To worry about religious extremists making world-altering decisions?

[Gliese163]

news.sky.com/story/trumps-reckless-middle-east-rampage-makes-mad-bushs-rush-to-war-look-thoughtful-11906088

The people around trump are evangelicals who believe in the rapture, the second coming, that iran is an existential threat because the bible tells them so. aibu to think that they might be making decisions based on their religious beliefs and not what is actually good for the world?

The religion of money and power.

You don't seriously believe Trump and co are doing this because they believe the bible tells them to?

Not trump, but I'm pretty sure Mike Pence believes the shit he spouts. I doubt it was just money that made him defund planned parenthood and make it it legal to discriminate against gay people when he was governor of Indiana.

I just find it amusing that for a country that has legal statute separating church and state, the US is run by religious idiots.

There is a reason the US has so many religious zealots, we got rid from these parts when we sent them on the mayflower.

I say that as someone who lived in the midwestern states for nearly a decade and wa sick of the second question after “where are you from” being “what church do you go to” and them being horrified when I said none.

They will elect a black Christian transgender gay person long before they ever elect an atheist.

I know what the OP means. Trump etc do seem absolutely convinced that they are doing the right thing “because the bible says so”... according to which chapter & verse they read.

I know people like that, absolutely certain in their belief in God & willing to stake everything on it “because God will not let anything bad happen to me, I’m one of his most devoted children.”

My mother always says that if god is as narrow minded as made out, she wouldn’t want anything to do with him.

And she’s Irish catholic

Agree about religious extremism - but there are many nut job leaders, just as dangerous, in countries who are not following a specific religion - North Korea being one. Russia's leaders are not driven by religious dogma either.

That's true about the likes of Putin. It's just scary that people might be making decisions based on something completely irrational, like thinking Iran will always be the enemy because of some bible story.

I don't think Trump has a religious bone in his body. Like most leaders he puts on a religious act to appease the majority of the people. Whatever the reasons for his decisions , none of them are driven by religious belief.

I think they're good at convincing their supporters that they're religious...

But they might be driven by the religious beliefs of his advisors.

I cannot believe that anyone who takes as little notice of any of the tenets of the religion he pretends to as Trump does, either knows or cares at all about that religion.

Trump's advisors may be a perverted sort of Christian, but I really wouldn't think he is even a perverted one: he's just an opportunist who sees religious bigots as people who can be used to bolster his power.

Weirdly isn’t a bit self hating?
It’s also not in any bible I’ve read.
False gods yes but is it a “false” god when it’s the same one?
Considering all abrahamic religions ultimately are always to show devotion and love to the same god
They share a lot of the same prophets and have the same roots.
(Mary/Miriam is a bigger part Islam than just being Jesus’s mum in Christianity)

Any religion who thinks there’s is better and the only true way to worship is dangerous.

Trump is using evangelical zelotness to get easy votes (and to give himself a nice fat tax break) but I think Pence is a true believer well as much as a politician can be.

Killing Major General Qassem Soleimani was a distraction from his impeachment
Threatening to destroy 52 significant cultural sites is a threatening to commit a warcrime as well as the destruction of sites significant to both Islam and Christianity.

Religious extremists have been ruling the world for thousands of years, I can't see it ever changing.

You are massively intolerant, OP. Do you think that people who have a strong faith should be kept out of public office?
Do you really think that people who aren’t Christian / Jewish / Islamic / insert faith here don’t hold some sort of philosophy / world view or dogma?

Trump could over rule any 'religious extremists' around him anytime he pleases.

The problem isn't those around Trump. The problem is Trump. A spoiled little rich boy who has failed at everything he has done in life, has no experience of politics, or diplomacy, or economics and blunders around like a bull in a china shop without a care for who gets hurt.

He could be surrounded by atheists and the results would be exactly the same.

He could be surrounded by atheists and the results would be exactly the same

True.

I think Donald Trump makes the decisions he makes because he has an extreme belief in the power of Donald Trump.

Religion doesn't come into it.

@MeanMrMustardSeed

Did you miss the part where I said extremist? I'm not talking about your average religious person. I'm talking about people like Mike Pompeo, who compared Trump to Queen Esther, or Mike Pence, who uses his religion as an excuse to remove people's rights.

Pence is a dangerous arsehole. I'd give serious thought to taking a bullet to protect Trump if it kept Pence out the hot seat and I detest Trump with a passion.

I'm reminded of the Travelling Wilburys and Roy Orbison's memories of the (imaginary) half-siblings' shared father: "Some people say Daddy was a cad and a bounder. I remember him as a Baptist minister."

Religion should NEVER be involved in politics.

I just don’t see how we can avoid it.

I think France comes closest but they get accused of a lot of isms. As do Australia.

YANBU. Trump follows Paula White. Paula teaches wealthy people that its ok to be rich, because you manifest reality by your will - so you made yourself rich.
(therefore poor/sick people didn't try to manifest a better reality hard enough, so made an active choice to be poor.)

Trump's father made money, not Trump himself. Trump has consistently lost money, not made it. I forget how many times he has put a firm of his into bankruptcy to get out of paying its debts: four or five, I think.

And once his father wasn't alive to bail him out any more, he borrowed from banks and not paid them back until there wasn't an American bank that would lend him money, and then he borrowed from Deutschebank and didn't pay them back until they wouldn't lend him any more.

Which is why he is now in hock to Russian oligarchs, who lent him money he hasn't paid back but that's ok because they are getting their money'sworth in "favours".

The good thing about living in a democracy, is that the government normally has plenty of checks and balances, so no religious zealot can rule the country alone. Australia's leader is what I'd call a " holy roller" , but he can't make decisions based on his religious beliefs because of the checks and balances - thankfully.

Trump may not be religious, but evangelicals clearly like him and he will pander to them.