> As you know Chip, you can't just go around quoting facts and opinions
> from academics to support your position or refute Chucks. You need to
> quote "activists" in the trenches to have any credibility. The religious
> right is as dead as a Dodo. It only looks so lifelike because it's been
> stuffed! I guess this thread is just as dead at this point.
I don't recall Chip quoting any facts or any actual opinions from academics. I've briefly explained why the religious right has died out and Berlet's best response was to say that he was at some academic conference filled with people who would disagree with me. No actual quotes, citations, or anything was included.
I think the evidence is pretty clear. The religious right is less active at the grassroots level. The membershi in their organizations has declined. They have failed to win any major battles in the culture wars. Their leaders are not movers and shakers of public opinion. When was the last time you saw a televangelist interviewed on some news show? People involved with the religious right have admitted publicly that their movement lost the culture wars and is now on the wane. All of the evidence points to the fact that the Religious Right is a movement seriously on the wane.
Chuck0