It is pretty much the only country that truly fits in our age the apparent description made by Pope Francis: the United States of America.
As much as many reasonable people may disagree (as we do) with many decisions of past and present United States administrations on foreign policy and war, especially with several mistaken decisions taken since September 11, 2001, it is still breathtaking to accuse the nation and its allies in several different operations (different allies in different operations) of being promoters of "State Terrorism", and therefore comparable to ISIS:
Andreas Englisch: Your Holiness, I have the honor of posing the question for the group of international journalists. You spoke often, in the speeches pronounced in Strasbourg, both of the terrorist threat as of the threat of slavery: there are behaviors [that are] typical also of the Islamic State, that threatens a large part of the Mediterranean, threaten also Rome, and even you, in your person. Do you believe that there may be dialogue also with these extremists, or do you believe that this is a lost cause?
Pope Francis: I never consider anything lost, ever. Perhaps one may not have a dialogue, but never shut a door. It is difficult, one might say 'almost impossible,' but the door [remains] always open. You have used the word 'threat' twice: it is true, terrorist is a reality that threatens... But slavery is a reality inserted in today's social fabric, but [has been] for a long time! Slave labor, the trade of persons, this commerce of children...is dramatic! Let us not close our eyes before this! Slavery today is a reality, the exploitation of people... And then there is the threat of these terrorists. But there is also another threat, and that is State terrorism. When things increase, increase, and increase, and each State on its own feels it has the right to massacre terrorists, and with the terrorists so many who are innocent. And this is a high-level anarchy that is very dangerous. Terrorism must be fought, but I repeat that which I said in the previous trip: when an unjust agressor must be stopped, it must be done with international consensus. [Interview in flight back from Strasbourg, November 25, 2014 - in Italian]
The United States, a huge and beautiful and in many ways a disfunctional Republic of over three hundred million people, all of whom seem to live in permanent mutual disagreement, is gathered together today to thank God for His blessings -- not what many nations do together! America is far from being a perfect country, but it is no "terrorist State", as if it were comparable in any way to ISIS or Boko Haram, and their campaign of genocide of Christians...
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Despite everything, Happy Thanksgiving! May God be thanked for all His works!
Marc-Antoine Charpentier
Te Deum in D
