or, trying to understand the flip side and counteract it.
I know a lot of DUers get pissed when others here post freeper material. But, I just can't resist posting this example, and not just because I enjoy watching these things get torn apart by all of you great DUers who so often nail these freepers' butts. I'd really like to get some opinions, not just on this fundie message below, but on the discussion that precedes it.
Over the past few days, I've read a few posts here on DU asking, "Who is it that still supports Bush?" (paraphrased), one particular post about Puritanism and fundamentalists that was very insightful, and
"I need to bitch -- Thanksgiving prayer was political." I think it is extremely important to learn where these fanatics are coming from. We shouldn't ignore this.
My in-laws are registered Republicans (not Bush supporters, though, thankfully). They used to be very active in their local party, but in the 80's, they were really turned off because of all the religiosity of the meetings. Instead of dealing with it then, they just stopped participating. Today, they both regret that, and wish they had continued to fight back then. They didn't realize how important it was, and the disastrous effects of what
this fanatical religiosity that crept into their party would bring to our nation.
This ongoing 'war on secularism' coming from these fanatics has been a real eye-opener for me personally over the last few years. It is significant to our country, and very telling of the dangerous, cult-like rise of fundamentalist religiosity that is tearing our nation apart.
The following is from a poster on another board that I frequent who is an adamant Bush bot. I think his/her message here pretty much sums up, IMO, the simple-mindedness and fanatical thinking of your typical Bush supporter (the type who sees themselves as religiously superior), and is indicative of how much they have been taught to hate the 'evil Humanist secularists,' aka 'liberals' or, basically, anyone who doesn't think like they do. That's what they are being taught; that's what they teach their kids.
Their simple-minded, black and white thinking, of which they've come to rely upon and which their churches undoubtedly foster and encourage, is a difficult code to crack. I say that from personal experience, having some close relatives who are brainwashed by this type of thinking, and who I have oftentimes become so frustrated with that I have to walk away. Just walk away.
Having a background in Psychology, and having worked for years with persons with severe mental disabilities (i.e., personality disorders, schizophrenia, etc.), I am so curious as to whether these people come to believe this way due to innate characteristics, or whether it is a learned perspective. Is it a personality type, perhaps one that is more susceptible to being drawn into cult-like thinking? Is it a personality disorder that comes about from chemical imbalances? Or is it just sheer stupidity or bigotry?
But, most importantly, how can we address this, and put a stop to this uprising? Last year, before the (s)election, after having done a lot of research on the 'rise of the religious right,' I contacted and visited several churches in my area. I joined various groups on line, like Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and People for the American Way, as there were no local chapters in my city. I'm considering trying to create a local chapter in my city in order to do something more about this.
The Rise and Fall of Humanism
A major question that I have had was, "Did Christians do enough to maintain America as a Christian nation?"
I use the word Humanism instead of Atheism because I do not think people knew what they were getting into, but I believe Humanism will always lead to Atheism. Most of the following is based on PBS documentaries on the UN and Influenza.
The rise of Humanism started with the medical profession and reached its peak when small pox and polio vaccines were discovered. The United Nations basically eradicated small pox and polio from the world.
~snip~
Humans may go to the moon, but if they get there without the Christian Religion, it will be hell.
Humanism does lead to Atheism because the only restraint on sexual perversion is the Bible and the Christian Religion. As soon as you get rid of the Bible every person will do that which is right in their own sight, and that will always be sexual perversion, which is the main element of Atheism. America is deeply into the Atheistic practices of socialism, feminism, pornography, abortion, homosexuality and the Atheistic lifestyle.
Americans have a choice to try to hold on to the disastrous philosophy of Humanism/Atheism or return to the philosophy of the Christian religion that has caused America to become the greatest nation on earth and protected America from internal destruction.
~snip~
http://discussions.pbs.org/viewtopic.pbs?t=42419