I just have one thought on a recent poll. Here's a summary from James Joyner:
A recent Gallup poll reveals that Americans are much more likely to elect a black man or a woman president than a Mormon or an old man. More interestingly, they’d rather be governed by a homosexual than an atheist
Check out the poll results for yourself.
My take? The results are less about who we'd elect president and more about who we feel comfortable discriminating against. Would you vote for a black president? Only the biggest jackasses would say no. We as a society know that it's a big no-no to say we wouldn't vote for someone based on the color of his skin. But would you vote for a homosexual? More people feel comfortable saying no, relying on their religious compass or other reasons they think this would be a bad idea. And an atheist? People don't have any qualms about saying exactly what they think of atheists. They won't speak freely about race, but they will about lack of religion.
And the fact that people say they'd sooner vote for a homosexual than an atheist? Commenter Michael provides the moment of zen:
Posted by Sarah at February 23, 2007 08:24 AM | TrackBackI wonder what Thomas Jefferson would make of that…
Ya’ know, even though I’m an atheist I lead a more “Christian” like life than some believers I know.
Hey, what’s the dif, we’re all infidels to our enemy.
As an atheist, I find I lead a much more moral life than most of the religious folk I know. Maybe it's because I don't think it's alright to just say your sorry and do a few prayers. I believe you have to live with your choices and that you only have one chance at it, so I tend to do things right. But I always find that it's the bible thumper who will end up cheating on his girlfriend and giving her an STD or something like that. Some of the ones that keep their spirituality to themself are alright. And the ones that only believe in an allegorical way are okay. Literal believers annoy the fuck out of me though because they spread scientifically incorrect nonsense, further contributing to the dumbing down of america, while at the same time they live these incredibly hypocrtical lives that make me want to vomit.
Posted by: Will at February 26, 2007 03:58 AM