This Is How Much I Hate Religion

In the context of a conversation about who-knows-what, a friend of mine remarked that I, as an atheist, hate religion.

This makes sense, right?  I mean, saying that an atheist hates religion is like saying that day follows night or that Jenny's phone number is 867-5309.  It's science!  Right?  Right?  RIGHT?!

"ASKED YOU A QUESTION!!"

Well...

...let's slow down a minute, you and me, and think about hate.

Hate is a curious thing.  We're saddled with it as an emotion, but it's not damn likely to do anyone any real good.  It's a nasty thing to feel; I know I don't like it.  Trouble is -- we're only human, so we can have it.

Hatred.

Luckily, we don't have to experience it.  At most, all you need to avoid feeling it is a little bit of emotional maturity and some self-control.  To top it off, most, you know, sane individuals have several degrees of anger to burn through before they hit that wall; you kinda have to be go out of your way to get that freaking angry.  It doesn't take any magic or special Mentat training, it just takes a healthy understanding of your own emotions, and of what good it does you to feel any of 'em.

Needless to say, I don't hate anything.  I just don't go there. I get mad, yeah; frustrated, displeased...but I don't let things get to me THAT much.  Is that weird?  Am I part Vulcan?  I dunno.  I just don't hate.

"Them haters gonna hate...what they do ain't nothin' new."

 Now that we've established that, let's move on to the next logical question: Where are the strippers How do I feel about religion?

At best, religions are serviceable means of psychological comfort couched in silly beliefs and superstitions; at worst, well...they can always get worse.  I think that we'd be better off without them, and I think that they rarely -if ever- provide anything that common sense cannot (from cosmology to ethics).  I think they're an idea whose time is over, a sway that is easy to abuse, a mistake to make.

But, c'mon -- hate religion?

Why bother?