I know George Micheal says you gotta have faith, but I remain unconvinced..
In my fantasy election, no Democratic candidate feels compelled to trot out declarations of faith in order to be considered legitimate contenders with mass appeal. Edwards, Clinton, and Obama have offered specific statements about the meaning of their faith. I can only assume they are sincere. These declarations are completely unnecessary in any effort to swing me to vote one way or the other. I imagine that the strategy is simple: to siphon off moderate votes and disaffected Christians with a warm fuzzy and comfortable exterior. After all, in the "big tent" we cannot afford to reject or alienate anybody. I do wonder if in reality secularist/salad bar spiritualists like myself will ever be welcome once the process is complete.
Americans still cling to the idea that faith is the basis for a quickie five minute character assessment. They unconsciously believe that a new neighbor or colleague will be easier to live with if they make some declaration of faith. There is an inherent trust even when no actions accompany the declaration.
Lest somebody accuse me of being "hostile to religion", somebody who could drive away potential Democrats let me clarify: I am indifferent. The question is whether folks who share my indifference should simply remain silent. Would it be easier to share the big tent if I just don't mention my indifference. Do I engage myself in deception and claim I agree faith is important? If I am honest, I alienate others if I am dishonest I alienate myself. I suspect I am the sort of person Jim Wallis might chastise.
While I am not an atheist, I firmly believe the United States will not be a truly tolerant nation until an atheist can run for an office in the national spotlight and be derided for the content of policies, not a lack of faith. Keep in mind I did start this little discussion by using the word fantasy.
I don't doubt secular folks like myself can build coalitions with progressive Christians to work on issues of a shared passion. I wonder what I will have to cede in order to do so. Will a rift of trust develop when there are disagreements because I don't share faith? Are these pointless ramblings that pale beneath the necessity of joining together to take America back from the Republican noise machine? Having the party is the fun part, dividing up the clean up crew afterwards inevitably results in crafty alliances in the search for just distribution of labor and resources.