On the lunacy of prayer

[Ahriman]

I get the idea of prayer being bullshit from an atheist perspective but I do not really understand the negative emotional response to other people praying or even prayer requests.

First off, I do not know any religious person who thinks prayer is a substitute for initiative. Religious people pray for guidance before deciding what to do. They request blessing for actions they commit to taking. And they ask for help after they've done all they can, as in "Its in Gods hands now."  Even from a secular perspective, these are just meditation, motivation, and hoping for the best. So what's the problem besides offending antitheist sensibilities? Or maybe the mockery makes some people feel superior.

I see nothing wrong with taking less than 2 minutes of hedging your bets when you are already open to the idea that the universe is richer than it often appears to be.

Apparently you've never been deemed 'broken' by christians and been told they'll pray for you.

Sounds like a nightmare.