Reconciling Conservatism with Atheism

Most conservative atheists, especially ones who are Republicans, have been asked how they can support conservatives when so many of them are a part of the religious right. Because the religious right, in general, is so hostile to the separation of church and state this is a legitimate question.

The issue of separation has varying degrees of importance to conservative atheists, but usually has enough significance to most of us that this question can give us pause. It is an issue that is important to me, and I do oppose the religious right on this issue. However, it is only one of several important issues,
and is outweighed to me, and to most conservative atheists, by these other issues.

Taxes, and the general philosophy of government is just as important as church/state issues, it affects our lives, one could argue, more than almost every issue out there. The left, which the Democratic party is run by, is determined to increase the size and scope of government, and the extent to how much of our lives it will intrude. They believe an activist government is the best solution to most problems in society.

To pay for this more activist government they raise taxes as much as they see fit, and have grown into an attitude of tax the rich, and big business too, to the point where it stifles free enterprise and costs America jobs. How do they fix the problem of lost jobs? You guessed it, with even more government and higher taxes to pay for it.

I am not someone who thinks that government has no role to play in our lives, there are a few things it can and should do. Defense, education, infrastructure, a minimal safety net to help those who can't help themselves, and minimal regulation to ensure public safety. Beyond that the government, in general, should stay out of the way and let the private sector do what it does best, create wealth and jobs.

Defense is a vital issue that demands our attention as well. The left has let itself be taken over by radicals who, to varying degrees, want to blame America instead of fighting the terrorists who are determined to destroy us. Any issues I may have with the religious right is swamped by this one issue alone.

The Democratic party is under strong influence by radical anti-war groups like Moveon.org who not only want to keep America from fighting the terrorists, but want massive cuts in military spending (gutting our armed forces), and putting that money in social programs that increase the left's grip on the lives of the American people. They even want to get rid of, or at least hinder greatly, surveillance programs that could prevent attacks. This spurs not from a wish to see America attacked, but from a fundamental misjudgment of the enemy, and a distrust of the US government, which they consider oppressive and controlled by big business, which in their minds starts wars to make money.

Lastly the left is hostile to the 2nd amendment. The left claims the 2nd amendment doesn't really say what is say it does. The 2nd amendment reads: "A
well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
There is no other rational way to read this other than the obvious, that the people's right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. When the supreme court overruled the Washington DC ban and guns there were even a few calls from the left to get rid of the 2nd amendment. This is a fundamentally alien way of thinking to me, and I cannot be a part of any movement that pushes it.

There are many other issues that I could address, but these are the most important ones. Conservative atheists won't agree on every issue, I've seen them disagree with each other on abortion, gay marriage and other issues. However, the core issues I addressed are ones that most conservative atheists, and indeed most conservatives period, agree on.