> organized religions are only nominally predicated on such stories This strikes me as an absolutely non-factual and perhaps even propagandistic statement. Th

> organized religions are only nominally predicated on such stories This strikes me as an absolutely non-factual and perhaps even propagandistic statement. The entire premise of an organized religion is based on the stories of that religion! Otherwise, you just have a (more or less) conservative bureaucracy with a few rituals thrown in (rituals that, without said stories, are without origin). > Whether the material is right or wrong is beside the point. If it has merit then invariably it will come in a different package sooner rather than later. Time is scarce, and attention is oxygen for people with an ax to grind. What??? Saying that "whether the material is right or wrong is beside the point," is maybe the most absurd thing I've heard today. Regardless of the package, if something is true, it is true. With your mentality, one can construe very absurd conceptions of morality. After all, it's mightily important that we don't tell the common folk the Earth is not the center of the universe, because <insert_religious_reason>. Galileo is a strange man with strange views (only supported by an equally strange Prussian fellow). I think those views will, if correct, surely come in a more acceptable package at some point. ———— As a note of personal bias, I find it hard to sympathize with people who foster military ties as you claim to have.