Point taken, Jim. But note the word the word "or." ". . . fundamentalist or non-deep-thinking variety. . . ." I left that open. Perhaps that should have been "and/or."

I did not intend to imply that fundamentalists are necessarily ipso facto unintelligent or non-deep-thinking. I do know a few fundamentalists (e.g., an aeronautical engineer I worked with at Boeing) whom I consider deep-thinking in most areas of their lives, but it's my personal contention that they have selective blinders on when it comes to matters of religion. They are logical and evidence-oriented in everything. But they regard the Bible as literal history and, therefore, incontrovertible evidence for what they believe. Since it is The Bible, they disconnect their critical faculties in a way that they never would never with any other written and presumably factual work.

Re:   "Literal." I have had fundamentalists say to me specifically, "Yes, what the Bible says is literally true," emphasizing the word "literally." They have said to me that the Bible is the "literal Word of God." So I don't see that I have used a word that they don't use themselves, or used it in a way that they don't themselves.

Hang in there. . . .

Don Firth