Believe or else

Unlike my esteemed colleague Sam, I know next to nothing about anything pop-culture related. I live in the basement of the library cut off from humanity's crowning cultural achievements. But I did come across this gem:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOitIzUGJqk&NR=1

It's a short video about how religion automatically divides people and makes them hate each other. The footage of 9/11 and the south Asian Tsunami compliment the standard bit about why God let's such horrible things happen on earth. The video also teaches you that if you just quit believing in God your mind will becoming a radiant orb of brilliance, literally dripping with truth. You, in all your mid to late-twenties angst, will walk out of your middle management job on to the street and rejoicingly hold your hands up as the cool and refreshing rain drops of freedom kiss your face. You'll feel just like Andy Dufresne after he got out of Shawshank. And then the video ever so kindly leaves you with "Atheism. Free Your Mind".

I guess videos like this are good at showing the absolute worst extremes of religion. But it's kind of hard to get over the fact that the video is telling you how you should go about thinking freely. Whoever made this is peddling dogma no differently than any other evangelical who wishes to impose his or her ultimate truth on someone else.