"Non-Religious" Americans Push Their Beliefs in Politics

“She’s religious. That explains it all.”

Ironically, a leftist left this comment on a political Tiktok of mine about how Democrats rely on their voters to be emotionally charged rather than factually informed. I didn’t quote one bible verse, nor did I mention God. When I pressed the commentor, they claimed to have watched other videos. You can, no doubt, gather I’m a Christian, but none of my political videos are argued: “thus sayeth the Lord.”

His attitude isn’t a new phenomenon. When I talk about abortion, I keep my arguments focused on biology and rights. That doesn’t stop an abortion advocate from saying, “Get your God out of my uterus.” Many even reference “separation of church and state,” while not having the faintest idea that it’s meant to protect religion from government, not push religious people out.

It’s quite a conundrum. Even if I don’t make any religious arguments and don’t force others to submit to the same authority as I do, it’s assumed I’m doing it anyway. Russell Vought, Mike Pompeo, Brett Kavanaugh, and other Christians found out during senate confirmation hearings that their faith was acceptable targets, despite their professionalism and qualifications.  

The problem is the bigotry of the left and their simple intolerance of me. I won’t bend to their demands and ideologies, so they don’t want me to participate in the political arena, not meaningfully.

But non-religious people make political arguments rooted in their beliefs all of the time. “No one should have to work more than one job. We should all make a livable wage. Businesses that can’t pay a livable wage shouldn’t exist. No one should have to pay for healthcare.” Those are all moral arguments.

Eugenicists argued for the livable wages and the minimum wage because they wanted to protect “worthy wage earners. If “parasites” ended up unemployed because they were priced out of the workforce, that was a sign of good social health to them. Royal Meeker, who worked under the Woodrow Wilson administration, said: "It is much better to enact a minimum-wage law even if it deprives these unfortunates of work. Better that the state should support the inefficient wholly and prevent the multiplication of the breed than subsidize incompetence and unthrift, enabling them to bring forth more of their kind." 

Obviously, I think it’s unethical to implement policies to create class warfare, to purposely impoverish a certain type of people, and plot to control them within the government teat. Yet, these ideas are still pushed today. Many progressives believe businesses that cannot pay a minimum wage do not deserve to exist. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA 17th District) got into hot water last year for saying as much, but President Franklin D. Roosevelt believed the same.

We know humans are capable of monstrosities and power tends to corrupt. That’s why we try to limit the government and protect individual rights. We wouldn’t have to worry about the immoral eugenics agenda if the government allowed businesses and workers to continue their voluntary exchange without interference.

As a conservative, what do folks on the left have to fear from me? I want a small government that can’t oppress either of us, whether I wield the power or not. I won’t compromise my faith in my personal life, and I’d like to live in a community that reflects my values, but I don’t want to use the force of the government to push my beliefs. The government has a legitimate role, and that role is to protect our rights.

My faith is rooted in rationality; my beliefs shape my values, and I’ve experienced the fruition of their wisdom. I’ll never stop preaching my faith or living by it, and if I convince anyone to accept my worldview, it will be done so voluntarily and on an individual level. I’ll always be a threat because I see myself as an individual, who won’t bow down with the progressive collective. Even if I want to have a conversation rooted in facts and data, it’s easier for the left to dismiss me rather than defend their beliefs.

The type of American who can blow off an entire political argument because of someone’s faith is more religious than they let on. That takes an extraordinary amount of blind faith. The bible says I have to give the reason for the hope that’s within me. My critics don’t hold themselves to such a high standard.