July 27, 2004
Ron Reagan: Important atheist role model
Who would have thought that after the death of his father, Ronald Reagan, that Ron Jr. would be thrust into the limelight as much as he has over his views on stem cell research and his openness about his atheism. Some observers are saying that this is a huge breakthrough in the United States for non-believers, and I'm inclined to agree. In a country where "atheism" is all but a pejorative, Reagan is offering not just legitimacy to secularism, but he's becoming an important role model as well. Go, Ron, go!
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I'm glad that someone related to a major religious and conservative politician is willing to come and and say that, no, he doesn't love Jesus. Ironically, many of the Straussian neoconservatives who have aligned themselves with the Christian Right in the Republican Party apparently view religion as a socially useful fiction for keeping the mob in line. (Refer to Shadia Drury's article in "Free Inquiry," for example, or her book, "Leo Strauss and the American Right.") It's as if the neoconservatives agree with the Secular Humanists about the untenable nature of religious beliefs, but they want to keep the discovery secret because the common people "can't handle the truth." Strauss's influence in American conservatism would explain why powerful elites want to promote even quite delusional beliefs like Christian apocalyptic fantasies, as we've seen from recent respectful coverage in mainstream media of the whole "Left Behind" series. I can imagine that behind the scenes neoconservatives want to pull Ron aside and complain that he's ruining their scam.
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