You know Joe, instead of saying "Americans and Britons" you could just as easily say "Christians. " Stops the Spanish, Portuguese, Belgians, French, Germans, Russians from getting off the hook.

Whatever the more temporal aims of those in charge, the foot soldiers were told their colonial actions were to the glory of God and the savages were a blasphemous affront.

Denigrating practices that are not your own may well be bad manners but think on two thoughts if you would;

By stating your Creed as part of debate, you lay it open to scrutiny. You shouldn't be offended when it is dismissed as irrelevant or indeed seen globally as part of the problem.

Many people have no issue with religion so long as it affects their members only, and then only in a legal framework.   The remnants from the superstitious past still linger on the statute books over here. Churches can sometimes be rather aggressive in trying to maintain influence in society.

And let's not forget, the one area where science can take religion on board is that of social sciences. It is a well researched, pretty well proven fact that the object of religion is controlling the masses. The stories, which you for one are quick to point out are just stories to gain moral guidance from, were put forward for people to actually believe. Medieval peasants and inbred monarchs didn't have the benefit of your education nor indeed wisdom.