Maybe the old idea of Manifest Destiny has been revived, or rather, it never died off and has gained lots of momentum since 9/11.
Historian William E. Weeks has noted that three key themes were usually touched upon by advocates of manifest destiny:
1. the virtue of the American people and their institutions;
2. the mission to spread these institutions, thereby redeeming and remaking the world in the image of the United States;
3. the destiny under God to do this work.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_destinyIMO, this is arrogance to the Nth degree. Christian families who have soldiers serving abroad think of their loved ones as serving in the highest calling of God. As such, when they lose their lives they are believed to be deserving of the greatest reward God has in store: eternal life. Castles in the sky I say! The bereaved families find solace telling themselves they have been called HOME to serve God for higher purposes. The deception itself gives them hope. But the reality is they continue to be empty on the inside. As long as they continue to believe this, they will remain being mere pawns of the powers that be in this country. May the Lord have mercy on them.
Roger.