@TheChief America claims to be secular in the same way we also claim to treat everyone equally under the law. But we have a nation that was founded by people who used Christianity (whether as deists or from a more theistic bent) as a justification for enslaving Africans and murdering Natives en masse. The Constitutional amendment banning alcohol sale and manufacture was driven by a distinctly Christian ideology. Polls indicate atheists are distrusted more in the US than almost any other category of human, including criminals. And part of the stated arguments against Communism after World War II was to refer to them as "godless." If we were a secular nation, their attitude toward religion wouldn't have mattered any more than their cultural tastes for beet soup, vodka, and eating ice cream outdoors in January. This is why the conservatives scream blue murder when they have to stop flaunting their beliefs in other people's faces. They're used to being cosseted and favored. Now that enough of us who aren't them are stepping up to counter them and actually push us toward true secularism in the public square, we see the rise of the Dominionists and the election of Donald Trump. So, yes, religion is definitely tied to the vocal minority who refuse to believe scientists when they contradict their pastors.
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@TheChief America claims to be secular in the same way we also claim to treat everyone equally under the law. But we have a nation that was founded by people who used Christianity (whether as deists or from a more theistic bent) as a justification for enslaving Africans and murdering Natives en masse. The Constitutional amendment banning alcohol sale and manufacture was driven by a distinctly Christian ideology. Polls indicate atheists are distrusted more in the US than almost any other category of human, including criminals. And part of the stated arguments against Communism after World War II was to refer to them as "godless." If we were a secular nation, their attitude toward religion wouldn't have mattered any more than their cultural tastes for beet soup, vodka, and eating ice cream outdoors in January. This is why the conservatives scream blue murder when they have to stop flaunting their beliefs in other people's faces. They're used to being cosseted and favored. Now that enough of us who aren't them are stepping up to counter them and actually push us toward true secularism in the public square, we see the rise of the Dominionists and the election of Donald Trump. So, yes, religion is definitely tied to the vocal minority who refuse to believe scientists when they contradict their pastors.