Religion Makes You Stupid and Violent

We sane people knew that, but we sane people like to have those facty-sciency thingies at hand.

We are led to believe, for example, that faith and religion are socially beneficial, that it lowers the violence of rape, murder and suicide and that it tempers juvenile misconduct. However, according to research published in the U.S. academic journal Religion and Society and as reported by The Times U.K., the opposite may be true.

Eighteen of the most prosperous democracies in the world were studied. In those countries at least 60 percent of the population accepts evolution as fact and only 10 to 30 percent believe in God. It is nearly reverse in the U.S., where a base of 60 percent do not accept evolution and anywhere from 50 to 80 percent believe in God.

The results show that in general, higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, rape, robbery, juvenile mortality, STD infections, teen pregnancy and abortion. As example, America’s murder rate is five to ten times higher and its rate of sexually transmitted diseases nearly 300 times higher than in secular societies; and our rates of divorce, substance abuse, social and economic inequality are off the charts. It concluded that because of the strong correlation between faith and antisocial behavior, there is reason to suppose that religious belief actually does more harm than good. . . .

But from the social scientist’s perspective there is a greater likelihood that religion leads to antisocial behavior because blind faith creates a loss of intellectual curiosity and an inability to reason.

Some direct quotes from the Times article:

“The United States is almost always the most dysfunctional of the developing democracies, sometimes spectacularly so.”
. . .

“The widely held fear that a Godless citizenry must experience societal disaster is therefore refuted.”

QED.

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The MTV Effect

USian pendants are all over the 'largest national public opinion survey ever conducted on abortion and the influence of religion and moral values on the issue'.

To say that it is a tad schizophrenic would be an understatement.

Two-thirds of the country said the term “pro-life” describes them well, while 70 percent of the country said the term “pro-choice” describes them well. Researchers said people think they’re both. Those who are opposed to abortion think it is among the most critical issues for the country—those who support abortion don’t think it’s a critical issue.

Biiig surprise there. For fetus fetishists, abortion is the ONLY issue.

The study also looks at attitudes towards equal marriage. Millennials (aged 18-29) are way more accepting of same-sex relationships than their elders, but view abortion about as insanely as their parents and grandparents.

HuffPo speculates:

But, why are Millennials so much more supportive of equal marriage for gays and lesbians when compared to the general public than they are of abortion?

My view is that the sheer volume of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) people who have come out over the last 25 years has helped to transform public perceptions of same sex relationships. Millennial youth have known GLBT people as family, friends, fellow students, and work colleagues for decades. They know their stories and have glimpsed the reality of their lives. The thought that these individuals should somehow be denied the same rights as straight folks strikes Millennial youth as a social and moral non sequitur. It just doesn't make sense.

When it comes to abortion on the other hand, millennial youth do not have a comparable experience of knowing the stories of women who have had abortions -- whether pre- or post-Roe v. Wade. Plus, the anti-choice movement has successfully stigmatized abortion with its tactics of clinic intimidation, restrictive legislation, and conservative religious opposition.

But see? This is where the The MTV Effect comes into play.

MTV has two teen pregnancy shows: 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom.

About 17% of Americans have seen one or both teen pregnancy shows on MTV and they're more likely (65% to 56% of people who haven't watched the shows) to say abortion should be legal and to say it's morally acceptable (48% to 40%). PRRI [Public Religion Research Institute] calls this 'The MTV effect."

People are more inclined to have a positive view of the legality of abortion if they consider it in the context of an individual situation, if they know someone who had had an abortion, or if they've watched MTV's reality show on unmarried pregnant teens.

Simple. You know gay people; you accept that they have rights. You know or know of young women with unplanned pregnancies; you accept they should have options.

Now here's a genius remark:

“At the end of the day, Americans are committed to the availability of abortion, and conflicted about its morality,’’ Jones said. “I would call it a stable tension.’’

Yeah. Or USian batshittery.

In any event, the challenge for sane, pro-choice Merkins is huge but clear: normalize abortion.

In stark contrast, Canadians have moved on. A recent poll in the Sudbury Star showed that 85% of participants do not want abortion 'debate' reopened vs. only 13% who do.

Canada -- despite our imaginary supposed ginormous shift to 'Conservatard' values -- remains stoutly pro-choice.
(March 2010, EKOS poll).

Cue the Fetus Fetishist Crowing

US House of Representatives votes to defund Planned Parenthood. Some Dems voted for it, some Rethugs voted against. Final vote: 240-185.

Have a look at this awesome defence of planned parenthood by Rep. Gwen Moore.



The Bill is said to be 'very unlikely' to pass in the Senate. Fingers crossed, though.