Currently there are two posts on the blogoshere written by Delaware Republicans. Over at TommyWonk, Michael Stafford lays out why religious beliefs and science are compatible. He states, correctly, that in order to understand the Right’s anti-science stance one must understand that it’s rooted in religion – and not a particularly deep religion.
As a result, any understanding of opposition to AGW (anthropomorphic global warming), or of the apparent anti-intellectualism in segments of the GOP today, must begin with a discussion of religion and theology—specifically, the anti-intellectual theology underpinning elements of the fundamentalist Christian Right. In this regard, climate denial is merely one aspect of a broader rejection of reason and scientific inquiry.
With respect to the environment, these theological strains tend to place great emphasis on humanity’s “dominion” over the Earth, but downplay or entirely ignore our concomitant responsibility for the stewardship of it. In so doing, they provide a false reading of the Book of Genesis, one that ignores the connotations of nurturing and care present in the original Hebrew text in favor of an interpretation emphasizing naked power and supremacy. Simply put, the Biblical mandate is to care for creation, not to commodify and exploit it.
[…]
In the end, a theology that requires the rejection of empirical evidence on a variety of topics, and an escapist descent into magical thinking, is not a living faith. It is a dead one. Such a faith is not spiritual armor for the believer going out into the world, but rather, an intellectual tomb for someone hiding from it.
Let me suggest something different. Faith and reason are not at war–or at least, do not need to be. Religious belief and rational inquiry, faith and doubt, are not binary pairs of opposites. Indeed, at a fundamental level, both religion and science remind us of the deep mystery underpinning the world, and our existence in it. Scientific inquiry also expands our knowledge of the natural world and the universe which, we are told in Genesis, is a reflection of God. This is why learning, the quest for knowledge and understanding, is a sacred thing. Or as Pope Benedict XVI has taught, religious faith “consolidates, integrates and illuminates truth[s] acquired by human reason.” For my own part, I think God gave us our minds, our intellects, and our capacity to reason, in the hope that we would put them to use advancing the common good.
Go read the whole thing. It is well worth your time.
Onto the next post by David Anderson over at Delaware Politics:
Most likely American voters surveyed understand that “global warming” is not primarily caused by people. They understand it is a liberal thing to blame us for living.
Moving past the awkward sentence structure and the fact that the poll was conducted by Rasmussen (cross tabs available for 19.95), we see David Anderson’s concern is political, which is fine since no one would ever accuse him of being scientifically literate. Although someone might want to remind him that at a certain period of time most people polled would have agreed that the earth was flat. Also, David has had no trouble tying global warming to god.
Now, if anyone can tell me how these two Republicans can unite… I’m all ears. And this split isn’t about climate change – you could substitute a variety of topics and have the same results – it’s about religion and the way the Right uses “god’s will” as an excuse to do nothing… and everything.