The Nones are NOT Dan Dennett's "Brights" nor are they most likely to come from Whites

Gnu Atheist types like to sell the idea that the religiously unaffiliated in the US, the so-called Nones, are primarily atheist.

And, decades ago, Dan Dennett, with an assist from Richard Dawkins, tried to sell the idea of their brilliance when he invented the word "Brights."

Well, per religious polling organization PRRI, they'd be wrong.

Hindus would be the "Brights," if we go by post-graduate collegiate education:

Per the graph, they'd be followed by Unitarians, and the typical Unitarian church any more can include Unitarians ardent for Western deism or theism, New Agers, Wiccans, atheists or others. Jews, many of whom are not metaphysical if they're Reform, are third. Orthodox Christians are fourth, interestingly.

The Nones? Tied with mainline Protestants and behind Mormons and Muslims as well as the other above groups.

This, in line with previous blogging of mine about the new PRRI research, should also put the kibosh on claims that the Nones are atheists or even close. Their education profile in general most closely parallels White mainline Protestants.

They're likely "unaffiliated" because they've simply drifted. Other religious sociology research says that a major predictor of church going is having children or not, and how many, if you do. With better-income families, especially, having one kid and no more in many cases, church as a place for potential moral development of kids just doesn't have the same call. Plus, in an ever more mobile society, these mainline Protestant denominations probably have less hold. And, since most of them are in theological fellowship with one another, more White mainliners probably figure they don't need to identify as Lutheran or Methodist or Presbyterian. I suspect that of the total amount of Nones, one third are theist mainline Protestants, one third are deist mainline Protestants, and only one third are really something else, or else "seekers" who just aren't sure.

And, a later graph partially confirms this indirectly, but also says I shouldn't push this too much. Asians and the multiracial are most likely to be Nones. American Indians are third, which indicates that Nones includes indigenous religion. The percentage of Whites who identify as Nones is only two points ahead of Blacks, which in turn is two points ahead of Hispanics.