For the last week or so, I've been mocking the Right's claim that somehow our current economic crisis is actually due to abortion, homosexuals, and an overall breakdown in the family.
I assumed that this was just some knee-jerk default response they were giving, since their inclination is to just assume that everything can be related to gays and abortion and families and that once they gave it a bit of thought, they'd realize how ridiculous it is and they'd stop saying it.
And, of course, I was wrong:
Conservative U.S. Christians say the culture has gone to hell and it has taken the economy and Wall Street down with it.
...
The narrative goes roughly like this: the "collapse" of the traditional family, widespread divorce and a "permissive" culture have led to a disregard for personal responsibility.
A culture focused on instant gratification -- through the overuse of credit cards to buy consumer goods, for example -- has also lost other "traditional values" such as thrift and hard work.
"You can't have a strong, vibrant society when you don't have strong, vibrant families. It's a crisis of commitment, it's a crisis of responsibility," said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, a conservative lobby group with strong evangelical ties.
"If you don't live up to your responsibility you are going to see that in the broader culture. You see this on Wall Street," he told Reuters.
Lesson learned - next time you are tempted to think that the Right can't possibly believe the ridiculous things they say, rest assured that, in fact, they do.
