DirtyBird2 Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 How much did your political views change (if any) after deconverting? I used to be more Conservative/Republican but now I consider myself more of a Libertarian. Although I'm only 16 and not even old enough to vote, so I still have some time to think about this... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LifeCycle Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 I was also a Conservative/Republican but am aligning more with liberals on each key issue that seems to hit the headlines. It's not due to any desire to want to be liberal, it's just the natural fit for me and this new outlook on life. I'm still a supporter of the 2nd Amendment though and an avid hunter at that. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bhim Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 We recently had a thread on this. I should probably just link to my answer there, but instead I'll offer a brief summary of what I said before. When I became a Christian, I cared about both the so-called "social" issues like abortion and gay marriage, as well as the social justice issues like care for the poor and equal protection. I held to a strictly Biblical theology, but strongly supported the Democrats because I found them to be far less hypocritical. Since deconverting, I've actually switched political views to a more socially liberal but fiscally conservative stance. This probably has to do with my leaving graduate school and getting a real (i.e. much higher paying) job shortly after deconverting. While I'm pro-choice and am not interested in regulating anyone's sexuality, I also don't really care about poor people or about other issues that don't directly affect me. Since I'm unburdened of Jesus' professed love for the poor, I'm OK voting for a party that leaves socially disadvantaged people to starve, as long as it adds a few dollars to my paycheck. As the distance between Jesus and me grows, I am finding fewer flaws in the "I worked hard for my money and I should keep it" argument. Obviously I don't give a dime to charity either. Now having said all this, I will add that the Republicans do support things that might affect me more directly, so my current view is by no means set in stone. Just being honest... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TotalWreck Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 They didn't change at all. I've always been a liberal person. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hereticzero Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 I went from conservative to uber liberal almost over night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottsman Posted April 15, 2015 Share Posted April 15, 2015 Conservative to liberal. Which is ironic because jesus was a socialist. But I still think guns are a fundamental right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiyana Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 My views haven't changed all that much, actually. I don't mind identifying as conservative, but in truth I am probably closer to libertarian. Really, I'm just kind of a weirdo. Seriously. I have a really weird package of beliefs that causes me to fit in pretty much nowhere. I did have to re-evaluate my political beliefs after deconverting, but the only one that really changed was my view on gay marriage, and legalizing weed. Here are my befores and afters. Gay Marriage: Before- 100% against it. After- Couldn't give a fuck. Legalizing Weed: Before- Halfheartedly against it (but against it enough to vote against it). After- To each his own... in fact, I'd smoke some weed myself if I could. Abortion- Before- 100% against it. After- Still 100% against it. This surprised me. Turns out it's actually a deep personal belief, not merely a religious brainwashing. 2nd amendment- Before- 100% for it (in theory) After- Passionately for it. Government size- Before- for small government. After- Still for small government. Death penalty- Before- in favor. After- still in favor. Those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daffodil Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 Mine actually changed from conservative to liberal BEFORE I deconverted, and that was one of the things that influenced it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 My political views did not change. I was for separation of church and state and felt that I should not be using the legal system to enforce my religious views on others because I didn't want others to be able to force their religious views on me. I felt like any religious beliefs applied only to others who held the same beliefs. Laws and religious beliefs should be formed separately and kept separate. If you want to argue in favor of a law you should use reasons that aren't based on religion. I sometimes had two ways of evaluating things. So for a topic like gay marriage I would say, "You shouldn't do it because the Bible is against it, but it should be legal." It might be surprising to know that people can still be anti gay marriage, anti abortion, and all the other things associated with religious beliefs while still being atheists. One atheist I know is against any form of abortion, even using the morning after pill, because he believes your life begins when sperm meets egg and the DNA of the parents have merged to form the new DNA blend of the new human. He believes the fertilized egg is a separate entity from both parents and should have the same rights as anyone else. I know another atheist who is against gay marriage because he thinks it's unnatural and is hurting men psychologically. He likens allowing gay marriage to going along with a mentally ill person's delusions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aiyana Posted April 16, 2015 Share Posted April 16, 2015 My political views did not change. I was for separation of church and state and felt that I should not be using the legal system to enforce my religious views on others because I didn't want others to be able to force their religious views on me. I felt like any religious beliefs applied only to others who held the same beliefs. Laws and religious beliefs should be formed separately and kept separate. If you want to argue in favor of a law you should use reasons that aren't based on religion. I sometimes had two ways of evaluating things. So for a topic like gay marriage I would say, "You shouldn't do it because the Bible is against it, but it should be legal." It might be surprising to know that people can still be anti gay marriage, anti abortion, and all the other things associated with religious beliefs while still being atheists. One atheist I know is against any form of abortion, even using the morning after pill, because he believes your life begins when sperm meets egg and the DNA of the parents have merged to form the new DNA blend of the new human. He believes the fertilized egg is a separate entity from both parents and should have the same rights as anyone else. I know another atheist who is against gay marriage because he thinks it's unnatural and is hurting men psychologically. He likens allowing gay marriage to going along with a mentally ill person's delusions. Lucy, that describes exactly why I am against abortion as well. It has nothing to do with religion, for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ Fuego ♦ Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 A lot changed the night that Obama was elected. I had been a Fox News devotee, and they were predicting dire doom and destruction. As soon as I saw he was elected, I felt at peace inside and knew it was going to be ok anyway. I was already on my way to deconverting, and turning off the TV was one of the things I did. I don't miss political "news" at all. Such artificial stress. Many of my views changed. I now know lots of gay friends who are just wonderful, I recently started using marijuana (not smoking as much as eating or vaping), my politics are a balance and are like Libertarian, but I really don't like any of the candidates that float to the top. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother Jeff Posted April 17, 2015 Share Posted April 17, 2015 I went from conservative to liberal but it wasn't overnight. I voted for Bush in 2000 and would have voted for Obama in 2008 if we hadn't just moved and my voter registration wasn't screwed up. I am now a very liberal Democrat and I absolutely despise the Republican Party. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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