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"Religious belief itself is an adaptation"
Sociobiology founder Edward O. Wilson explains why we're hard-wired to form tribalistic religions, denies that "evolutionism" is a faith, and says that heaven, if it existed, would be hell.
By Steve Paulson [2006-03-21]

  • It's a parent...

    Yo, "a parent" check out this baby...

    http://www.2ndlaw.com/evolution.html

    I think the bumpersticker went: RELIGION IS WHAT KEEPS THE POOR FROM MURDERING THE RICH.

    And do not think that's all bad! The empirical religions (thanks, Ken!) arose when they did for a reason: religion was the glue that made nation-states possible. Atheists like myself are amiss to look at all those killed in the name of religion and conclude that "Religion bad!" Without religion we would have been left with tribalism and a much much higher rate of murder in the name of lineage.

    Jared Diamond noted that historically, the function of religion is two part:

    a) To justify the actions of the state

    b) To urge the cannon fodder forward

    The rest of religion is just warm and fuzzy platitudes. Again, that itself does not make religion all bad. Religion played a very functional role in history. Now it is time to move on.

    And do not get me started on the very slim evidence for a historical Christ, OK?

    -- AllTooHuman
    [Read AllTooHuman's other letters]
    Wednesday, March 22, 2006 06:50 PM
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