While at a conference in San Francisco a few weeks ago I stumbled upon the following story in the local papers:
Stark’s atheist views break political taboo
I’m surprised this story didn’t get more coverage in the mainstream media. After all, the event is culturally significant – Pete Stark is the first Congressman to publicly admit he doesn’t believe in a Supreme Being.
I don’t make my personal beliefs public because…well…they’re personal. I will say that I don’t enjoy living in a world that is divided by religious fundamentalism and in a society which tolerates little debate on the subjects. Like most rational people, I believe we need a division of church and state to protect both state and church.
Studies suggest that about 10% of the American population considers itself “non-believers”. So far, only 1 out of 535 members of Congress has admitted to “non-belief”, or about .2%.
If anyone has a good reason why members of Congress should not reflect a cross-section of society, I’d love to hear it. Otherwise I think it is fair to say that members are not public (or honest) about their personal beliefs because they fear the political consequences.
Regardless of your personal beliefs, I think we can call agree that dishonesty isn’t something we want or need in a Democracy. We have little chance of uniting the world and overcoming the divisiveness of religious differences if our elected officials won’t (or can’t) engage in an honest, open dialog with their constituents.
Bravo, Mr. Stark.
