A few years ago, I went to a talk at the tiny Pavilion Theatre in Brighton - part of the annual Brighton Festival - to hear a discussion with a guest speaker on the subjects of science and religion. The speaker, a lucid, intelligent and charming man, delivered a calm, quiet and rational exposition of his views on religion. Views which, as an atheist since my early teens, I thoroughly agreed with, and agree with today. The violence and persecution committed by all religions against each other, cloaked in the name of "god" and "faith" and "belief" are truly disgusting - and have been in existence since the creation of those religions. It's very clear that no amount of writing, lecturing, preaching, praying or proselytising can stem the flow of "man's inhumanity to man".

That's my belief, never stated on Mudcat before and, having said it once, I shan't say it again.

The festival speaker, by the way, was Richard Dawkins.