Please don't lump all of us "immoral and godless" folks together. I am atheist, and I disagree with the subject of this quote. While it is clear that plenty of people are terrible parents, licensing and regulation of reproduction is not the answer. E Archer makes some excellent points regarding the dangers of such regulation. Who would set the standards?

"Now that atheism has become the National Establishment of Religion..." ?????????????? Despite what you seem to have convinced yourself Mike, not forcing god/religion upon a person every time he turns around IS NOT the same as telling him that he MUST NOT believe. Has the bible been banned in the US? NO. Are churches being forced to shut down? NO. Are people being sent to prison for praying to a god? NO. Are people being forced to renounce their god/religion? NO. People are still free to practice their religion. Atheists, and even agnostics, on the other hand still often feel the need to hide their beliefs, or lack thereof, and are ridiculed, mocked or simply dismissed if they dare speak their minds. Doubtful this would be the case if your claim of a pro-atheist bias had any validity. I am so tired of this nonsense. It's a convenient invention for those with no respect for the freedom of anyone not like themselves, but it just doesn't hold up to even the slightest bit of scrutiny. It's as absurd as saying that the ending of black slavery made whites the slaves.

"Yes, teach religion in schools, but teach about ALL religions and let them stand up to the light of reason." Well said, E Archer. That however is the fear of the religious, as religion has a hard time surviving reason. Religion and reason go together about as well as the mythical vampire and daylight.

Mike, it seems you are in need of a dictionary. Not every set of beliefs, or lack thereof constitutes a religion. Socialism is a form of government, not a religion. Atheism is a lack of religious belief, which by definition is not, and cannot, be a religion. Labling everything you dislike a religion so as to accuse it of violating church/state separation does not make it so. It's crap and everyone who is not part of the Crusade for Christian Rule knows it. Re schools: Not teaching/indoctrinating students into Christianity does not equal teaching/indoctrinating them into atheism or what have you. That is not the default mode. The bible may not be being preached, but neither is atheism. No one is telling kids that they MUST NOT believe in god. They just aren't teaching them that they HAVE TO believe in god. Not teaching one thing does not mean that its opposite is actively being taught. This is very misguided, illogical, black and white (closed-minded) thinking.

Anonymous, you show a striking lack of historical knowledge. No matter how often you repeat your first statement, it will continue to be false. The founding fathers deliberately kept religion to a bare, virtually non-existant minimum, referring only to a non-specific, religiously neutral "creator". Nowhere in the constitution or elsewhere is Christianity compelled or encouraged. While there are a few Commandments which have found there way to becomming law, these have long been so in many non-Christian countries as well, even before the Bible was ever written. Chrisianity did not invent them. They came about because they are necessary for the survival of civilisation. Regarding a "police state", if we ever are under one, it will be due to religion taking over, not neutrality towards and freedom of religion. Your statement makes absolutely no logical sense. How in the world can you equate neutrality with a police state? A police state is hardly neutral! They are diametrically opposed ideas. A truly laughable statement.

The Bible/Judeo-Christianity do not have a monopoly on ethics nor morality. These things can be taught without ever referring to scripture. I agree that some kids today do need a bit more ethical guidance, but fear of god or eternal damnation is not the way to go. People need to be taught that ethical behavior and decency towards others are best for society as a whole, for continued civilization, not the self-centered pseudo-morality of religion, which is too often simply a cover for a multitude of sins. It is also proven that positive reinforcement and immediate reward for good behavior (eg. friendliness begets friendliness) are far better learning tools with longer lasting results than fear, ergo, leave the bible out of the schools.