# 20% of population now identifies as "None" when asked about religion; Colbert on Fresh Air **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 9, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262 "2012-10-09T22:03:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/1 "2012-10-09T22:03:46Z")
Story [here](http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/10/09/162582670/young-nones-set-to-transform-the-political-landscape). Some highlights: of this group, 37% identify as “spiritual but not religious” and 42" as “neither spiritual nor religious”. But the most interesting to me: [QUOTE=NPR story] “There is considerable evidence suggesting that the ‘nones’ have actually been caused by politics,” says Campbell, co-author of American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us. “Many people have pulled away from the religious label due to the mingling of religion and conservative politics.” [/QUOTE] This ties to something very smart that Stephen Colbert said in his Fresh Air interview a few days ago (I am operating from memory here, so bear with me). He said that the problem with mixing religion and politics is not only does religion have an influence on politics, but politics has an influence on religion, and it seems a shame to have the sordidness of politics mixed up with something as pure and delicate as faith. (I can’t remember if he said this “in character” or as himself. In any case, I was reminded of the old commercials for Reese’s peanut butter cups - “Hey, you got peanut butter in my chocolate”; “Hey, you got chocolate on my peanut butter”. But without the “Mmmmm” outcome.) All I can say to this is Yay, it’s about time. Roddy ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/2 "2012-10-09T22:20:20Z")
Reminds me of the theory that the reason why Europe is so much less religious than America is because of all those official state religions. ---
**Author:** ![cosmosdan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@cosmosdan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cosmosdan)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/3 "2012-10-09T22:54:52Z")
The attention so called Christian Conservatives were getting did have an affect on me. Right after George Bush was elected I was studying and examining my beliefs. I was going to church sometimes and realized I did not accept some of the basics of Christian doctrine although I still valued the teachings of Jesus. When Christian conservatives and what I saw as hatefull self righteousness, were getting so much coverage I no longer wanted to even be associated with them by saying I was a non traditional Christian, {follower of Christ} Now years later, I identify as a spiritually leaning agnostic. I have little doubt that the media attention given to and sought by Christians with political and partisan agendas have turned a lot of people off. ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/4 "2012-10-09T22:59:22Z")
I don’t think I would be a Christian absent their involvement in politics, but that involvement has seriously undermined any goodwill I had for them. ---
**Author:** ![Simple\_Linctus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Simple\_Linctus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simple_Linctus)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/5 "2012-10-09T23:04:38Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Reminds me of the theory that the reason why Europe is so much less religious than America is because of all those official state religions. I don’t think that’s how the theory is usually expressed. It’s more that in America that a) there is a greater diversity of religion and more cut throat competition for flock, and consequently much greater general attention to religion in the national discourse and b) since the 1850s the European state religions have been being hugely toned down because politicians recognise how much of a nuisance they are. Therefore they can take the place that the more extreme American religions do culturally without actually being taken seriously by anyone. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/6 "2012-10-10T03:09:26Z")
Atheist raised Catholic. We always considered any non-Catholic Christians to be Protestants. Who’d’a thunk there were non-Catholic Christians who weren’t Protestants. Damn splitters! ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/7 "2012-10-10T03:24:24Z")
> [@Simple\_Linctus](#): > > I don’t think that’s how the theory is usually expressed. It’s more that in America that a) there is a greater diversity of religion and more cut throat competition for flock, and consequently much greater general attention to religion in the national discourse and b) since the 1850s the European state religions have been being hugely toned down because politicians recognise how much of a nuisance they are. Therefore they can take the place that the more extreme American religions do culturally without actually being taken seriously by anyone. I don’t agree. The argument that I usually hear is that powerful state religions have made an immense pain of themselves imposing their rules and screwing with people’s lives, or fighting among themselves to _be_ the state religion. In the process, unintentionally inflicting what amounts to a multi-century long anti-religion propaganda campaign on the public. In America, the lack of a state religion often forced religions to use methods more subtle that the law or guns to get their way. It has also forced them to cover up their motivations, pretending that something other than their particular religion is the reason for what they do. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/8 "2012-10-10T03:30:36Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Reminds me of the theory that the reason why Europe is so much less religious than America is because of all those official state religions. Similarly, European Muslims often tend to be much more likely to be radicalized than in their countries of origin. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/9 "2012-10-10T03:43:11Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Similarly, European Muslims often tend to be much more likely to be radicalized than in their countries of origin. I assume you mean as a percentage of the local Muslim population, so that’s not surprising. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/10 "2012-10-10T04:58:36Z")
The mixing of politics and religion is getting pretty bad: [More than 1,000 pastors plan to challenge IRS by endorsing presidential candidate](http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/09/23/more-than-1000-pastors-plan-to-challenge-irs-by-endorsing-presidential-candidate/) > [@](#): > > The annual event, dubbed “Pulpit Freedom Sunday,” has been organized by the conservative Christian group Alliance Defending Freedom. The pastors participating in the event plan to preach about the election, endorse a candidate, and send video of their sermon to the IRS. > > “The purpose is to make sure that the pastor — and not the IRS — decides what is said from the pulpit,” Erik Stanley, senior legal counsel for the group, told [FoxNews.com](http://FoxNews.com). “It is a head-on constitutional challenge.” I’m not sure if taunting the IRS is a good idea. In any case, if the GOP doesn’t distance themselves from the Christian conservatives; I don’t think it will bode for them well in the long run. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/11 "2012-10-10T09:45:24Z")
I hope all those churches lose their tax exempt status then. ---
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2012, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/20-of-population-now-identifies-as-none-when-asked-about-religion-colbert-on-fresh-air/637262/12 "2012-10-10T19:11:18Z")
Well, look at the benefits if they don’t. We can start a religion and claim tax deductions, to promote the candidates of our choice! yay!