Deism vs Religion (Non-guidance vs guidance).

[AFTT47]

You just summarized why I strongly prefer deist behavior to theist behavior.  Deists don't think that they know what god wants and therefore think for themselves.  Theists tend to think a book written a hundreds of years ago is the word of god or worse yet that god is speaking to them directly: wars, burnings, discrimination, guilt over harmless things, burdensome rituals, shunninge, and other ugliness ensue.  There's nothing like thinking your own personal moral choices are ratified by god to cause evil in the world.

Thanks Jenny. Good job summarizing why dogmatic religion is a terrible idea. Whether it's President Scroob (Spaceballs), The Great Pumpkin (Charlie Brown), Yahweh, Allah or the Invisible Pink Unicorn (blessed be her holy hooves) it's the same problem. It's MUCH better to think for yourself. One would be hard-pressed to do any worse.