God Bless America!

'God Bless America!' says the politician at the end of the speech. Ok, but which America? North, South, Central or just the United States? Should we include Canada? Mexico? Or should those Americas solicit their own blessings?

Why not: 'God Bless the Hemisphere' or 'God Bless the Quasi-monotheistic, Capitalist Countries', or 'God Bless the Milky Way'? Is there something special about America? Mabye blessing is geography dependent.

A bigger question is begged: can all countries be blessed or just a few? How about competing interests like Israel or Iran? 'God Bless America' the #1 hit by Celine Dion song and our unofficial national anthem was written by a Jew. So maybe Israel has an edge.

Or how about competing interests within the same country: Pepsi and Coke, the Celtics and the Knicks? Can one's blessing be another's curse? Who deserves the blessing more, the oncologist or his patient?

Will the blessing stick to predominately atheist countries? Can China be blessed? Agnostic countries? Poly-theistic countries? Blasphemous countries?

Can one god bless a country with another god? Will the other god take umbrage at what could be viewed as passive/hostile takeover? Is this a fair way to increase market share?

And what exactly is meant by blessed? Enlightenment, spiritual empowerment, deep empathy and inner calm? Or a bull market, free triple frapicinos for life and really good herb?

What is really going on when the politician utters 'God Bless America'? Is this valediction or validation? You know, a subtle way of suggesting:
1. I'm a god-faring man
2. MY god is YOUR god
3. God is on MY side so much so that I can even tell him what to do.
4. Everything I just said in this speech is expressly underwritten by OUR god.

Do the laws of the natural universe apply to blessings? The law of conservation would suggest blessing one would be at the expense of another. Ergo God Bless America really means God Screw Sweden.

'God Bless America' is a pride booster reinforcing the notion we got something others don't. Yeah pride - the most serious of the seven deadlies and the source of all other sins. Coincidence?

Not just any pride mind you, nationalistic pride. The same pride that brought you the civil war, the holocaust, McCarthyism, tribal warfare, xenophobia, alienation and right wing-nuts.

Curious the vacuous action verb and not something more useful such as: 'God Feed America Nutritious Meals' or 'God Raise Everyone's IQ, 17 Points' or 'God Eliminate Unwanted Body Hair'?

And there is the matter of 'god' himself? Isn't the jury still out on this one?

Next week: 'Made in America!'