The London
Independent has an article with a slew of statistics shedding light on the Bush administration:
Bush by numbers: Four years of double standards. The article states that 23 out of the 50 million people who voted for Bush are Evangelicals.
Right-wing Evangelicals are a blight upon this country. Without them, the US probably wouldn't be that different from Canada. It is their religion that is the fundamental reason why America is a country divided. It is ironic that while the US is supposed to be the most advanced nation in the world, in terms of its religious development, it is at the stage that Europe was in in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, which were dominated by wars and strife between Catholics and Protestants.
Progressives are going to need to figure out some kind of strategy to deal with this problem, if the US is ever going to become a normal country again.
To prevent misunderstanding: I am not saying that religion is a problem. The problem is
this particular religion, which deviates from Christianity as it has been understood up until now so fundamentally (no pun intended) that it may in fact be a new religion entirely. The key, defining feature of this religion is its outright, uncompromising rejection of modernity.
70m Estimated number of Americans who describe themselves as Evangelicals who accept Jesus Christ as their personal saviour and who interpret the Bible as the direct word of God.
23m Number of Evangelicals who voted for Bush in 2000.
50m Number of voters in total who voted for Bush in 2000.
46 Percentage of voters who describe themselves as born-again Christians.
5 Number of states that do not use the word "evolution" in public school science courses.
Update [2004-9-4 13:55:19 by Alexander]:
The NY Times has an op-ed today claiming that Evangelicals are actually a
hidden swing vote. But as I indicate in
this post, one should be skeptical of the statistics given in this article.
Update [2004-9-8 13:41:36 by Alexander]:Mark Morford, a columnist for the SF Gate, argues that the only explanation for the profoundly irrational Bush policies is the expectation that the world is about to end: Apocalypse Bush!
Why care for the planet when the End Times are almost here? Vote Bush and hop on the salvation train!