Religion
In reply to the discussion: Scientists discover that atheists might not exist, and that’s not a joke [View all]AtheistCrusader
(33,982 posts)First off, let's review 'bigot'.
"Bigotry is the state of mind of someone who, as a result of their prejudices, treats or views other people with fear, distrust or hatred on the basis of a person's ethnicity, race, religion, national origin, gender, disability, socioeconomic status, or other characteristics."
Author's claim:
"There are other, more socially-oriented evolutionary purposes, too. Religious communities grow faster, since people behave better (referring to the general majority over the millennia, as opposed to minority extremists highlighted by the media on any given day).
Why is this so? Religious folk attend weekly lectures on morality, read portions of respected books about the subject on a daily basis and regularly discuss the subject in groups, so it would be inevitable that some of this guidance sinks in.
There is also the notion that the presence of an invisible moralistic presence makes misdemeanors harder to commit. People who think they are being watched tend to behave themselves and cooperate more, says the New Scientists Lawton. Societies that chanced on the idea of supernatural surveillance were likely to have been more successful than those that didn't, further spreading religious ideas."
Not only is that a bigoted assumption, it's just plain wrong.
http://www.alternet.org/religious-people-more-likely-commit-crimes-atheists