society & culture

Ralph Reed Tries to Pull the Wool Over Our Eyes

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================================ NOTE: This post was contributed by Gregory S. Paul, who is an occasional contributor to Free Inquiry, and who published an important article called “Cross-National Correlations of Quantifiable Societal Health with Popular Religiosity and Secularism in the Prosperous Democracies”.  Here is how Michael Shermer summarized that article: Is religion a necessary component of social health? … Ralph Reed Tries to Pull the Wool Over Our Eyes

OFF TOPIC: How to Take OUR Government Back

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Here is a VERY SIMPLE way to take OUR government back INSTANTLY. Pass a law (or a Constitutional amendment if necessary) requiring the following: All in favor, say “Aye”! Your name Your email Subject Your message (optional)

Skepticism about Religion – Part 3: More Caveats and Qualifications

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========================= II. There are good reasons to be SKEPTICAL about religion and religious beliefs. A. Religion is NOT the key to Happiness and Virtue. 1. Religion is NOT the key to Happiness. 2. Religion is NOT the key to Virtue. ======================== MORE CAVEATS & QUALIFICATIONS ABOUT THE CORRELATION BETWEEN RELIGION & HAPPINESS 5. When a … Skepticism about Religion – Part 3: More Caveats and Qualifications

Skepticism about Religion – Part 2: Caveats and Qualifications

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DOES RELIGION HAVE A POSITIVE CORRELATION WITH HAPPINESS? There are many empirical studies that appear to show that religion has a positive correlation with happiness.  However, there are a number of important caveats and qualifications that need to be taken into consideration here: 1. Viewed in geographic terms, religion has a NEGATIVE correlation with happiness. … Skepticism about Religion – Part 2: Caveats and Qualifications

A Case for Atheism: Skepticism about Religion – Part 1

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II. There are good reasons to be SKEPTICAL about religion and religious beliefs. A. Religion is NOT the key to Happiness and Virtue. ============================== RELIGION AND HAPPINESS Religion or religious belief is often thought to be the key to happiness, and religion is often promoted as being the key to happiness. On the Christian website … A Case for Atheism: Skepticism about Religion – Part 1

God, Guns, and School Shootings

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Ten dead and ten injured in a high school shooting, but Texas Governor Greg Abbott believes “the problem is not guns, it’s hearts without God.” The problem with Governor Abbott’s theory is that it doesn’t fit the facts. For example, California has a larger population (39.5 million) than Texas does (28.3 million), so one would … God, Guns, and School Shootings

One Christian Worldview? Part 4: Evangelical Denominations

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Catholics constituted 20.8% of the adult population in the USA (in 2014, see the Religious Landscape Study), and Christians who belong to Evangelical Protestant denominations constituted 25.4% of the adult population in the USA (in 2014).  So, if we combine Catholics and Evangelicals, they constituted 46.2% of the adult population in the USA (in 2014). … One Christian Worldview? Part 4: Evangelical Denominations