"Pete Hegseth’s Crusader tattoos are not just symbols - they’re a battleplan.

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"That’s another way of describing Christian nationalism, a far-right ideology that has accumulated frightening power during Trump’s second term. ...

'His ideas are – you know, I’d like to say cuckoo bananas, but it’s more like they’re extremely close to the centre of power,' says Tal Lavin, a journalist whose book Wild Faith explores the Christian right’s American takeover."

#Hegseth #WhiteChristianNationalism #tattoos #Crusades #HolyWar #Trump #MAGA
/2

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

“'We’re at now perhaps the apotheosis of 50 years of them building power

You look at Hegseth’s embrace of Crusader imagery, and then you look at his actions, which are embracing and leading a war against Iran. We are seeing a Crusader mentality play out at the absolute highest levels of government.'”

#Hegseth #WhiteChristianNationalism #tattoos #Crusades #HolyWar #Trump #MAGA
/3

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

Some of the best evidence that Hegseth’s tattoos reflect a belief that Christian Americans should exert violent dominance over Muslim people is found in the first few pages of his 2020 book American Crusade. The cover pictures him holding an American flag and shows off three more of his tattoos:"

#Hegseth #WhiteChristianNationalism #tattoos #Crusades #HolyWar #Trump #MAGA
/4

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"'We the people,' which are the opening words of the US Constitution; 'MDCCLXXV,' which is the year of the US army’s founding in Roman numerals (1775), and an image of an assault rifle embedded into the stripes of the American flag.

'This time in our history calls for an AMERICAN CRUSADE.'"

#Hegseth #WhiteChristianNationalism #tattoos #Crusades #HolyWar #Trump #MAGA
/5

[manyroads@mstdn.social]

@wdlindsy Not that anyone in the Trump admin knows how to read but this presents a demographic 'challenge' to Hegseth's view as you have described it:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/245478/self-described-religious-identification-of-americans/

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

"'Yes, a holy war for the righteous cause of human freedom,' he writes in the book’s introduction. 'One thousand years ago, after years of ceding land to conquering Muslim hordes, the pope ordered military action to save Europe. "Deus vult" ("God wills it") was the rallying cry of Christian knights as they marched to Jerusalem.'”

#Hegseth #WhiteChristianNationalism #tattoos #Crusades #HolyWar #Trump #MAGA
/6

[mike@thecanadian.social]

@wdlindsy I've found that most Christian nationalism actually transitions followers to viking paganism. Might is right is more compatible to them as a core philosophy of Arianism. You start to see rune tattoos appear on the most fanatical. I think many use Christianity as smoke screen.

[krypt3ia@infosec.exchange]

@wdlindsy It all started in 1095…

[nettings@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy hence, vultures.

[npars01@mstdn.social]

@wdlindsy

It is uncoincidental that the nations being attacked by these "Christians" are all fossil fuel producers.

Nigeria. Canada. Venezuela. Iran. Mexico. UK. Norway. Ukraine. Hungary.

Christian Nationalism is a pretext to loot & pillage the natural resources of other nations.

[zebadiah_carter@mastodon.social]

@Npars01 @wdlindsy

[bouriquet@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy If he is truly embarked on a zealot Crusade while having the ability to wield unmatched power including nuclear weapons, then this cannot end in a good way if he is allowed to continue.

[missgayle@urbanists.social]

@Npars01 @wdlindsy

Always has been.

[riaresists@mastodon.social]

@Npars01 @wdlindsy
I feel such relief when I can put words on this reality (besides the F word).
Thank you for this!
Absolutely true.

[rainbowfrog@mastodon.top]

@wdlindsy

yes, in the 11th century, the Pope ordered the Crusade

but THIS Pope (Leo) will certainly not ! and that's what bothers them

[reggiehere@mastodon.social]

@wdlindsy

I think it's pretty clear that the USA has Middle Ages envy, and now it's seeking to recreate those times because it didn't exist as a country the first time around.

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

@krypt3ia Oh, I think there's very strong reason to think that Hegseth's Christian nationalist appropriation of that medieval history is entirely new, American, and very much anti-Catholic, aimed at a pope now strongly emphasizing the social teachings of the Catholic church which condemn unjust wars and capital punishment.

[wdlindsy@toad.social]

@mike In a way that's exactly parallel to the Nazi corruption of Christian symbolism to promote a neo-pagan melange that pretended to find Germans the master race.

[krypt3ia@infosec.exchange]

@wdlindsy There is, he just reads it poorly and has very bad ideas from it. I have read extensively on the Crusades and his opinions are not uncommon particularly during and post 9/11 and our wars in the Levant. So, not new, he is just the most out front adherent.