The Devil is in the Details

I enjoy political banter. Mostly the learned stuff not the crap you tend to hear squeezed in between a Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt's alien baby story. Things like NPR, or NewsHour on PBS, and God help me, C-Span. In any case I recently saw an editorial relating how odd it was that Bush was using the terms 'evil' and 'right' in reference to the current Middle East conflict, (Is it still Iraq or have they decided it's Iraq and Afghanistan again? Or is it Afghanistan, Iraq, and now Iran?) when the extreme Muslim groups use the exact same references toward the U.S.
I also see where the Pope has angered people of an extreme nature by callous comments (that as far as I can tell were taken out of context but with the current 21st century media in such a frenzy over Angelina's new tampon who can really tell?) in reference to a looong dead Byzantinian guy's comments about Mohamed. Coincidentally spurring a reaction from the extremist that is in complete parallel to some of that old Byzantinian's words.
I mean it makes you think. Here in the U.S., (I know, I know, not the U.S. again, but it's where I currently live so I know this point of view best, sorry.) I see ministers condemning people for all manner of issues, actions, beliefs, etc. I see political leaders use faith and people's sheepish following, without question, of faith based issues as running points. I see people thank gods, churches, faith, any manner of religious iconography for their survival of anything from a paper cut all the way up to a twenty year coma. Tom Cruise jumps down the throat of a reporter who dares to contradict his faith's belief that psychology is bunk. George Bush claims he knows his decisions are right because God tells him so.
As humans we worship, follow, serve, and swallow (yeah I probably crossed the line there) all for whatever God/god/gods/religion/etc. is answering the big questions for us at that time. All the while killing, ignoring, hating, using, abusing, excluding, degenerating in the name of the same God/god/gods/religion/etc.
WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE??!!
It doesn't matter what we worship, trust me. We will still hate each other exactly the same no matter what belief (or lack there of. Thought I would forget about you Atheist huh?) we have. And for that matter, since when is it ANYONE'S goal to spend eternity being enslaved to another being just because that other being is considered greater than us? I mean the belief that your reward in heaven is to serve God for eternity in something of a caste system that most humans no longer engage in is absurd.
Okay, let's say that you think Heaven is this great place where you are surrounded by all those who love you and those who have done evil to your loved ones are burning in Hell. What happens if you were married more than once, which wife/husband is the one in Heaven? What if one of those people who did harm to your loved ones was in Heaven too? Would that still be Heaven to you? Or what if one of your most dear loved ones was an Atheist who now was burning in Hell, is it still Heaven even though not EVERYONE you love was there?
Many people tell me that once you have moved on and gone to Heaven then you are surrounded by God's love and that is what Heaven is. My answer is, not to me it isn't. If I were forced to exist in a realm like that then it would certainly not be Heaven to me. Wouldn't that mean then Heaven wasn't really Heaven because it can be something of a Hell to some? Isn't it then a contradiction? Would I then be caste into Hell to burn because I didn't think Heaven was enjoyable? Would that even make sense?
I also always wondered about the contradiction of the devil and God. God is creator of all things. God is all things. If I am to believe this as truth then God is the devil and then the devil would be God? God is evil as well as good? (I'm told God is all things so for that to be true so would these.) Therefore wouldn't that make any who worship God also a Satanist? I am sure then it would be said that God is not the devil and God is not evil. Then you would be telling me God was not all things. God was not omnipotent. That would mean God wasn't really a God if God wasn't omnipotent. I don't quite get it.
Well, as my title suggests, the devil is in fact in the details. I will leave off with this little bit of thought,
"...And man did so love God, that he created him in his own image."

(it's okay to hate me too. I'm sure God won't mind. Hell, he may even take a few years in purgatory off your sentence in the ever after for hating me. Oh, despite how it sounds I am NOT a satanist. I'm just a plain old Nileist. Can't you just hear the "Sheesh, should have known."?)