Religion to play crucial role in US polls: Report

[UpInArms]

http://us.rediff.com/news/2004/jun/14us.htm

Religion might play a crucial role in the upcoming US presidential elections in November, a new poll shows.

The poll, conduced for Time news magazine, found that those who consider themselves 'very religious' support incumbent George W Bush over his democratic challenger John Kerry by 59 per cent to 35 per cent.

But the preference more than reverses when 'not religious' voters are polled. They prefer Kerry over Bush by a vast majority of 69 per cent to 22 per cent.

Asked if a President should be guided by his faith when making policy, 63 per cent Democrats say "no" while 70 per cent Republicans say "yes".

<snip>

The battle is not so much between faiths as within them. The more traditionally religious that people say they are, the more often they pray and attend worship services, the more likely they are to vote for Bush.

...more...

[lovedems]

1. Is that what the religious right wants, a theocracy?

They despise it in the middle east, but it is ok here becasue it is christian?

[fdr_hst_fan]

8. Welcome to the

vision of the Religious Right (and they REALLY think they ARE!).

[transeo]

9. You nailed it

As long as it is their religion, they are fine with a theocracy. However, they don't seem to consider the long-term implications of allowing a theocracy and that it opens the door for someone who is not of their religion to lead and oppress the very people that wanted the theocracy in the first place. They seem incapable of seeing this this potential pitfall.

[SharonAnn]

12. Then they;ll battle among themselves for which "version" of

the truth is really true.

Different denominations, even different believers in the same one, have varying degrees of belief on issues.

My uncle, a R-W Catholic, supports all these fundies but he doesn't realize that some of the Fundies would disallow Catholicism.

Sigh, if there was only a way to show them how this would not be an answer.

[AndyTiedye]

19. which displays a total lack of understanding of US History

The English had a state religion, which was the cause of some severe
unpleasantness in their history.

The Puritans came here to found their own thecracy. Most of the
neighboring colonies were founded shortly afterwards by people
fleeing said theocracy.
Those colonies (Rhode Island and Connecticut) had learned the lesson
and legislated religious freedom, and the nation eventually learned
the lesson and wrote it into the Bill of Rights.

Theocracy is un-American.

[iam]

24. Right

See the recent brew-ha-ha in SoCal. A big fight over the cross on a city seal or something. Simply show a pentagram or some kind of satan worshiping image on the official city seal and see how they like it.

[fudge stripe cookays]

2. No shit!

Ya think?

Sorry...no disrespect. Time needs to find something else to spend their resources researching. I think we've established this already.

[Massacure]

3. Church services have been declining over the years anyways

I think it is safe to say that there are less hardcore relgious nuts than there are not-so-hardcore religious people.

[THUNDER HANDS]

4. in other words

If you're more likely to believe what you can't see, hear or feel than you're more comfortable with Republicans. However, if you like the concept of critical thinking, then vote Democrat.

Makes sense to me.

[Warpy]

5. It would backfire if the mainstream churches

would wake up and start calling Bush for what he is, a craven man who steals the name Christian while he pursues the policies associated with the Antichrist.

Mainstream churches can be a great force for good, but not if they keep pussyfooting around the obvious, Bush is no Christian, and anybody who supports his policies is supporting things that are the direct opposite of Christ's teachings. They don't have to dis GOPers, just Bush.

[checks-n-balances]

26. Agree with you totally, but there's a big move right now by some RW church

people who want to take over 3 mainline denominations (Methodist, Episcopal, & Presbyterian), mainly because they want to silence the prophetic witness (what you just described) that they condemn as being too "liberal" (sound familiar?). Unfortunately, many members of these churches are not clued in to what's going on. Read about it at:

http://www.religionandsocialpolicy.org/news/article.cfm?id=1539

Also, I posted something related to this whole topic today with link to a good article (basically, agreeing with you:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=547894

Also they're discussing Religion & Politics on O'Franken as I type this.

ATTENTION DUers: This is a real issue, like it or not, and we can deal with it responsibly or the RW will hijack and define it for their purposes!

[NMDemDist2]

6. what this article doesn't give us is a breakdown of

how many are "religious" as opposed to secular in the country.

[aquart]

14. Funny about that.

[aquart]

15. Funny about that.

[tandot]

7. Does it EVER stop?

70% of Repukes say that a President "should be guided by his faith when making policy"???

:puke:

Those 70% assholes can't even follow the commandments themselves. Most of them are amoral and greedy bastards who preach hate and only follow the Bible's teachings when it is not inconvienient for them.


SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE. Why is that so hard to understand?

What would happen if Bush would change faith and would become a Muslim? I bet those f*cking idiots would cry everytime he refers to Allah...

[fdr_hst_fan]

10. This may sound mean, but I'm just stating the facts as I observed them:

I know a man who can't function without his Bible, i.e. if it's not in the Bible, he doesn't get it! Unfortunately, there are a lot more out there like him than you would guess.

[jus_the_facts]

16. It's NOT JUST THE RIGHT WING anymore....didn't ya'll see this last week?

....with the REAGASM goin' on I guess this was missed...we're headed for THEOCRACY...NO Thanks to my DINO representation HELPING 'EM ALONG....and there were folks right here on DU wantin' this pathetic DEM to be VP! :puke:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=155x150

[Seeking Serenity]

30. a President "should be guided by his faith when making policy"

I think most everyone here is uncomfortable with this statement. But what about this?

"A President's faith should not be excluded (or summarily dismissed, what have you) when making policy."

What about that?

[ninkasi]

11. What puzzles me

is that the unelected fraud's actions are the complete opposite of what Jesus preached. Would Jesus have taken from the poor to give to the rich, or approved of spoiling the water, air, and land? It seems to me that the neocon's attitudes stopped developing around the age of 10 or 11.

The lust to send other people to war, the warped notion that it is sinful for a president to have a blow job in the Oval Office, but is perfectly fine to lie to the nation about the reasons for over 800 troops, and countless Iraqi deaths, seems completely insane.

Many of them cite their opposition to abortion as being one of their chief reasons to vote for Dubya. They invoke God, and piously point to their absolute belief in the sanctity of life, at any stage, then get orgasms over killing Iraqi babies and children. They can accept torture, oppression, any vile act, as long as it is committed by someone who claims to believe in Jesus.

What a strange country we have become.

[graywarrior]

13. Who invented religion anyhow?

Some tribal chief who wanted to control his people by inflicted supersticious fear? Does it distress non-believers that the entire world bases their decisions on fairytales? No offense to catholics or christians, but I was brought up catholic, and none of it jived with real life.

[DaveSZ]

18. It was Reagan

He caused people to believe in Supply Side Jesus, and we're still feeling the effects years later.

[iam]

25. Gee whiz,

Please folks, we are ALL BELIEVERS. I simply believe in the rational mind. Not mysticism.

[progressivebydesign]

17. The American Taliban.

Okay. So the religious fanatics cannot see the difference between a country run by the likes of the Taliban, and what these fools are forcing upon us? It's the same thing! I'm sick to death of the religious right.. I'm sick of their money, their lies, their minions, and their absolutely unconstitutional influence in OUR government. If the government declared that Judaism or Pagan was the new official religion of America, would that be okay with them? OR IS IT ONLY CHRISTIAN THAT IS ALLOWED?? Fuck! We're going back to the middle ages!!! Bush needs to go!!!!!!!!!!!

[DaveSZ]

20. FDR was a religious man

On the night of June 6, 1944, President Roosevelt went on national radio to address the nation for the first time about the Normandy invasion. His speech took the form of a prayer. This is a draft copy of the speech with nearly all corrections in President Roosevelt's hand.

http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/04DD010.HTML



Carter still teaches Sunday school in Georgia every week to little kids.

I think we need to recognize that religion is strong in this country whether we agree or not.

We do need to maintain church/state separation however.

[jus_the_facts]

22. and it'll continue to be the ruination of the world......

....regardless of who *believes* as it's used to divide NOT unite! The battle to keep it SEPARATE has gone on for centuries now and it's USED to cause DIVISION and MASS ignorance....comparing ourselves to perfection instead of the animals that we are has been the bain of *civilization*...especially now in modern times since science has proven our origins without any doubt. :eyes: :grr:

[Mokito]

31. I have absolutely no problems with Presidents, ministers, or other

elected leaders having a personal conviction and religion as long as they know and acknowledge the difference between private and public.
However, I believe there will never be any true separation of church and state before a country is willing to elect a leader of another religion. Do you think the United States will ever be ready to elect a Jew, Buddhist or even (dare I say) a Muslim as their President?

[SeiowMao]

21. I just finished reading Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars who tell them.

He has a whole chapter of a cartoon Supply Side Jesus. It's great satire. Too bad it is so serious....

[RummyTheDummy]

23. And in other news: The sky is blue

NT

[riverwalker]

27. So the "very religious"

in America support torture, bombing innocent civilians, invading other nations, lying, stealing, and rape.
So did the "very religious" in Afghanistan.
So did the "very religious" in the Salem witch hunts.
So did the "very religious" Spanish Inquisitors.
Do we see a pattern here?

[alcuno]

28. Were those the only options? Very religious and not religious?

I'm a Catholic and was taught not to "boast" about faith. I can't even imagine my mother, a proud Catholic, telling someone that she's "very religious." She'd consider it showing off.

[despairing optimist]

29. Read this story between the lines

The headline distorts the story. Far from playing a "crucial" role, religion could be a negative factor in electing the president. What are the absolute numbers of "very religious," "religious," and "not religious" voters? And we know that registered Democrats outnumber their Republican counterparts, so it is misleading to equate them by using simple percentages of Dems and Reps polled. The idea of a "battle" within the faiths seems ludicrous when the facts are put in a better perspective. It's more like a tempest in a teapot. The real swing voters could turn out to be the *nonbelievers* if the believers are evenly divided.

A poor headline followed by a poor analysis of polling data.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

32. "...the more often they pray and attend worship services,"

"...the more likely they are to vote for Bush."

I know fundies who attend church almost every day of the week. A friend of mine from high school once told me that she and her husband decided they needed to "surround themselves with Jesus" because there were so many who were opposed to their born-again lifestyle.

This whole thing smacks of Jim Jones-style cultism...or Scientology-like brainwashing. It's damned scary! :scared: