# Conceptions of Religion **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [June 11, 2004, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803 "2004-06-11T13:35:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Polerius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d78d45/32.png) [@Polerius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polerius)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2004, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803/21 "2004-06-14T22:30:00Z")
> [@Priceguy](#): > > Incidentally, this would hold true even if “religion is just the tool” were true. Why give these “stupid and hurtful” people the tool? Somehow, Stalin and Hitler did not need this “tool” to help them kill millions and millions of people. There are lots of things wrong with religion, but blaming all past evil actions and wars on religion is stupid. Evil people will find anything available in their culture/location/time to justify war and mass murder. Of course, people like islamic extremists do make one think “maybe religion \*is \* a dangerous thing”, but then again, if it were not for islam, these people might have found something else to justify what they are doing. Islamic extremists want to impose strict islamic law on everyone in their country, but then again, the Nazis did impose a strict authoritarian state on everyone in their country, without utilizing religion. ---
**Author:** ![Zagadka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zagadka/32/7272_2.png) [@Zagadka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zagadka)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2004, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803/22 "2004-06-14T22:46:42Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > Somehow, Stalin and Hitler did not need this “tool” to help them kill millions and millions of people. > > There are lots of things wrong with religion, but blaming all past evil actions and wars on religion is stupid. Evil people will find anything available in their culture/location/time to justify war and mass murder. > > Of course, people like islamic extremists do make one think “maybe religion \*is \* a dangerous thing”, but then again, if it were not for islam, these people might have found something else to justify what they are doing. Islamic extremists want to impose strict islamic law on everyone in their country, but then again, the Nazis did impose a strict authoritarian state on everyone in their country, without utilizing religion. Yes, that is what I am (trying to) say. I’m reminded of a thread on Libertarianism, and someone asked which had killed more people - the free market or government. Putting things like that - “which was used as a cause for the most evil” - is stupid. The free market, government, religion, and anything else is neutral, inherently. People can use it either way; just like you have to guard against evil government, or evil corporations, you have to guard against evil religions. But just like government or a company can be very good, productive, beneficial, and otherwise goody two shoes, so can religion. The vehemence that some atheists protest religion with reminds me of hardcore anarchists. I find the “religious people are stupid” argument as asinine as the “atheists are immoral” argument, and it sickens me to hear either here on the SDMB, because we’re generally smart folk. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2004, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803/23 "2004-06-14T22:48:31Z")
> [@Zagadka](#): > > YI’m reminded of a thread on Libertarianism, and someone asked which had killed more people - the free market or government. That was me. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2004, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803/24 "2004-06-15T03:35:42Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > My interpretation of the non-establish clause is that it would be legal, as well as a good idea, to have religion presented in elementary school and onward. I’d present from a wide variety of backgrounds as well as dissenting commentary from atheists and agnostics, and would test the kids on familiarity with the belief systems and perspectives of all of these. All good intentions aside, considering all the touble schools have in getting students just to be proficient in basic skills, adding another subject to be studied and tested on would be adding more of as burden to an already crippled system. Secondly, kids do not need to be debating the merits of different religious faiths. They should be debating what factor was most important in causing the Civil War, and discussing scientific theories. Schools are not the place to introduce spirituality. That’s what church is for, or even afterschool clubs. > [@](#): > > Wouldn’t necessarily create universal tolerance or inoculate kids against perspectives that depend on blind unquestioning acceptance for their continued viability, but it might help, and the good content within any and all systems of thought can only flourish in such an environment. Sadly, I don’t think so. I think you would have outraged parents screaming at school administrators for trying to “indoctrinate” their kids into Buddhism. For crying out loud, _Harry Potter_ is enough to get them fired up, let alone exposing their offspring to differing points of view as regards religion. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2004, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803/25 "2004-06-15T10:13:58Z")
> [@Polerius](#): > > There are lots of things wrong with religion, but blaming all past evil actions and wars on religion is stupid. Lucky I didn’t do that then. Phew. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/conceptions-of-religion/249803.md?page=1)