Introduction
The consequences of religious fundamentalism in our lives are very important. In recent years, vital areas of medical research, such as research involving stem cells, cloning, and embryonic human tissue have been subjected to political restrictions as part of a strategy to pander to religious extremists. The result is that crucial areas of biomedical research are now not being conducted in the United States. Attempts over the last three decades to restrict the teaching of evolution or to require that theological alternatives for which there is no evidence be taught alongside it are manifestations of a deep underlying problem generated by a resurgence of fundamentalist ideology.
As a result of the incursions of religion into politics and secular life in general, there has been a de-emphasis of science and reason in public debate. Examples abound: pushing faith and supernatural creationism/intelligent design in school curricula, opposition to stem cell research, distorting and suppressing climate change research, manipulating the scientific process on forest management, censoring information on air quality, distorting scientific knowledge on reproductive health issues, suppressing analysis on airborne bacteria, misrepresenting evidence on Iraq's aluminum tubes, etc.
