Drinking, America, Religion, and Evolution

New, stricter drinking laws for underage "recreational" drinkers will not, in the long term, solve Britain's binge drinking culture. I say this having witnessed first-hand the ongoing repercussions of a nation besotted with protecting their children from alcohol. A more mature outlook towards alcohol will always encourage openness, honesty and responsible consumption. What we see in the States is a culture revolted by the idea of children freely drinking with their adult counterparts. This is not something we should hope to inculcate into our British teenagers, believe me. Anyway, the reason I post this evening is because I had a rather riveting conversation, or 'debate', with my swimming peer, Cory, who I'm sure won't mind the dedication. We argued for well over an hour about the existence of god, increasingly, it seemed, a Christian god. What's more, I had to adumbrate the fundamental principles of the theory of evolution. It struck me how little of the basics of evolution have been supplanted into the American mindset. they are, of course, a Christian nation, whether episcopalian, Mormon, or evangelical, who shirk the responsibilities of adequate education. Cory certainly is not one to attend church every Sunday but he does "believe" in God and in the afterlife. He will correct me if I do him an injustice, but he was definite that this gave him some form of comfort even though he is not afraid of death. Furthermore, he claimed not to believe in Evolution. (Is there anything to believe in?!) Although, having discussed various topics, such as morality without religion, first cause, and the beginnings of life on Earth, I will take it as a small success that he's now interested in reading The God Delusion. Victory.