My favorite belligerent Wookiee brought up his grievances that our politics were being hijacked by protestant evangelicalism, or faith on broader terms. This has been one of my biggest grievances with politics since I gained political consciousness, and I've always pointed fingers at the Right. Now the party that is supposed to represent the secular "wing" of our government, the party that wouldn't throw its weight around pretending it's leading a theocracy, is having an Interfaith Gathering at its national convention. I'm going to try to play devil's advocate to Dennis who blew his top at this, pointing fingers at being stabbed in the back by a party he follows. Though I believe he's in the right, he's just another one of those rude atheists.
America is so much bigger than any of us in California can really conceptualize. What's worse, it seems those of us that live on the coasts and trumpet ourselves as free thinkers and rail against those in the interior of our country for being ignorant fools are in the minority. This is evident in the fact that the political direction in this country is alway pulled towards the center. Politicians know those on the left who believe in a secular government are going to vote democratic because if they withdraw their support, they secure victory for those on the right, those who draw their secure support from fundamentalists.
It seems that those of us who sit on the left place value in things like critical thinking and science and uppity progressive ideas like universal individual liberties, regardless of our personal beliefs. Those on the right have long drawn on the values of their personal beliefs, which in turn means their representatives must share those beliefs. They're not going to vote for someone who doesn't wear their God openly on his shoulder, like the goddamn flag pin on his lapel.
Here's the problem: this political spectrum of left to right has been terribly redshifted. The majority of Americans fit more on the right than they do the left. The center is more likely to vote with their bible, because for many, it is the tool by which they think (That's another post altogether). Inviting the culture war that sits bubbling underneath the surface will do nothing for the Democratic party. If you associate them with pragmatism and critical thinking, you can only applaud them that they've adopted a very old strategy: If you can't beat 'em join 'em.
That culture war is lost if we try to fight it right now. If asked to describe an American, an outsider would draw you a picture of a white man with a ten gallon hat on his head, a cross around his neck, a gun at his hip and a Mcdonald's hamburger in his hand. That's how we arugula-munching elitists look at our country standing on the fringes looking in. How much worse does it look from afar when the man sent to represent us looks no different? This is the current brand of American that the rest of the world sees and we need time to change it.
I can say Religion has hijacked my political spectrum. I can also say politics hijacked my religion and turned it into a tool. There's a tool for every job. When that job is forwarding a conservative agenda, using it to mask the huge sums of money that are being made by political insiders and defense contractors, that tool may even end up putting his feet up on the Resolute Desk.
What happens when one president isn't the moral champion, pitted against the godless ones' candidate? What happens when the idea of voting based on religion is negated by what seems to be over-saturation of the issue? Will other issues come to the fore and actually decide the election? What happens when bible thumpers back a progressive president, based not on who has "greater character," but who will solve the problems that last guy created?
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