Forward, into the past!

The worldwide rise of reactionary forces continues today with the selection of German cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new Pope.

Ratzinger, former leader of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, the modern successor to the Inquisition, is best known for his staunch opposition to liberalizing forces within the Catholic church:

As John Paul's doctrinal overseer, Ratzinger disciplined Latin American "liberation theology" theologians, denounced homosexuality and gay marriage and pressured Asian priests who saw non-Christian religions as part of God's plan for humanity.

In a document in 2000, he branded other Christian churches as deficient -- shocking Anglicans, Lutherans and other Protestants in ecumenical dialogue with Rome for years.

While John Paul II's conservatism was balanced by the courage he showed in helping to liberate his native Poland from the yoke of communist totalitarianism, Ratzinger, who will take the name Benedict XVI, shows no such promise.

Joseph Ratzinger started out as a progressive priest and was a liberal theologian during the Second Vatican Council. After the student riots during 1968, however, he began a sharp turn to the right.

So great, yet another Viet Nam era reactionary rises to power, and will join those already working to return the world to the dark ages.

It seems to me the new millenium is shaping up to be a battle both against and between the fundamentalist forces of Islam, American Puritanism, and Roman Catholicism.

I guess folks who haven't lived through or studied them are going to get a real taste of just how bad wars of religion can get.