off about how other people will be allowed to live their lives is an entirely different matter

Most of the time “tolerance” is the best option but when faced with despotic greens demanding they turn back the clock 300 years, “tolerance” bynon-greens holds some risks

and then it becomes like democracy, the worst of solutions (except for all the other so called “solutions”)

I will be “tolerant” until the first green tells me what I am allowed to do… and then, for me and most other right-of-centre libertarian moderates, the costs of tolerance become too expensive to maintain.
Posted by Col Rouge, Thursday, 14 July 2011 2:47:14 PM
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Deep green ideology IS “based on death, guilt and fear”, and has many intriguing parallels with Judeo-Christian religion.

It has an Eden myth of sustainability – an ideal world in which mankind and nature are in harmony. It admires the primitive, the indigenous and cultures it believes are closer to this ideal than we are.

It proposes that mankind’s selfish actions preclude us from attaining that Eden We are heading to hell in a hand basket, due to climate change, resource depletion, over population, peak oil or some other manmade calamity, and that only a complete change of lifestyle will save us. The parallels with the religious paradigm of paradise lost, and the links of sin – damnation – threatened apocalypse - repentance - salvation are striking.

Its devils are big business, transnational companies and others who exploit resources and people for the sake of greed. Its saints and prophets are eco-warriors, Al Gore, David Suzuki and Paul Ehrlich.

There are other echoes of religion in the sanctimonious, judgemental way some deep greens view their neighbours’ behaviour. Our gambling habits, the cars we drive, the homes we live in, the number of children we have, the holidays we take and the food we eat are all targets for pious green disapproval.

And, at the far extreme, there are those who fully embrace the earth as goddess, who literalise Lovelock’s metaphor and worship Gaia.

Not all green voters and activists adhere to these beliefs, just all not all Labor voters are full-blown socialists and not all liberals are economic rationalists. But there is enough truth to the characterisation to make parallels between environmentalism and religion interesting and valid.
Posted by Rhian, Thursday, 14 July 2011 3:25:05 PM
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@ Col Rouge:

Would you mind sharing with us just one example of where the Greens have attempted to restrict or remove "the right of non-greens to pursue the religion of their choice"?

I know that facts aren't your strong point, but I'm quite familiar with Greens policy and I've never heard the suggestion of such a thing.

Just one example will do, thanks.
Posted by morganzola, Thursday, 14 July 2011 3:53:08 PM
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Col, never mind that EVERY-thing that you are, do, think, feel, purchase etc etc is a product of, created by, and circumscribed by the system altogether.
Most of which is now supplied by Corporations which now have more power than any government - as does big money too.
Everything is mediated or more correctly propagandized by the corporate "advertising" industry and especially TV which is easily the most powerful culturally formative influence.
TV "culture" now rules the world.
All of the "news" is essentially propaganda.
As are all of our forms of "entertainment", especially everything that you see or watch on TV or at the movies. This includes every "news"-paper, magazine and book that you read, including popular "escapist" novels. And of course comic books too.

Which is to say that most, or even all, of what you do is essentially the result of the unconscious and sub-conscious programming that you have been exposed to since the moment you were born.
Every body, including mom and dad, your local religious pastor or priest, and your school teachers have been telling you what to do.

In fact we all "live" in an invisible cultural script which keeps the entire system going.

This was one of the themes of the Matrix Trilogy films. No questions or other possibilities are/were allowed. AGENT SMITH was everywhere - we are ALL Agent Smith in our soporific unconsciousness.
All the dreadfully sane "normals" were quite "happy" to accept the Blue Pill.
Never mind that just below the surface the replicating machines were on the verge of destroying the last remnants of authentic humanity.

The Red Pill was strictly verboten.

Vance Packard via The Hidden Persuaders told us all about this decades ago. As did Stuart Ewen in Captains of Consciousness.

Plus why not check out the book This Little Kiddy Went To Market by Sharon Beder. A book which describes and explains how the corporations get children to be "faithful" consumers via TV.
Posted by Ho Hum, Thursday, 14 July 2011 4:55:11 PM
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Thatcherism was used as a religion to support capitalism, at the expense of the less fortunate.
Their motto being "There is no such thing as a society".
Posted by Kipp, Thursday, 14 July 2011 5:07:29 PM
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John Howard described the Liberal Party as a broad church. They worship themselves.
Posted by Neutral, Thursday, 14 July 2011 7:47:19 PM
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