(July 22, 2016 at 4:53 pm)Imaginaryfriendless Wrote: Hi everyone! I'm not certain whether this belongs here or in philosophy or what, but I'm going with here. I don't know if the staff here can relocate a thread, but if so feel free- just tell me where you put it!
First, thank you for the warm welcome, I am enjoying this forum very much. I've had some fascinating discussions and even a few lively arguments already- it's fantastic.
But I am baffled by the fact that it seems most atheists are liberal democrats. First, please sound off if you think this is true or false, my sample is not adequate, so far I just have a vague impression. I know other atheists here in Texas, but of course they are all Republican...perhaps due to the state law that requires us to kill and eat liberals on sight. You know us Texans!
If this is true...why? All of the republicans I know here, with the exception of older mexican women and various other random folks (this may sound racist or like a generalization, but if you know elderly Mexican women...devoutly Catholic and steadfast in their faith, at least here in Texas) are science oriented. They go to church, but they don't discount science. How they justify the two is beyond me, but they manage. After all, we have NASA here, many defense contractors building high tech aircraft, tanks weapons, ordnance, etc. I don't think Texas Republicans are quite like the rest of the country, from what I've heard. I was taught evolution in school, the prevailing wisdom was that evolution was the school's job, while the church handled creationism. It was simple.
It seems so odd to me that the money grubbing, warmongering Republicans who want everything to be up to personal responsibility believe in a God, while the touchy-feely let's feed everyone for free and sing Kumbahyah believe in science. (Hopefully you all get that I'm creating sort of a textual caricature here, with obvious exaggeration just for the fun of it)
But it does seem out of character, to me. You'd think the group that was materialistic and harsh and war happy (to a degree anyway...I know we are) would be the ones NOT wanting a God to judge them as they climbed to the top of their profession, stomping on the necks of their peers, or fought a war over petroleum.
Maybe it's just me. I'm Republican and I'm about as atheist as it's possible to be. Religious folks freak me out- I see natives in loincloths dancing around a fire chanting a song that will make the crops grow, whenever I hear a church sermon. It's WEIRD, and unhealthy, at this stage of our development, to believe in an invisible being who not only created the universe, but concerns itself with the individual lives of some dust mites on a ball of dirt somewhere in the back corner of a garage 1000 miles away. How in the name of Orville Reddenbacker can an otherwise intelligent person believe such drivel? Do they not grasp the sheer size of the galaxy, much less the universe?
Ok, I'm wandering off topic a bit, I get a little passionate about this. So consider this a thread with a broad topic. I'd like to hear folks' thoughts on all of this. Including you creepy peopleI love you all even if I do find your belief system hard to swallow.
(Note- I think I'm funny, for some reason. Please don't take offense at anything, I'm just being charmingly irreverent) (I think I'm charming, too. Dunno why)
Discuss.
When I first started to attend local atheist get togethers in my area in the 1970s, there seemed to be both liberals and conservatives in the group. However, I think since the Religious Right hijacked the Republican party, most of the atheists I know have turned more liberal. When the GOP became the party that wanted to insert religion into government, they were turned off. I admit I didn't bother to watch any of the primary debates this year, but in the past people like Santorum sounded like they were running for Pope, not for president.
The GOP says it wants less goverment interference -----unless, of course, it has to do with religion, what anyone does in the bedroom, or if it has something to do with a woman's body/health.
As an atheist, I have no belief in an "afterlife." I want to do the best I can for myself and others while we/they are alive. I consider myself a humanist as well as an atheist --and that seems to be a more liberal point of view.
Of course, I do not understand, at all, the endorsement of Trump by the Religious Right and others who claim to be such "good Chirstians". Although I don't have as high of an opinion of the Jesus character as most people who call themselves Christians do, Trump seems to be the antithesis of anything their all-loving and forgiving Jesus would do ----hate blacks and Latinos? ---exaggerate or outright lie about just about everything? ---- scam people out of their money? ---refuse to pay contractors what he owed them? --- stir up violence at rallies? ---brag about being the absolute best at and know more about everything?
For the party who insists we take personal responsibility for our own actions, it seems curious that the GOP supports a man who cannot admit to ever being wrong or making a mistake or even consider apologizing. Most politicians at least use the useless phrase, "Mistakes were made," with the silent "but not by me."
A Pew study a few years ago showed that Evangelical Christians were much more likely to support war than mainstream Christians. I think that has something to do with wanting to punish anyone who doesn't believe as they do or perceiving that their god would want to smite those horrible people that are "different." Those that fell into the "none" religious category were the least likely to support wars.
I wish I could remember where it was that I read about this experiment. Two policy papers were written with typical talking points of liberals and conservatives. When Replications were given the typical conservative talking points and told that this was what the Republications were considering, most thought it was wonderful. When conservatives were told those conservative talking points were proposed by Democrats, they hated them. And of course the same thing happened with 2 groups of liberals.
This seems to prove that it is not so much what is supported or proposed by a political party or group but that people tend to follow what they perceive as their own part's line no matter what the party stands for or supports. It's sort of like religion. Most people don't really think that much about what they believe. They were born into a Catholic or Jewish family, so they believe what they have been told.
One time during lunch at work, another woman was talking about the "crazy Muslims." I mentioned Dave Barry's line that no matter what religion you are, everyone else's sounds stupid. She seemed to be insulted and immediately came back with, "I'm a Christian and my religion isn't stupid." That was the point, EVERYONE ELSE's sounds nuts. A lot of people think that about politics. The other side sounds absolutely stupid/crazy/unworkable but seems perfectly reasonable to true believers.
“The problem with those who choose received Authority over fact and logic is how they choose which part of Authority to obey. The Bible famously contradicts itself at many points (I have never understood why any Christian would choose the Old Testament over the New), and the Koran can be read as a wonderfully compassionate and humanistic document. Which suggests that the problem of fundamentalism lies not with authority, but with ourselves.” ~Molly Ivins
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