"I'm convinced the worst time my mind went through was when I realized folks around me were so unhappy and trapped, even though we are in a beautiful Creation and I am not so unlike them.... I think they have the ability to think and might we not all learn from one another?"

I totally understand that. I hold the universe and everything in it in absolute reverence, I just don't see the need to attach religious thinking to it. It's beautiful in its own right.

We certainly all can learn from each other. Of course, that doesn't mean I have to agree with anyone! :) While I can learn from anyone, that doesn't mean I respect their opinions. I think fundamentalism is a scourge, an absolute scourge, to clear thinking. I think I'm a pretty decent guy for the most part, but I won't pretend to hold fundies in high esteem.