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wedrifid comments on The Wannabe Rational - Less Wrong
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I used that "99%" thing twice -- I apologize for getting muddled about which one you were referring to.
Since we're talking about the "bashing" figure: I maintain that the overwhelming majority of the time when "God" is invoked in the political field, it is being used as a club to bash people into line and promote religious ideas.
I'd agree with that; I don't see much other reason to bring religion up, in that context. I expect that politics, some kinds of child-rearing, and provoked debates constitute the bulk of instances where religion is used as a club, and that those situations aren't the bulk of the instances where religion is used at all. (My estimate for how often religion is used as a club compared to other uses, outside those contexts, is considerably less than 10%. People live this stuff even when we're not around for them to fight with, after all.)
Perhaps what we are working towards, then, is a recognition that an irrational belief which is Mostly Harmless in personal life can become a deadly threat when let loose in the wrong habitat (such as the political field) -- and that therefore people who wish to embrace this Mostly Harmless irrational belief are much like exotic pet owners in that they need to be aware that their cute furry wuggums can be a serious hazard if not properly contained and cared for.
To bring this back to the original issue -- i.e. why it's necessary for MrHen to explain what his belief means before anyone can claim it is rational or otherwise -- and complete the metaphor:
Believing in God is rather like owning a pet. It may or may not be a particularly rational thing to do (you have to spend a lot of time and money nurturing it, and the benefit you get in return is pretty much entirely psychological), but some pets are much more dangerous than others... and the degree of danger may not have any relationship to how cute and harmless they seem when you first adopt them.
And once you start owning a cute little pet, it opens the door to owning larger and more dangerous pets.
That sounds about right.
It is appropriate, then, that politics is referred to as the skillful use of blunt instruments.
Your observations may be somewhat different from mine. I don't know where you reside but I know that in the US, for example, 'God' plays more part in politics than it does here in Australia.