Sorry, Rickie Santorum: Religion And Moral Behavior Don't Quite Go Hand-In-Hand
Santorum says America is going to hell (and not just metaphorically) because of all of us secular types. Um...actually...Steve Chapman writes at reason:
It turns out that religiosity does not translate into good behavior, and disregard for religion does not go hand-in-hand with vice. Quite the contrary.Consider homicide, which is not only socially harmful but a violation of one of the Ten Commandments. Mississippi has the highest rate of church attendance in America, according to a Gallup survey, with 63 percent of people saying they go to church "weekly or almost weekly." But Mississippians are far more likely to be murdered than other Americans.
On the other hand, we have Vermont, where people are the most likely to skip church. Its murder rate is only about one-fourth as high as the rest of the country. New Hampshire, the second-least religious state, has the lowest murder rate.
These are no flukes. Of the 10 states with the most worshippers, all but one have higher than average homicide rates. Of the 11 states with the lowest church attendance, by contrast, 10 have low homicide rates.
Teen pregnancy also tends to follow a course precisely the opposite of what Santorum preaches. Almost every one of the most religious states suffers from more teen pregnancy than the norm--while the least religious ones enjoy less.
What impact does gay marriage have on how kids handle sex? Massachusetts, the first state to legalize it, has less teen pregnancy than the country as a whole. Connecticut, Iowa, New Hampshire, and Vermont, which have also sanctioned same-sex unions, are also far better than average.
Hmm. Vermont also has no concealed firearms restrictions. At all.
Radwaste at January 14, 2012 4:18 AM
Mr Chapman does not know that correlation does not imply causation.
I'll suggest that gay marriage rates have nothing to do with pregnancy rates, but things like poverty and average education might be better indicators. Why? Because homosexual relations have produced zero pregnancies. I need reasons to believe, Reason.
The other thing the states with high church attendance share is that they are mostly if not exclusively in the South. We have high minority populations (now there's a non-PC correlation with high murder rates) and weather that doesn't force people indoors for a third of the year.
These same states are leaders in charitable giving.
I despise sociopolitical BS, even if it's coming from people with whom I'm more likely to agree.
MarkD at January 14, 2012 5:26 AM
Reason is probably wrong. But Santorum is probably wrong as well.
There was a video a few years back where they were talking about gun crime and a kid was saying it wasn't the guns that were the problem, it was the lack of opportunity.
Jim P. at January 14, 2012 8:48 AM
Mr Chapman does not know that correlation does not imply causation.
I think Mr. Chapman is a smart guy and is playing a game with Mr. Santorum's ridiculous notion that lack of religion causes all the ills in the world.
Amy Alkon at January 14, 2012 10:14 AM
There was a video a few years back where they were talking about gun crime and a kid was saying it wasn't the guns that were the problem, it was the lack of opportunity.
Posted by: Jim P. at January 14, 2012 8:48 AM
Um, explain?
lenona at January 14, 2012 11:21 AM
Eh I see the teen pregnancy stat as a meaningless one in terms of morality. Remeber this would include a pair of 19 yr olds married and supporting themselves who just had a girl, that I know as immoral.
Joe J at January 14, 2012 12:25 PM
lenona, it's simple: the number of guns per capita in a state or community in the USA has no bearing on the crime rate.
The "kid" cited doesn't quite have it straight, either. If "opportunity" was the causal factor, then poor rural neighborhoods would have the highest crime rates as a rule, and they don't.
There will always be people who cannot grasp the idea of value - and some of them are even in charge of programs designed to "help people". The thing is, a thing given is not valued as much as a thing earned. How can a constant recipient of welfare possibly understand another person's investment in work for the things she owns? They can't - and the incentive against theft and the violence that attends it is eliminated.
Radwaste at January 15, 2012 5:06 AM
The kids response is a self fullfilling prophesy, much of sucess is mental. There was a study done once where 2 similar classes of student were given identical tests, the difference was one was given a "pep talk": this is an easy test, I expect the best from all of you. The other class was given a 'unpep talk": this test is so hard and advanced I don't expect any of you to finish it without help. The result on average about a grade level difference, with those told the test was easy doing much better.
Basically if you tell a groupthat it is unfair, you can't succeede without help, there are no oportunities, then there will be less advancement.
Joe J at January 15, 2012 9:16 AM
Radwaste said: lenona, it's simple: the number of guns per capita in a state or community in the USA has no bearing on the crime rate.
The "kid" cited doesn't quite have it straight, either. If "opportunity" was the causal factor, then poor rural neighborhoods would have the highest crime rates as a rule, and they don't.
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OK, fine. I had interpreted it as meaning "sure, guns are available, but cops keep cutting our opportunity to get the guns."
lenona at January 15, 2012 12:05 PM
Teen pregnancy also tends to follow a course precisely the opposite of what Santorum preaches. Almost every one of the most religious states suffers from more teen pregnancy than the norm--while the least religious ones enjoy less.
I bet this has to do with abstinence only sex ed in religious states, and the lack there of in less religious states. Abstinence only sexual education has been empirically proven to be ineffective.
mike hunter at January 15, 2012 9:32 PM
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