2 things from rachel maddow

[shnozzola]

1.

annual study published by Gallup, showing levels of religiosity by state.

     http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/02/16/16985214-this-week-in-god
     http://www.gallup.com/poll/160415/mississippi-maintains-hold-religious-state.aspx

2.   Hubris - Selling the Iraq War               MSNBC - 9 pm est Monday - Feb 18

[Nick]

Hubris sounds like a good doc to watch.  We have never really come to terms with either of these wars and how we got so involved in them without any real questioning about what was happening.  Even today it affects us...for instance this weeks drilling of Hagel for Sec. of Def by John McCain.  He kept pushing Hagel for a YES / No answer on if he thought the surge was good or not.  We are still trying to paint the Iraq war as justified.  Hagel knows the whole war was unjustified.  That is why he kept saying history would judge.  The whole lot...Bush2, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Rice should all be up for war crimes.

How are parents, loved ones suppose to think about the ones they lost from this usuless war.  How about the ones injured for life.  How about the increasing number of suicides as a result of this.  Billions maybe trillions wasted.  Its criminal and repubs are still trying to justify it.

[Willie]

It's sort of interesting that Utah stands out as somewhat of an anomaly. In the list on the 2nd page of the 2nd link, Utah ranks 2nd because 56% described themselves as very religious. But if you ranked by non-religious in ascending order, Utah would drop to around 14th to 16th place (not enough resolution in the numbers to tell exactly). The other states shuffle around a little when ordered that way, but none as dramatically as Utah. So, it has more non-religious people than the Bible belt states, but beats all but Mississippi in the number of "very religious". Are Mormons more intensely religious than most other Christian varieties?

[Nam]

Woohoo! Florida is #28.



-Nam

[Nick]

It's sort of interesting that Utah stands out as somewhat of an anomaly. In the list on the 2nd page of the 2nd link, Utah ranks 2nd because 56% described themselves as very religious. But if you ranked by non-religious in ascending order, Utah would drop to around 14th to 16th place (not enough resolution in the numbers to tell exactly). The other states shuffle around a little when ordered that way, but none as dramatically as Utah. So, it has more non-religious people than the Bible belt states, but beats all but Mississippi in the number of "very religious". Are Mormons more intensely religious than most other Christian varieties?

Mormons seem to be more cultsh in that they don't allow themselves to get out of the bubble often.