Religion is fine, very few people have a problem with the different faiths of others. I think that religion is a form of superstition, but it is rooted in the human experience so completely that it must serve a purpose. I support the right of other people to have their own world view. I draw the line where there is an apocalyptic vision that might create a self-fulfilling prophesy. Believe what you want, but keep the President Jim Jones Kool-Aid away from me and my family.
There are plenty of examples of religions generating conflict. Even within Christian sects there is a history of violence that is comparable to the Shiite vs. Sunni struggle. Northern Ireland is the example. All of this violence is based on sets of lies that people must believe because they are afraid not to. They will experience the derision of their peers, or worse yet, burn in Hell forever, and ever, and ever, ad ignitum (sic). When I am asked if there is life after death, I say I predict there will be plenty of people alive after I am dead.
What worries me the most about the religious is that there are movements to remove science from public education. I don't think these are mainstream, but it is scary that they exist at all. There is no opposition to mathematics, but when you have people who think the that King James Bible is the inerrant Word of God, and that the Earth is 6000 years old, these are not people you want educating your kids.
So we can't have stem cell research, and a blastocyst has an equivalent moral right to life as your doctor. We also have to accept that scumbags like Tom DeLay should be able to determine medical policy when they haven't even figured out how to cure themselves of bribery. Good riddance to some bad rubbish, by the way.
If I have been able to piss at least one person off, my effort will have been worth it.