One of the longest running debates between religious people and those who believe in a little something called "proof," is whether or not the universe was created by an intelligent force.
But let's not talk about evolution in terms of apes slowly transforming into men, let's talk about evolution in terms of bigoted men slowly transforming into men with scruples.
If all men were stuck believing ancient, man-authored, writings were the word of god; this earth, especially America, would be a very different place.
Don't get me wrong, I think the Fox Network could produce a wonderfully entertaining musical-comedy series set in a Federal prison used to house men convicted of homosexuality, but I still much prefer a United States where it's legal for a man to lie with a man as a man lies with a woman.
Having people not raised in a church has helped us evolve as a nation. Not learning at an early age to categorize people into groups leaves many Americans inherently able to discover for themselves that there is no such thing as, "chosen people."
As a result of our diverse culture; as an overtly religious child grows, he is exposed to peers that the Bible preaches against. When this brain-washed lad discovers that playing basketball against the feminine boy with two moms didn't produce hideous lesions all over his body, he starts to realize that everyone is basically the same, and he may even enjoy spending time with people a sacred book has always told him are disgraceful sinners. This realization is enhanced as it becomes obvious that the "crimes" committed by these "enemies" have no victim.
Because intelligent design is not a requirement for all children in public schools to learn, we have evolved as a nation.
We've evolved into people who understand that witchcraft doesn't exist, and, if, by some nuclear accident, a human was transformed into a witch, it would be wrong to burn them at the stake.
We've evolved enough to know that there is never justification for killing the first born son in every household, no matter how many rotten things the pharaoh has done, or has vowed to do in his State of the Theocracy address.
It's far fetched to think these kinds of things would happen in America today, but religious people around the world still use their holy book to justify horrific sins like the execution of homosexuals. And it wasn't so long ago in America that a man could own another man. And many Christians did.
Admittedly there were Christian abolitionists. But would these abolitionists have felt differently had they not been Christians? Of course not; they inherently knew slavery was a horrific and immoral sin the same way 99% of modern folks don't need to be taught buying and selling individuals is a crime against humanity. And, had they not been Christians, they likely would have spoken out against slavery either earlier or more vehemently than they did were the church elders not pressuring them to hop on board the slavery train while using the Bible, which often calls for the enslavement of others, to justify the abhorrent practice.
Had no one in the world ever purported to hold the word of god in his hand; would large-scale slavery ever have been a problem?
I must admit that a great many Christians and deists are to thank for the evolution of our great nation. These founders realized that even though they believed a higher power woke up one morning and decided to start a civilization; liberty would be the foundation of a successful America. They understood that if government ruled using the Bible as their guide, people would never truly be free to prosper.
It breaks our hearts seeing people in other countries killed by the forces of a ruling religious zealot for simply protesting their lack of fundamental freedom. Thankfully, because people were smart enough to foresee that a fair and just nation desperately needed citizens who believe in earthly evolution to assist in the evolution of freedom, the United States has no such problem.
So keep on believing whatever it is you believe, but please remember how deplorable earth would eventually become were you to achieve a conversion success rate of 100%.
Because you want atheists on that wall between freedom and tyranny... You need us on that wall!
