It’s hard to keep track of all the distortions, deceptions and downright lies that have marked the Republican nomination contest, but one stuck out in the aftermath of yesterday’s bloodbath in Florida. Mitt Romney, who apparently has drifted so far to the right in his frantic attempt to stave off Newt Gingrich that even staunch Republicans like Jeb Bush won’t touch him with a ten-foot pole, was quoted as saying that he wants folks to “remember when our White House reflected the best of who we are, not the worst of what Europe has become.”

When exactly did Europe become hell on earth, a punching bag for right wing-nutters in America? And this from a guy who spent two and a half years in France as a Mormon missionary and who speaks fluent, albeit heavily accented French (although he would prefer people would forget that fact, at least until after the November election).

Europe, it seems, has sunk to such depths that it must be held up as warning to Americans to mend their ways before it’s too late. But just what makes Europe such a den of depravity? Is this maybe a Mormon thing? After all, they do have pretty weird ideas about Heaven and Hell, as anyone knows who read Forrest Wickman’s article on Slate entitled “What’s Hell is like for Mormons”.

And, more importantly, how do the United States stack up in comparison? Let me count the ways. (weiterlesen …)