Religion and Politics in the Information Age

When I was getting my on-the-job training as a bartender in 1970, my mentor told me that there was one golden rule, “never discuss religion or politics.”  Talking with customers across a bar where alcohol is a likely disinhibition to caution, it was best to steer away from volatile topics.  That was sage advice from someone who once ran a speakeasy during prohibition.  Yes, outside those third rails of discussion, most of us can find common ground and agreement.

I have traveled through all 50 states on my many driving vacations and have met a great many people with varying backgrounds.  With rare exceptions, people are friendly in the United States.  We are generally good neighbors and treat each other with respect and common decency.  Our diversity of backgrounds and cultures makes for interesting conversations and experiences.  This pleasantry seems especially true in face-to-face encounters.

While the “third rail” analogy of politics and religion may be appropriate, touching that third rail in real life will normally do nothing beyond a possible tingling sensation.  Electrocution only comes if you complete the circuit by touching both the third rail and another rail to complete the circuit.  Put religion and politics together in a conversation and you have that potentially lethal combination.  While our laws would seem to prohibit the intentional blending of the two in governmental policy, far too many people are content with doing so.

We now add a technical societal change that shifts us away from person-to-person contact to favor an electronic intermediary.  That anonymity often brings out the worst in some people.  Hiding behind keyboards and screens we find that relatively few individuals can have an inordinate influence on a far greater audience than was possible just a few decades ago.  Social media platforms also seem to have an algorithm that elevates inflammatory content to gather more eyeballs and generate more “clicks” just to increase ad revenue.  Those platforms are inherently geared to promote controversy to make money.

Oddly, while most (57%) of the world views social media as a positive influence on democratic society, a Pew Research survey found that, in the US, 64% said it was a bad thing.  The spread of false information through social media was most often cited where people had a negative view.  There was worldwide agreement (84%) that social media made people easier to manipulate with false information and rumors.

The potential volatility of both religion and politics comes from the fervent and deeply held beliefs that are seemingly cast like DNA in some people and are just as difficult to alter.  Challenge that belief system and explosive reactions are probable.  The top four world religions are Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism with over 6 billion followers.  While they all outwardly promote peace, tranquility, and kindness toward your fellow man, they also seem to tolerate some level of violence to promote their brand.  Politics too will outwardly speak of peace but will resort to violence when it promotes a desired outcome.

When religion is used merely as a moral guideline in the establishment of laws, that is not inherently a bad thing.  When religious morality is used with nefarious intent by politicians and others who may have a convoluted interpretation of some religious doctrine, that is when problems arise.  We have all seen extreme manifestations of this where individuals use the pretext of religion or some spiritual calling to claim dominance over gullible people looking for answers.  Enter Charles Manson, David Koresh, Marshall Applewhite, L. Ron Hubbard, and Yahweh ben Yahweh to fill that void, often with disastrous consequences.  It is then not much of a stretch to see those same gullible sheep fall for a political messiah like Donald J. Trump.  His cult-like following has believers who will go to great lengths to protect and exalt him even when faced with examples of his bad behavior.

Now, put religion and politics in the social media blender, toss in lies and misinformation, and hit the on switch.  We have all seen the result.  In America, we saw the January 6, 2020, attack on our capital and its democratic foundation.  There were political flags, religious flags, QAnon flags, Confederate flags, and other symbols of fringe extremist groups (KEK, Pepe the Frog, III Percenters, Proud Boys).  Without social media and the mixing of religion and politics, none of this would have been likely.

The Information Age is here, and we need to embrace it for good and condemn its’ dark side.  The side that promotes evil.  Social media is a good thing when it brings people together.  It also can be used to spread lies and misinformation to the detriment of our democracy.  With politicians intent on meddling with school curriculums to promote political agendas or their brand of religious morality, perhaps it is time for us to accept our new technical reality. 

The “3-R’s” are in serious need of an update.  First, can we all acknowledge that the proper spelling of Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic would mean there never were three “R’s.”  I would suggest the new emphasis should be RWAI where the “I” stands for Information.  It would be the study of gathering information, validating information, and using that information to make informed decisions.  You can’t expect to flood future generations with more information than any human could absorb where that “information” includes facts, lies, opinions, misinformation, and deception, and not expect to see more of what we currently find happening to our adults.

We need to teach our children to think.  We have plenty of followers.  What we need are good leaders who know how to use sound reasoning to make good decisions.  If a “greater America” is truly our goal, perhaps it is time to begin grooming our future leaders and provide them with the tools that will benefit our democracy.  Democracies are hard work, allowing authoritarians to take over is just plain being lazy.