Why Evangelicals Don't Care When Rich White Conservatives Defile Marriage

[marmar]

AlterNet / By Amanda Marcotte

Why Evangelicals Don't Care When Rich White Conservatives Defile Marriage
Gingrich doesn’t live by the strict sexual rules laid out by conservatives, because those rules are meant for other people: the poor, Democrats, gays, and minorities.

January 25, 2012 |


Newt Gingrich’s win in the South Carolina primary looks like it may not be an outlier; Gingrich’s poll numbers are rising rapidly in Florida, and he has a good chance of beating Romney there as well. Gingrich is doing well in no small part because he has so much support amongst evangelical Christians; so much so that many evangelical leaders refused to go along with an attempt to unify the Christian right behind Santorum.

In South Carolina, evangelical Christians voted for Gingrich 2-to-1 over boring family man Mitt Romney. For anyone who takes seriously the notion that evangelical Christians actually care about things like family and fidelity, this support for Gingrich is baffling, since he has a history of serial adultery that he barely bothers to disavow. But a closer examination of the situation makes clear what’s going on: for the Republican base, “family values” don’t actually matter, but are just a gloss painted over what really motivates them: reactionary rage. They love Gingrich because he’s a flaming ball of rage they can wield against everyone they hate.

The sexual double standard is the most obvious way the us vs. them mentality works. There’s nothing the modern American conservative loves more than to decry our country's supposedly declining sexual morals. Once the Republicans swept state legislatures and the House of Representatives, punishing sexual freedom became their number one priority, which manifested in nearly 1,000 bills restricting reproductive rights in state legislatures and a bill attacking private insurance funding of abortion in the House. Eventually, House Republicans threatened to shut down the federal government in order to defund family planning clinics, basically because they’re in the business of providing contraception and STD prevention and treatment. All this while the base continues to push abstinence-only and reject gay marriage on the grounds that it’s not “traditional.” But when it comes to a serial adulterer like Gingrich, he gets a pass. After all, he’s one of theirs, and if you’re in the tribe, you get a lot more leeway. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.alternet.org/sex/153893/why_evangelicals_don%27t_care_when_rich_white_conservatives_defile_marriage/

[blm]

1. Wealthy GOPs write checks to fundie church leaders like the Mafia wrote checks to Catholic churches

and it magically scrubs away all guilt and sin.

[tblue]

2. That's one weird buncha folks.

Sanctimonious hypocritical bullies. Exactly the type Jesus would condemn.

[xmas74]

3. I wonder how many voted for Newt

because he really represents them compared to how many voted for him in a "Vote for the Worst" scenario. (I'm not sure if S. Carolina is one of those states where you have to declare a party.)

I work with a few students and a couple of coworkers who plan on voting for Newt in our primary as a "Vote for the Worst" scenario. We have too many Paul fans in our area and they want to throw the worst possible candidate for the nomination a few bones. The students said they know others who plan on doing the same.

[The Doctor.]

4. Also, they can relate.

Many of these people have or would behave exactly the same as Newt when given the opportunity. They secretly want to be adulterous, but use the scotch-tape of religious morality to hold their image of 'purity' together.


These people have no integrity, no honesty, and no maturity. They are conditioned to hate without reason and direct that hatred towards those who would do them no harm. On the other 'side' are those who are introspective and rational, those who would generally not harm anyone absent immediate an imminent threat.

The latter represent civilization. The former are animals.

[Populist_Prole]

5. The do as I say, not as I do type

What was that quip regarding religious fundamantalists, and what they recognize and don't?

They recognize the literal interpretation of the bible in all aspects of life. They don't recognize each other in the liquor store.

[Martin Eden]

6. "what really motivates them: reactionary rage"

"They love Gingrich because he’s a flaming ball of rage they can wield against everyone they hate."

I have a friend (DU member) who was raised by fundie parents. She says the defining characteristic of their religion was HATE -- hatred of just about anyone who wasn't a fundie like them.

Gingrich is a master at chanelling the rage of the rightwing base, the vast majority of whom are too stupid or ill-informed to realize that most of what he spews is utterly flase and that he's playing them for a bunch of fools.

In fact, most of their rage about government & politics has been steadily built up by decades of false narratives & language that Republican spinmeisters like Gingrich keep repeating over and over again.

[pangaia]

8. Exactly what Hitler and the Nazis did.

[DuaneBidoux]

7. Excellent analysis: most important adjective in piece: "tribal"

[cbrer]

9. Don't get me wrong...

I don't agree with any policy claiming to define "marriage", or any other relationship between people of age. But if you claim a certain "moral" stance, and then ignore its tenets, ESPECIALLY in hopes of a political maneuver, you are a hypocrite with an "ends justifies the means" attitude.

The resulting system of social principles might remarkably resemble that which we have now.