Strangers in the Same Land: How the Divided Serve the Same Masters

In the scheme of American politics, we see a performance so masterfully constructed that it convinces the public of ideological wars, of clear-cut enemies, of existential battles between left and right. Yet this current “moral decay” narrative—framed by both sides as a new phenomenon tied to recent elections or specific administrations—is a convenient distortion. Moral compromise and systemic corruption have been embedded within America’s institutions since inception, carefully crafted to benefit a privileged few while distracting the public with surface-level conflicts. When we peel back the facade, we see not two opposing forces, but a deep-seated cooperation aimed at consolidating power, perpetuating control, and preserving the status quo.

Take, for instance, the shifts in economic policy over decades. Left- and right-leaning administrations alike champion “free market” principles until it suits them to bail out corporate giants. The 2008 financial crisis exposed the bipartisan willingness to rescue the very banks that triggered the collapse, leaving ordinary Americans to bear the costs.

While each side feigned outrage, they worked together to shield financial institutions from accountability, ensuring Wall Street remained loyal to both parties. This was no recent lapse; it was a continuation of a policy pattern rooted in prioritizing elite interests—a long-standing moral decay that predates any single administration.

Similarly, foreign intervention is framed as a new moral issue, with each side accusing the other of either weakness or aggression. Yet this narrative ignores the history of bipartisan support for imperialism. The United States’ “War on Terror” and its subsequent wars illustrate a continuity of policy. Initiated by Republicans and expanded by Democrats, these conflicts serve the same purpose: sustaining a profitable war machine while portraying America as the world’s moral arbiter. Regardless of political ideology, administrations repeatedly sacrifice human lives abroad, destabilize regions, and fund private military contractors under the guise of democracy. America’s moral decay in foreign policy is no recent development; it has been intrinsic to its imperial approach for over a century.

Civil liberties offer another stark example. Privacy protections have been whittled away incrementally, with each side promising reform yet delivering further intrusion. Both left and right argue that government surveillance is necessary for “security,” turning the Patriot Act—a bipartisan response to 9/11—into a permanent surveillance apparatus.

This erosion of freedom was not born of modern fears or technological advancements but is a continuation of the state’s historical pattern of control over its citizens. The narrative that these encroachments signal a “new” decay ignores the reality that this surveillance state has been meticulously built over decades.

Religious institutions, too, have long partnered with political power to enforce control, using the illusion of moral authority. Each party panders to religious groups in ways that reinforce their agendas rather than uphold true moral principles. The left courts liberal religious movements, while the right engages evangelical Christians, both exploiting faith as a tool to rally voters. Yet neither side truly aligns with the values they preach; religious institutions become mere pawns, endorsing policies that betray foundational principles of compassion, justice, and integrity. This moral compromise by religious institutions in the pursuit of political influence is not a recent trend but a well-worn strategy, revealing the hypocrisy at the heart of American religiosity.

Even healthcare reform, often framed as a battleground for social good, exposes the continuity of institutional self-interest. Both sides claim to support different visions of healthcare, yet both ultimately uphold a system where private insurers and pharmaceutical companies profit. The Affordable Care Act, a “progressive” reform, protected corporate interests, ensuring the right’s allegiance to free-market principles remained intact. By keeping private entities at the core, both parties uphold a morally compromised system where profit eclipses public welfare. America’s healthcare crisis is not a symptom of recent decay; it is the product of decades of bipartisan support for corporate-centered healthcare.

Education follows a similar narrative. Republicans decry “liberal indoctrination” in schools, while Democrats champion access, yet both parties preserve a system where economic barriers determine educational opportunities. Public schools remain underfunded, while private education and for-profit institutions flourish under bipartisan policies. This structure serves elite interests, maintaining socioeconomic disparities while cloaking the injustice in rhetoric of reform and choice. The supposed moral collapse of education is not new but part of a calculated strategy to ensure that true reform never challenges the entrenched hierarchy.

The narrative of America’s supposed recent descent into moral decay thus serves as a convenient distraction. The illusion that this is a sudden decline helps both sides avoid accountability for the longstanding systemic injustices they have perpetuated. While each side claims the other is the source of today’s problems, they quietly cooperate to preserve a structure that benefits them both. This is not a story of declining morality in response to recent cultural shifts; it is a continuation of a morally compromised legacy, an America that has been strategically divided to prevent the people from uniting against their true oppressors.

In the end, the extreme left and right serve the same masters: corporate power, religious institutions, and the state apparatus that thrives on the control of its citizens. This illusion of opposition, so skillfully maintained, is a tool to keep the public distracted from the larger truth—that the state itself, regardless of who leads it, is fundamentally designed to suppress genuine change. We are led to believe that this “moral decay” is a recent phenomenon, yet history reveals that the rot has been festering beneath America’s surface since its founding, obscured by the myth of American exceptionalism.

If we are to reclaim freedom, it must be through a radical awakening to this continuity of moral compromise. We must transcend the artificial boundaries of left and right, recognizing that the struggle is not with each other but with a system that has thrived on division for centuries. True liberation requires dismantling these deeply embedded structures and demanding accountability from those who wield power. Only by rejecting the narrative of recent decay can we confront the reality of a system designed to keep us divided, ensuring that power remains concentrated in the hands of a select few.

Freedom is not a promise the state can grant but a reality the people must claim by uniting beyond the illusions of division.

Devoutly skeptical,

Brad M. Smith, Founder

Church of Sacred Sacraments

www.sacredsacraments.org