Useful idiot
A "useful idiot" is a person who supports a viewpoint but who is held in contempt by promoters of that viewpoint.
The term was used of those in the west who sympathized with Soviet policies, but whom the Soviets held little regard for. It is also used by creationists referring to "churchians", people who represent a church organization but who support anti-biblical ideas such as the theory of evolution. Such people exhibit a form of cognitive dissonance.
This book also seems to target church leaders, to try to assure them that evolution is no threat to their faith. Materialists have long used compromising churchians as ‘useful idiots’... That is, they convince church leaders that evolution and the Bible are compatible, and just let these leaders inadvertently give the impression that ‘science’ trumps the Bible when it comes to Earth history. Then they sit back and wait as young people leave the church in droves.[1]
Useful idiots can be seen with liberal Republicans, who the Left use to attack conservatives and who help promote the Left's agenda.[2]
The term differs from dupe, a person who does work for a group with no true knowledge of its aims (e.g., a person who unwittingly passes classified information to a party not having the right to have it) or a fellow traveller, a person who is secretly a supporter of a group, but not publicly due to their position.
References
- ↑ Sarfati, Jonathan, Science, Creation and Evolutionism 8th February, 2008 (Creation Ministries International)
- ↑ Byas, Steve (December 7, 2018). Bush Funeral Illustrates Usefulness of Liberal Republicans to the Left. The New American. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
