Republican mythology
I have often written that Democrats have been thoroughly corrupted by our campaign finance system, which encourages bribes and graft. Equally so, have the Republicans been corrupted, but Republican politicians carry the weight of a long litany of absurd beliefs that they espouse with religious zeal. This St. Louis Post-Dispatch opinion piece lists eight of the big ones, including:
• They must believe, despite the evidence of the 2008 financial collapse, that unregulated — or at most, lightly regulated — financial markets are good for America and the world.
• GOP candidates must scoff at scientific consensus about global warming. Blame it on human activity? Bad. Cite Noah's Ark as evidence? Good. They must express at least some doubt about the science of evolution.
• They must insist, statistics and evidence to the contrary, that most of the nation's energy needs can be met safely with more domestic oil drilling, "clean-coal" technology and greater reliance on perfectly safe nuclear power plants.
• They must believe that the Founding Fathers wanted to guarantee individuals the absolute right to own high-capacity, rapid-fire weapons that did not exist in the late 18th century.
Stunningly, none of these beliefs is founded on facts or self-critical thinking. As Eric Hoffer pointed out long ago, this lack of objective evidence presents no problem for true believers.