@Pigweed, it does seem to make God even more irrelevant.

Also, you know that kids are going to start teasing scouts now and telling gay jokes about scouts. That will prevent many kids from joining.

I mean, I’m on record as thinking that certain tinfoil-hat theories about how the reverse vampires are conspiring to prevent our economic problems from being solved by declaring leaves the official currency of the world and making everyone rich, or something like that, are profoundly silly. On the other hand, all things being equal, I think it’s a good thing if conspiracists don’t think the Jews are behind it. This isn’t because I believe in any of the conspiracy theories, but because I think the observable consequences are going to be better if the suspects for these imaginary crimes aren’t a distinct ethnoreligious group.

Similarly, I could easily imagine an atheist deciding that on balance the world would be better if all the Muslims in the world converted to Buddhism than if all the Buddhists converted to Islam, even he rejected both of them as plausible stories of the world.

Root – ah, resort to spelling naziism when all else fails. I use an iPad and in doing so type one-fingered, fast and pithy . IPad has a auto correct feature that becomes annoying so that I tend to blow through it. But, if it makes you see ponies and rainbows (go figure), then feel free to get off on it.

it’s all like a wonderful dream … with ponies … and rainbows … and bluebirds … and wood chippers … and shrieking troglodytes who keep lighting themselves on fire. over and over.