///Talk about plumbing the depths of ignorance and stupidity. Do you think it's *Catholics* who hack kids' foreskins off?///

I don't know, do they? It's widely practiced in the Western world.

///Why would I get upset about what some religion totally unrelated to my personal experience does?///

That's what I'm asking you! Were you force-fed doctrine or not? You never answered the question. Instead you went off with insults that appeared to be trying to get me off this tack. Won't work. Answer the question, please: We're you force-fed doctrine as a boy or not?

And why do you insist that you are not rebelling when you're every world is a vilification of Catholicism--even to the point of accusing them of rubbing off on me. Clearly you meant that to be an insult. It's not having the intended effect because I didn't grow up resenting having religion forced on me.

Clearly, it was forced on you. Clearly you are very--I would even say extremely--resentful of this. Anyone who questions you on this point is treated to insults and deliberately condescending remarks. But remember, professor shaw, you made it our business when you force-fed us your anti-religious doctrine.

Personally, I see no real danger in religion. You have your nutjobs but they exist in every sphere of life. If people want to pray before a football game, I really don't care. Go ahead and pray. If they want to go to church then go to church. If they want to pound their bibles on the street they can knock themselves out doing so. If they want to talk to me about Jesus, I'm all ears--talk away. I just want the state to stay out of it.

I want religious folk to know that I as an atheist don't care what they do. I'm not going to rail against it. I was at an art museum some months back and a lady was there with her daughter, about 10, and they were looking at the religious paintings so popular in Europe at one time and the lady told the girl what the Ascension was. "Is that really true?" asked the girl, clearly skeptical. "Yes, it's true," said the lady. Now, that isn't the answer I would have given but I wouldn't have told her no that's not true either. I would have said, "Does it sound true to you?" Then she can do her own mental processing. Atheists talk so much about "free-thinking" but often in their way are just as dogmatic as religious nuts. Let the girl make up her own mind even if I don't agree with her conclusion. That's what free-thought is all about. It means leaving people free to be religious if they want to be and to reject if they want to--not because I said so. All I ask in return is that they respect my position since I respect theirs.

///You are clearly lacking in education about world religions and their rituals. Are you of the age of majority yet?///

I'm far from lacking in education, professor shaw. But I'm also seeing clearly how uneducated you truly are.