Has the evangelical movement become a refuge for con men, dope

[KlatooBNikto]

addicts, criminals,racists,xenophobes and closet homosexuals to hide behind to wage wars against other Americans or other countries through proxies like GW Bush?

[Rabrrrrrr]

1. Yep

[whistle]

2. Why yes, but they have all been forgiven and are doing the work

....of the Lord.:sarcasm:

[ClassWarrior]

3. Of course it has.

It's the new Right Wing permissiveness.

See this article: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-chait1apr01.story

NGU.

[Freedom_from_Chains]

4. It always has been, nothing's changed

Except the quality of the con man has gotten better. Today many of them have law and public speaking degrees.

[BOSSHOG]

5. They believe

whatever they do is okay because of who they are. They also believe that they and their offspring really don't need formal education from the public sector because of their beliefs. I "believe" its a pathetic way to go through life but since they are so hardhead they get zero sympathy from me. They also give life and breath to the adage that the smarter you are the less likely you will be a conservative. They have no desire to get smart because of their beliefs.

[ClassWarrior]

7. Wow, that's a nasty little bundle of hateful stereotypes.

How un-Progressive.

NGU.

[BOSSHOG]

8. They are not stereotypes

of fundamentalists in South Mississippi. I see and hear them every day. My post was factual and relevant to my small part of the world. And the hate comes to me, not from me. They are quite content in their beliefs and have very little inclination to learn factual data which might counter their beliefs. Thats not a sterotype.

[RevCheesehead]

9. Interestingly enough, there is a bit of truth to the stereotype.

I'm reading a book called "The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind" by Mark Noll. (He's one of "them," so it's fascinating!) He theorizes that the evangelical movement, once vibrant, had a major dumbing-down in the late 19th and 20th centuries, and often are anti-intellectual (to their own peril). He calls for the evangelicals to get with it and intellectually engage the culture, rather than dismiss it.

If they can do this sans emotionalism, we may be able to find a way to peacefully co-exist. That is our goal, isn't it? :)

[applegrove]

6. Con men are always attracted to the 'helping professions' & to

repressed people..who make better sheep (flocks) and will be easily dominated by emotional outburst or coercion. For sure the attraction is the trusting & big-hearted nature of the followers who will project their goodness onto the creep and therefore not smell the stink. All 'helping' professions are vulnerable to the cold manipulators. Hospitals, charities, mental health workers, and nursing are also places that are favorites of the freaks. Easy to manipulate those people I guess. Nurturing & Caring people be warned.

Still - the majority of leaders in the Christian right are likely devout and not of this character. They are just caught up in a political storm in the whole mess of modern values vs. traditional ones. It is a legitimate discussion to have. But I doubt the Bush WH intention is for us to have such a discussion. The 'gay' issue they have used again & again to win elections. Thank god for real political leaders like Hillary Clinton et al. Who actually try and solve the problems. Because that is the way of democracies all around the world (come together).

[blindpig]

10. what do you mean, has? n/t

[MountainLaurel]

11. Always has been

Back to the days of the fire-and-brimstone meetings in the 1700s. What was the book by Sinclair Lewis about the traveling preacher?

[xpat]

13. Maybe you're thinking of Upton Sinclair's

"Profits of Religion"

http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/1558

or Sinclair Lewis'

"Elmer Gantry"

http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks03/0300851.txt

[MountainLaurel]

16. Elmer Gantry

Thanks -- I had surgery yesterday and am under the influence of Percoset, and thus had no inclincation to look it up myself.

[xpat]

12. Nothing new here

Remember Elmer Gantry? Being shysters is par for the course on the tent-revival circuit.

[realFedUp]

14. surprised the mob aren't wearing collars...

but these days....

[smirkymonkey]

15. Jesus, save me from your followers!