Ed, to have a middle ground both sides need to find a common point to discuss... and by definition faith and science are polar opposites.

as for my issues with pete... I am very sincere in my evaluation of him... one of the "joys" of my state service job is the constant barrage of training classes we have to take on such things as dealing with difficult people, sexual harassment, violence in the workplace, ad nauseum...   but they do have some salient points and value.

Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it... might I also suggest a reread of George Orwell and Aldous Huxley...

Oh.. another "joy" of my job is occasional contact with politicians and their lackeys... by and large, a most unimpressive bunch... it's the political machines that are the real scary ones... run by folks that think they are above the law.. until they can change it to suit themselves.