[QUOTE=msmith537]
Why do people have a need to argue with religeous fanatics? You are never going to change their opinion with a logical, reasoned argument because their belief is based on faith, not reason. Stop wasting your time.
That’s a major reason I don’t choose to live in most of the southern US. I have no desire to be around people who make decisions and opinions because “Jesus this” and “God that”.
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Your last sentence demonstrates why some people have a need to argue with religious fanatics. Some people-- the OP, for example-- by necessity live in areas where decisions and opinions based on fundamentalism affect the lives of those who don’t. You can choose to not live in the south; great but not everyone can do that.
Arguing may not convert the fundie with whom one disagrees, but it might sway someone else, and at the least it sends the message that “not everyone agrees with you, and some people aren’t afraid to speak up.” Maybe the southern US might not be as bad if, perhaps, some science-minded folks spoke up to (or ran for) school boards and such, instead of just moving away.