A constrained liberal reaction to rising reactionary thought in religious garb. It was definitely in ways and times used as a tool in the war on terror to get all the good little ducks in a line behind it but it was also later fueled by domestic reactionary pushes among the religious fundamentalists and politicians who were them or pandered to them.

It was fundamentally a very liberal thing. It took as axiomatic that liberalism was the end of history, that liberalism was good, that capitalism was good. Then what was the problem, why this reactionary push against science (teaching of evolution), against contraception, against abortion, for putting religion in the classroom, for all this stuff. Why this happening shortly after the “defeat of communism”. Rather than being allowed a materialist, class-based, holistic analysis these liberals simple assumed what was directly in front of them was the cause, no need to look into the roots of the plant, it claims to be religious fundamentalism and on a surface level it is.

It served as part of the culture war fodder to keep the proles distracted from class, from the open plunder continuing and expanding against the proletariat in the 2000s as the bourgeoisie continued their celebration of victory over communism in the 90s with more claw-backs. Perhaps it was even a way for the bourgeoisie to try and tamp down a bit on some of the excesses of the reactionary successes and momentum. But mostly it was fueling the spectacle of the culture war. Keeping people angry and talking about that, fighting over that, bitterly attacking and struggling while empire continued its long-game-plans, while capital reached further into the wallets of the working classes.