For my views on America's conflicted philosopy of everything take a look at my rant on 300 in the Movies and TV forum. The US is a nation founded by Christian fundamentalists who believed that sex was almost never a good idea, and yet now their legacy is one of the most militant and agressive nations on earth, and the ones who share their Christian faith are the ones who are most rabid for everyone to have guns and for the judicial system to slaughter all murderers and rapists.

It takes a very special group of people to retain all the bad shit about Christianity and completely forget all the good shit.

That's because you have "Christians," ones who actually follow the faith, and "Evangelicals," who use the religion to further political and social goals. And they're damn good at it, partly because they claim to be the first group.

Lance, that touches on the reason I once declared myself an Atheist, I'm not an enemy of faith or even of christianity(the jumbled mess of stoln myths it is(sorry)). My issue with religion and in the extended sense the US is that the US "system of belief" is based on the old adage that "our god is the best one, fuck you guys!"

I think I wrote it on 411 when the second Iraq debacle stareted that I considered this to be a) a Crusade for Oil and b) A crusade like the old ones. That's the whole point as I see it. We have a US Government run by the likes of Bush jr., Cheney and Rumsfeld that all in all the archetypical religious fundamentalists(want proof? Sure, how about how a guy like Bush makes sure to mention God or God's effect on an event...anyone of a sane faith doesn't do this. There are two ways to say "Thank god") or rather the archetypical CHRISTIAN fundamentalists. And they set their sights on Afghnistan and Iraq in the wake of 9/11.

I mean sure if the Taliban regime had a direct connection to the attacks, by all means waste the assholes. And yep they housed Bin Laden (if he even was/is alive). And the Taliban got smoked good(and are from the last reports almost regaining support in Afgahnistan).

Now where did they go next? Did the go after a truly dangerous fundamentalist regime like the Iranian? Nope, they set their sights on a man who runs aclose to seccular state in Iraq. My guess is that "Daddy didn't get him" makes up 25% of the reason hey went in, the oil makes up a good say 30% and the last dirty bit of 45% was a pure, stupid and "Christian" idea to show the poor heathens how to do things..in other words a crusade.

And yeah, we know what good the crusades did and what good western influence in Africa did...brilliant stuff that set a whole fucking contient back at least 100 years in development.

All in all we see a Christian US enforcing it's own apparently failed view of democracy on Iraq (failed because how many percent voted in the last presidential election in the US?). To be honest if I was to model democracy in a country on a place somewhere in the world where would I go? Well, not to the effing US that's for sure.

Now I know it's easy to shovel shit on the US, but I'm not anti-US at all, I'm simply anti-idiots, and you guys have manage to elect a fair fucking few of those through the years. From guys who fuck Marilyn Monroe in the whi9e house to the latest bottom of the genepool.

Some internet articles tell me it kewl to end with a quote so I will...

"I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours."

-Stephen Henry Roberts

Your right, I tend to overlook a bit too much when I get into this debate, what I mean is that many times the views of many fundamentalists boil down to "our god is the best one!" and overlook the message of Jesus, which in looking at the new testament as a giude is a way to redeem the world by being nice and ok to people.

I mean in what way does what Jesus teach provide a justification for going to war? Hell in Jesus words the US invited the 9/11 strikes by aiding military coups in Argentina and Chile and many other countries.

At the bottom line of this we have a whole bunch of people who view the world as them and us and black and white.

I mean, we can afford to have the most powerful nation i the world be run by people who belive that God will save them for everything. My personal belief is that the US needs someone with enough sense to say "Stop, what the hell are we doing?"

I do overlook and simplify a lot, and that's because I'm lazy and opinionated, but I do fear that "Or God is the best!" is the way someone like GW Bush thinks.