How did your political views change when you left Mormonism

[_dblagent007]

My father was a staunch, Reagan hating Democrat when I was growing up so I was too. I voted for Clinton in 92, which was the first election I was eligible to vote in.

Like my exit from Mormonism, cracks began to form in liberal world-view. The biggest ones came from my college level economics classes. I was raised that free-trade was bad and tariffs and unions were good. My econ classes took that world view to the wood shed. I then became a "moderate" who thought Utah conservatism was still way over the top.

Things were humming along nicely ... until I moved to a blue state. My tax burden shifted upward dramatically, but the government didn't provide noticeably better results for the people than Utah (e.g., better education for children, better police, better fire, etc.). In fact, unemployment was higher and deficit spending was ballooning out of control.

Eventually, I concluded that government causes more negative market distortions than positive ones and should stay out of most things. So yeah, I became a rabid conservative.

The only thing that changed along with my views of Mormonism is my position on homosexuals. Before I opposed gay marriage, but now I don't.

[_zeezrom]

I doubt it Zee :) It was probably because you wanted to sin!

Well!

If I had only known how great coffee and tea were, I would have left long ago. Or, at least I would have lost my TR long ago.

But some sins are so much less interesting now that I don't believe in it. Let this be a warning to those of you sitting on the fence (i.e. FenceSitter). Do you want some of your sins to become boring? If not, then don't leave the faith!

[_sock puppet]

Like Rambo, on social issues I became liberal--or more precisely, libertarian. Without the artificial "God" wanting things a certain way or not, the little benefit to society from a big encroachment on individual liberties led to my libertarian conclusions, in my post-Mormon analysis. (Abortion is complicated because there are two lives at stake, and the stronger one gets to make the decision. Society usually steps in to protect the other more than it does with abortion. I think out of sight, out of mind is a factor that comes into play on this one.)

Fiscally, I believe that some undertakings by government worth the encroachment on individual liberty, by taking part of the measure of someone's time and efforts. These are projects that simply would not, practically speaking, have come about through private funding only, and yielded big benefits to society.

However, I think that there is a point at which taxation, coupled with ever wasteful government spending, cripples the economy. In most endeavors in life, private markets respond more quickly, more accurately to the need presented by purchasers than government. Secondly, there comes a point at which people simply choose not to wore more and more efficiently because they believe it is not worth it. There is a tipping point in taxation at which if the rates go beyond that point, the human drive to work and get ahead is crippled. People give up. Then government needs to up tax rates even more on those yet driven, to provide for the people that have given up. That tipping point is not static. It dynamically changes under societal and other circumstances.

For example, I've seen first hand many vibrant business with go-getter owners as recently as 2009 having given up, closed their business, and end two to four dozen jobs each. Most cite increasingly regulatory hostility to employers that make their ministerial and financial burdens unbearable, and increases in their potential liability to employees likewise unbearable. In addition to these concerns, the next thing almost invariably out of their mouths is what they fear in deficit spending consequences, such as greater difficulty in securing operating loans.

I know of a couple so disheartened in the last two years, they have each sold all of their assets and expatriated to another country--both instances their money going ahead of them. They have found more confidence in other countries than they yet have in the 'full faith and credit' of the U.S.

Economically, matters are bleak in the U.S. And there's not a damn thing Obama or Romney can do about it.

[_angsty]

My political views changed before I left the church, and probably had something to do with my leaving the church formally. I'd say my education probably played a bigger role than anything. I was raised in a staunchly-conservative, politically-active family. Or at least that's what I was led to believe. Turns out the women weren't so conservative, but kept quiet out of respect for patriarchal authority. Both of my grandmothers were lifelong Democrats, but I didn't find out about that until after my grandfathers had passed away.

Anyway, during the course of my university adventure, the indoctrination of my youth came into question. I came to the conclusion that true freedom of religion meant that we shouldn't allow legislation that was based on religious opinion, because that was tantamount to using the law to enforce observance of whatever religious ideas were agreed upon by the majority. It's convenient if you're in the majority, but if you hold a minority opinion on these kinds of issues, you're basically being forced by the law to abide by majority religious views. I thought that kind of legislation was a huge infringement, and so felt very bothered by the church's political stands regarding gay marriage, abortion rights, etc. I was also bothered by common "family values" themes regarding contraception, sex education, etc., that seemed to be a product of religious views about the evils of pre-marital sex.

The way I viewed/view it, the list of my personal rules of conduct based on my religious principles and the list of legitimate areas for legislative intrusion were two very different things. If the arguments presented for a piece of legislation were based on religious values, they weren't legitimate, end of story.

Anyway, that idea put me at odds with just about every LDS person I spoke with about politics and seriously pissed off a few of them. People seemed to think it was a moral evil to refrain from attempting to impose our religious view of morality on the general public, since we're so right about everything with our special light and knowledge and being a city on a hill and all that fancy thinking. That got me to feeling like an outsider, as if I didn't already, and certainly played a role in convincing me to disaffiliate formally.

I suppose that since leaving, I've gotten more liberal overall-- governed by healthy dosages of skepticism, cynicism and pessimism. I've certainly gotten more passionate about protecting civil liberties, social justice, social responsibility, and autonomy in general. I've also gained a greater appreciation for staying out of what is definitely not my business and using my vote to support legislation that would keep the government and the voting public out of what is only my business (my vagina-- what I do with it and how I care for it-- being a prime example).

[_SteelHead]

Was before and continue to be libertarian. I think morality should not be legislated, and that the protection of rights and property should. I have no problems with gay marriage, plural marriage, etc etc as long as everyone involved is; and adult, and consenting. Felt this way for a couple of years before my defection. Social libertarian / Fiscal conservative

The current usage of liberal and conservative, left wing right wing are a bad dichotomy, and a missuse of the classic definitions of the terms.

This is better .


Or the nolan axis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nolan_Chart

[_son of Ishmael]

Was before and continue to be libertarian. I think morality should not be legislated, and that the protection of rights and property should. I have no problems with gay marriage, plural marriage, etc etc as long as everyone involved is; and adult, and consenting. Felt this way for a couple of years before my defection. Social libertarian / Fiscal conservative

The current usage of liberal and conservative, left wing right wing are a bad dichotomy, and a missuse of the classic definitions of the terms.

This is better .


Or the nolan axis. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nolan_Chart

I too was and am a small "l" libertarian. The only real changes I am made to my thinking have been the issues of Gay marriage and abortion. To my shame I felt that Gay marriage was morally wrong. Once I left the church and did some thinking I realized that I had absolutely nothing against it. I had just been drinking the LDS cool-aid. I still feel that abortion should be rare and at best it is the least worst option, but it should always be legal and safe.

I really don’t identify with either of the two parties and don’t think that they are genuinely concerned with the average Joe. I think that big business controls them both and the rest is all smoke and mirrors to give us the illusion that we have a choice. It is like choosing which crime family you want controlling your neighborhood.

[_krose]

It took a couple of decades to complete the transition, but it was pretty much 180 degrees.

My switch from being a BYU fan to being a Ute fan, however, took about a week of working in Provo.

[_Fence Sitter]

It took a couple of decades to complete the transition, but it was pretty much 180 degrees.

My switch from being a BYU fan to being a Ute fan, however, took about a week of working in Provo.

Being a Cougar fan is an acquired taste, being a Ute fan means having none.

*Waiting for Blixa's wrath to descend upon me*

[_krose]

It took a couple of decades to complete the transition, but it was pretty much 180 degrees.

My switch from being a BYU fan to being a Ute fan, however, took about a week of working in Provo.

Being a Cougar fan is an acquired taste, being a Ute fan means having none.

*Waiting for Blixa's wrath to descend upon me*

I "acquired" it by being born a Mormon, and followed them because that's what Mormons do. That was the only attachment I had to the school, having gone to college elsewhere and not growing up in Utah County.

Even after going to grad school at the U, I still rooted for them somewhat, just out of long-time habit. Then, as I said, getting a job among the entitled faithful cured that inclination for good.

[_Bob Loblaw]

I "acquired" it by being born a Mormon, and followed them because that's what Mormons do. That was the only attachment I had, having gone to college elsewhere and not growing up in Utah County.

Even after going to grad school at the U, I still rooted for them somewhat, just out of long-time habit. Then, as I said, getting a job among the entitled Zoob faithful cured that inclination for good.

I honestly don't care much anymore about that particular rivalry. I work with a lot of BYU and Utah grads, and both can be obnoxious. I went to BYU, but I'm too old to care deeply about sports.