Without question, it's religion. In most cases of those who practice religion as adults, it is instilled as young children, before politics becomes relevant to them. Political views are then based on core beliefs which, again, spring from or are colored by the earlier indoctrinations of faith, or lack of them. Surely one's positions on such topics as abortion, stem cell research and Sharia Law are examples of this bias.
BTW, good luck attempting to gain public office if you aren't religious, or particularly in the US, a Christian. I think it fair to say people would more readily abandon their Party than their dogma. Many will judge the type and measure of one's ethics or morality as dependent upon their religious views, sad as that is to say.
Additionally, we find the notion emblazoned prominently across many diverse governmental functions: "God and country...", "God save the Queen", "In God We Trust", "...One nation, under God", "...endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights...", and so on.
This post was edited by Benedict Arnold at February 25, 2017 5:32 AM MST
I hear ya loud and clear m'dear. Rigid/inflexible/dogmatic anything/anyone annoys me. I don't know if I am imagining it but it seems to me there are more and more and more and more and more and more of them. Wonder why? Thank you for your reply Zack! :)
50/50 When religion is gone, politics will fill all it's previous faults on society. That's why when fellow atheist who start talking about how if expunge religion from human kind things will be so much different I call BS. Politics does the same thing. It's not religion really, it's the bigger concept of ideologies that causes rigid thought and sense of owning virtue. Politics in that regard is equal to religion. Many people even worship them, martyr it's major contributors, and base them on faith. They both have the same traps.
Benedict Arnold 