From: Gene McAloon 

On Mon, 03 Nov 2003 09:37:19 GMT, John Beckett
 wrote:

>Jeff Shultz  wrote in message
>> And evolution is a theory, nothing more.
>
>One of the reasons I find this newsgroup interesting is that I pick up
>quite a bit of US culture that may be handy one day (I'm down under).
>
>Seeing someone write "evolution is a theory" is still totally
astonishing
>to me. Wow! If evolution is a theory, what's a fact? I'm beginning to
>understand Homer Simpson...
>
>John

The basic reason you still see that kind of thing here is that, of all the
developed countries, the US is by far the most religion besotted.  There is
nothing quite like it anywhere in the EU, Japan, China, Southeast Asia. At
that,
among all the democracies, only India surpasses the US in the degree in
which religion plays a part.

With the exception of the present Bush, it is seldom seen in public affairs
because the religious types seldom do well in national elections. I believe
Bush
is the first born-again Christian we have had the misfortune to see in the White
House.  Once Bush is ousted, the religious right is likely to once again
fade into that obscurity it so richly deserves. Unfortunately only to rise
again some
time in the future no doubt. Their fortunes have waxed and waned down
through the generations of American history. Each time, however, it returns
with reduced
influence and effectiveness. Given time it may disappear almost entirely as
it has almost everywhere else in the world.

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