Religion: History's very first panopticon.

[EvolveOrConvolve]

12. What's this "negation of religion" you refer to?

Is that like the hobby of not collecting stamps? You have the mistaken idea that ideologies are all created equal, when they're not. For example, I'm against sexism in all its forms. But that doesn't mean that my viewpoint should be considered equally as valid as one that espouses sexist discrimination. And yes, my disdain for sexism could be seen as manipulating sexists, but neither the disdain or manipulation are bad things, are they?

You're mostly correct with your post hoc proposition, but it's hard to deny that organized religion in many of its modern incarnations is an anchor on progress. I would argue that enlightenment is far more likely to be attained through science than superstition.