FR>FR> 2) most prison inmates in the United States prison system are
FR>FR> Christians?  And that there are extremely few atheists in prison?
FR>rm> I was not aware of that.  Why do you think that is?
FR>During the research I did for a newsletter, I got to talk to a number of
FR>prison officials.  The most reasonable explanation I got for this fact was
FR>one warden's sugggestion that since most offenses are drug related and
FR>atheists perfer their reality straight up, the prison system ends up 
illed
FR>with people who need to use drugs.
I think you may be leaving some things out here.  Relatively few
people are psychologically integrated enough to consciously,
deliberately reject the culture they grew up in, and label
themselves "atheist."  People who are that integrated would
be less likely to end up in the slammer.
It's possible that there are a lot of people who have no use
for God or Christianity, but when asked for their religion on a form,
they put "Lutheran" because they were raised Lutheran.  Their
likelihood of doing this might well be increased out of a fear
that an atheist might be singled out.
FR>That still doesn't account for the lack of nearly any atheist in prison.
FR>The prisons should contain anywhere from 18% to 22% atheists since they
FR>"service" a populace comprised of anywhere from 18% to 22% atheists.
Is an atheist someone who has never had any interest in theism
and who has never thought much about it, or is an atheist someone
who has carefully thought it all through and is willing to take
the step of putting "atheist" on an official form?
FR>Not every prison requires inmates to fill out forms indicating their
FR>occultism, if any, upon being locked up.  It's information that's provided
FR>so that the system can meet their population's religious "needs."  The
FR>data isn't the result of some "study" where a small percentage of the
FR>already-in-prison populace is asked what their occultism is, if any...  
It's
FR>information written onto forms at the time of incarceration.
FR>It indicates the fact that theism doesn't work; that atheism is superior
FR>to theism in that it imparts a superior ethic -- or a superior 
ntelligence
FR>needed to escsape capture.  }:-}
Now you are making some remarkably sweeping generalizations that
don't necessarily follow from your data.
Nonetheless, it's interesting that you have turned the tables on
the True Believer automatic assumption that they have the moral
high ground.
 * SLMR 2.1a *      I shoulda toined left at Albakoikey! -- B. Bunny
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