# Political/religious things people would admit if it weren't for social consequence **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [June 26, 2026, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213 "2026-06-26T22:37:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/23 "2026-06-28T03:32:14Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > But have you lived in a small deep south town? I have not; my information is second-hand. Have you? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/24 "2026-06-28T03:34:13Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I have not; my information is second-hand. Have you? Nope, but my admittedly limited experience is first hand. I am somewhat doubtful of “friend of a friend” cites. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/25 "2026-06-28T04:14:22Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Pascals Wager even admits the existence of God has little evidence. But it is hard to answer Pascals point there, isnt it? No, it’s not. In fact, it’s a joke. > [@Homer Simpson](#): > > And what if we pick the wrong religion? Every week we’re just making god madder and madder. But I won’t participate in such a discussion further, as it seems to be a hijack. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/26 "2026-06-28T06:25:58Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > > [@Velocity](#): > > > > I feel a lot of Trumpers would admit that Trump is indeed quite immature, embarrassing and childish if they would face no blow back from fellow MAGA-ers or “gotcha” from their liberal opponents. > > I’ve heard Trump voters say worse about the guy. I’ve mentioned this before, but I know a Hispanic guy who readily admits that Trump is a flaming ass clown, but voted for him anyway. This guy also spent most of his life working on a factory floor in the Midwest, and thought Trump was going to be tough on China. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/27 "2026-06-28T09:31:02Z")
I’ve recently read this book, which is excellent. It basically agrees with the premise of the OP, i.e. social pressure is largely responsible for the positions we have and the decisions we make. > **[The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion -...](https://www.amazon.com/Righteous-Mind-Divided-Politics-Religion-ebook/dp/B0052FF7YM)** > > The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion - Kindle edition by Haidt, Jonathan. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while... ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/28 "2026-06-28T10:27:58Z")
Note that it also argues that conservative thought is correct thought, and liberal thought is missing key dimensions of what it takes to be cohesive little followers. Which is after all, the important part of being human. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Tan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/charlie_tan/32/12582_2.png) [@Charlie\_Tan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Tan)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2026, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/29 "2026-06-28T14:53:48Z")
Nah. That’s over simplifying the conclusions he makes. He’s not saying that conservative ideas are correct, rather that conservative ideas tend to get more traction with larger groups. The insteresting thing is not those conclusions, but how we form opinions, biases, what we think is morally right and wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2026, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/31 "2026-06-30T17:35:55Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Also when I was sent to Birmingham once for training, I did mention I was a “doubting Christian” and altho that did get some questions, several people saw my point- mind you, it didnt change their faith. So it may not be as bad as you think. From what I’ve seen “doubting Christian” is seen to be a good thing, because it is okay to have doubts as long as you stay in the faith. It makes the faith stronger. On the other hand there is a whole group of atheist pastors, who clearly hide their deconversion to keep their jobs. And I’ve heard from plenty of people who lost their support group when the deconverted. There is a group called Recovering from Religion for them. Then of course there is the fear of hell. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/32 "2026-07-01T14:23:08Z")
Charlie Kirk was scum and the world is infinitely better off since he died (acknowledging this does not equate to condoning murder). People have lost their jobs and have faced criminal charges for not saying that he was the saintliest saint who ever sainted. About 25% of the US population (MAGA) are genuinely bad people, completely beyond redemption. The only cure for MAGA is embalming fluid. Should people make a habit of saying this, family fights would ensue so we continue to privately hold our MAGA relatives in contempt. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2026, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/33 "2026-07-01T18:18:05Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > About 25% of the US population (MAGA) are genuinely bad people, completely beyond redemption. Deplorables. 🤪 ---
**Author:** ![survinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@survinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/survinga)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/34 "2026-07-15T00:21:08Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Nope, but my admittedly limited experience is first hand. I am somewhat doubtful of “friend of a friend” cites. Kenobi is basically correct. I live in the deep south. I have lived in very small towns. In one town that I won’t name, but which was very small in the middle of nowhere, there was a lot of peer pressure put on me to join a church. It hurt me in my job & the view of others around me that I didn’t do so at the time. I now live in a rural county near a medium-sized (200K’ish people) city, where the pressure isn’t as much, but it’s assumed by most people that I come across that I’m attending a church somewhere (and I am a practicing Methodist). If someone in a town like where I live or a smaller town like where I used to live had difficulty finding friends, one of the first things people will say is “find a church”…that still happens today. Very large cities like Birmingham and Atlanta don’t have as much pressure on people around their religious practices. In smaller towns, it’s a bigger deal. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/35 "2026-07-15T02:25:15Z")
> [@survinga](#): > > Very large cities like Birmingham and Atlanta don’t have as much pressure on people around their religious practices. In smaller towns, it’s a bigger deal. Okay, sounds good. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Toxgoddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Toxgoddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxgoddess)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/36 "2026-07-15T20:05:53Z")
One of my daughters was in Americorps after college on an assignment in Alabama. She said one of the first things the locals asked in conversation was “What church do you go to?” She said it didn’t seem to matter that much which church (or denomination) as long as it was _some_ church. The one thing you’d best not do is say you were an atheist. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/37 "2026-07-15T20:40:17Z")
I think a lot of adults who would consider themselves logical, critical thinkers when really pressed on their religious beliefs would admit that they are not religious as a the result of reasoning it out logically, but rather are religious just because they (for a lack of a better term) “like” being religious. The (not to be rude) ignorance is bliss approach that affords the benefits that go with it. Social aspects(church), family aspects(holidays), coping mechanisms for grief(they are in a better place), coping with unknowable mysteries of the universe(god di it), etc. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/38 "2026-07-15T21:09:18Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > I think a lot of adults who would consider themselves logical, critical thinkers when really pressed on their religious beliefs would admit that they are not religious as a the result of reasoning it out logically, but rather are religious just because they (for a lack of a better term) “like” being religious. Agreed that many members of certain popular belief-based religions would likely say this. But many _Jewish_ adults who would consider themselves logical, critical thinkers, when really pressed on their religious beliefs, would say belief isn’t really a factor in their practice of Judaism, and that their religious practice has no more need for a basis in logical reasoning than, say, taking up needlepoint or watching a movie. ---
**Author:** ![survinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@survinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/survinga)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2026, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/39 "2026-07-15T21:44:14Z")
> [@Toxgoddess](#): > > One of my daughters was in Americorps after college on an assignment in Alabama. She said one of the first things the locals asked in conversation was “What church do you go to?” She said it didn’t seem to matter that much which church (or denomination) as long as it was _some_ church. The one thing you’d best not do is say you were an atheist. The area where I live has churches all over the place. Big, small, predominantly black, predominantly white, different flavors protestant mostly…Baptists everywhere, lots of Methodist churches, too. A few Catholic Churches…one Synagogue…Lots of Evangelical churches… So, when I see what you said about your daughter, I’m not surprised. I’ve been in the exact same conversations with people. It’s basically assumed that most everyone you meet attends some church. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/40 "2026-07-22T11:35:14Z")
That’s something we no longer have here. In most parts of the country, most of the time, nobody assumes you go to church or cares which one it is. With exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2026, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213/41 "2026-07-28T07:22:25Z")
On the trump thing, I rarely meet a trump supporter who _doesn’t_ concede that he “tweets dumb shit”, and uses some synonym of “infantile”. That’s the one concession before they put their foot down about the things that matter, many of which are actually objectively provable, like that Trump lies. (I don’t think that would be a good example for the OP either though, as I think the typical maga is _not_ self aware of this fact). > [@Velocity](#): > > I feel a lot of people would admit “our side has a problem” if they faced no consequences for saying it aloud. Like men admitting the violence against women issue I don’t know what this is in reference to. Do you mean among toxic or bro culture men? I think men in general are well aware of how serious, and common, things like domestic violence are. And absolutely would be prepared to say so. The only thing I’d resent would be the suggestion that all men have this aspect to their character or something. I’ve never hit a woman, even when I was being punched by a woman. I’ve never wanted to, never considered it. I can criticize myself for many things…this isn’t one of them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/political-religious-things-people-would-admit-if-it-werent-for-social-consequence/1031213.md?page=1)