Georgia, too. They periodically try to change it, but so far, the fundies have blocked it. The classic argument: "If you need alcohol that badly, then plan ahead and buy it Monday through Saturday." The basis for opposing objections goes right over their pointy little heads.

I don't think religion will disappear in our lifetime, either. Or at least, established belief systems based on authority and fear won't. Witness Communism through most of the 20th century. Plenty of atheists (and I count myself among these) are unwilling to completely jettison the notion of "unseen mystery" type phenomena, even if we also believe that at some point, everything we don't understand will get to where it can be explained.

This is the way we REALLY are, if we could only feel the freedom to be honest. I tried to express this to a Christian co-worker not too long ago. He's a thinker, so I like to sustain the hope that he's not privately consigning me to hell or something. What I told him was, you take any American Christian church with more than 50 congregants (this excludes weird, inbred, family groups like Westboro Batshit), and if you could get every member to take truth serum and then ask them 1) What is your theology? and 2) Why do you attend church?

What you'd discover is that in addition to those who never bothered to think outside the bobble, you'd have an impressively large number of atheists, agnostics, freethinkers, skeptics, pantheists, deists, pagans, small-u unitarians, universalists, Buddhists, and the rest of the spiritual array. You'd find that people attend that church because their families do and/or always did, their friends are there, they like the architecture, they like the music, the place is conveniently located, they like the sermons, they get to use abilities that they can't use at their jobs, they're looking for romance, the church is famous, their boss goes there, and so on ad infinitum.

What would make me happy is each of these people being able to state it honestly, regardless of what their beliefs are. Stating it without fear of others' judgment. Feeling the freedom to explore their beliefs and change them as needed. And above all, to have the freedom to believe what they believe without feeling the need to join up with others who supposedly believe exactly the same thing and then base an entire society and government upon this. If we could evolve even that far, I'd be happy. Will it happen? In my lifetime? The chances are Slim and None, and Slim just took the last train out.

You'd think they'd get rid of those. But it's like stores and restaurants that go out of business, leaving their signs up. You pull in, all hungry for a sandwich, and only then do you see the realtor's placard. Businesses should be required to remove non-usable signs of their previous existence, with the consequence that the sale of their assets will be frozen until they comply.

Excellent that you've posted this. I'll be happy to share it on Twitter; maybe word will get back to this silly group of pastors and they'll re-think.

Regarding the sign in your illustration:

I've pondered the whole "thankfulness" issue quite a bit, and here are my conclusions:
When something good happens in my life, it falls into one of two categories. The first can be attributed to the help of others -- my boss, a friend, a doctor, etc. Why is it so terrible not to be able to toss out a quick shorthand to express that? Why is it so terrible to have to say "I appreciate the surgeon's steady hands," rather than "Thank God?" To me, it's an ADVANTAGE. It makes us actually think about what we're grateful for.

And for those good moments that just happen -- you think you're going to collide with that car but manage to come to a stop with a half-centimeter to spare and no damage or injuries? Or you win the lottery? There may not be any one person or thing you owe your life or luck to, but you can certainly acknowledge that you were, perhaps, expecting the worst and instead came out of the situation safe, or surprisingly enriched. Rather than mucking about for someone or something to "thank," why not simply use the experience for the good? Take your lottery winnings and help someone out who's in need, or change your driving habits enough to avoid future close calls? Instead of "Thank God," how about "I appreciate every opportunity?"

Again -- it's an opportunity to really THINK about life and gain an understanding of what's important to you and how life works. Much better than smooching non-existent toes.

Agreed - the place is overrated. Seriously, you can either get what they offer, for a lower price, at MANY other fast-food joints if that's your thing, or you can get something similar at the grocery store or make your own from scratch. One must pity people who still regard waffle fries as "exotic."

I also don't like the Stepford ambience of the place -- no matter where you go, nearly every employee there is white, which tells you a lot about the prices too, sorry to say.

I raised my son (mostly alone) during the period I was involved with evangelical Christianity. Despite 15 years of trying to be a "true believer," it never really took and I finally shrugged it off entirely about 8 years ago. I was well aware of my own doubts and held off trying to steer my son toward any theology, even the most basic. As another poster said, I did want him to understand Bible stories in terms of cultural literacy. Noah's ark and Jonah and the whale are so commonly known (regardless of how utterly improbable from a rationalist point of view) that it would have presented a problem, here in the south, for him to be unfamiliar. My own hesitancy communicated itself to my son. He is VERY social and extroverted, and for that reason, he loved church. We attended several. It was only the last one, a rather fundy Baptist church, that gave him some problems. He was starting to have doubts and saw that his age-mates were much more sheltered, naive and unworldly than he was. This lack of commonality led to him questioning his friends' and their parents' beliefs. I only wish I'd been a Unitarian Universalist during those years - we could have had just as much fun without the guilt and indecision.
My recent post A Happy New Year Wish

Good for you re: health regimen! I HAVE to change my evil ways this year -- Diabetes type 2 AND high cholesterol. Other than veggies, there isn't much I can eat. High insurance premiums hang in the balance. I'm trying to convince myself that exercise is a cure-all. We'll see.

Having recently read Stephen King's allegorical novel Under the Dome, I'm struck by the existential similarity between his Chester's Mill (the townspeople's sense of isolation from everything else going on in the world, despite access to some media) and these little church-heavy towns, where so many of the residents have never set foot outside Arkansas (or Texas or my native Long Island or anywhere else you could name). Interesting, though, that for a lucky few, all it takes is one little crack in the "dome" -- one brief exposure to ideas from "outside," and it sets off a chain reaction that leads to education, enlightenment and liberation from the stifling and childlike beliefs they've been steeped in. If I were the prayin' kind, that's what I'd wish for everyone.

Since my ex-boss still uses it: 32. If you're a deep-down unpleasant person and you want someone to have a fleeting first impression of you as a cheerful sort with a sense of humor.