Welcome to Pet Peeve Land.
“@mcmannis12: how do you respond to someone that thinks there is a conspiracy against religion?” There is. It's called education.
Look, I know there are lots of ignorant, uneducated people who are religious. There are also lots of educated religious people. Education is not incompatible with religion. I know a bit about world religions, Christianity, the Bible, and science. There's no conflict that I can see that isn't explained with a healthy dose of using one's brain. Education enhanced my faith. I know it threatens others. I feel for those people.
And you know, apparently there are some ignorant, uneducated atheists too, because otherwise they wouldn't say such ignorant, uneducated things, right?
I really, well and truly, have nothing against people who don't believe what I do. I'm baffled by them, but I have no issue with atheists. The people who piss me off are the ones who insist that because I don't believe what they do, I'm uneducated.
Isn't that what non-Christians hate about evangelistic Christians? That they keep insisting that if you just read the Bible, you'd understand? That they keep insisting they know something you don't and that you're stupid or evil for not agreeing?
Like the assholes who vote for Ron Paul - I've never met (online or off) one of them who doesn't think that if people just knew what they did, they'd love Ron too. Or that if the person who doesn't think Paul is the best thing since the rise of capitalism listens and disagrees, they're just stupid. They don't understand. Because you can't possibly understand and disagree. It's the most infuriating of all "arguments".
Education is a conspiracy. Not against religion. Maybe against people who think there is a conspiracy against religion.
Unless you count capitalism. Because that seems to be doing a fine old job of destroying religion.
