Religion in the Modern Age

In your argument you say that most religions are very good and harmless. I agree with that to an extent. Most religions have a noble purpose and message. But it is the fault of man that twists the idea to justify their actions. To the "bad" religious people, their religion is just a tool to do bad deeds. For example, in the Quran, war is repeated 36 times and peace is repeated 67 times. Obviously by sheer inferences it values peace more but the extremists focus on the war part. Thus, religions are harmless, but their believers are not. Without religion there would be one less tool for dangerous people to use. Also you say that humans are naturally curious and that they want to learn, however, religion can actually prevent education as stated in my original argument. Now when you mention that removal may cause hysteria and panic, you are right. But there was also mass hysteria and panic during the American Revolution and other revolutions after that, but the successful removal of British authority led to a worldwide loss of power in monarchies (which was as equally prominent then as religion was and is now) and the development of people led states or the idea of it. Which is better. In your second paragraph you say that religion gives people hope, but religion is not the only source of hope. There are numerous other sources that may help people more effectively than any belief in a divine being/beings. And you mention abortion in your argument. But what about rape victims? Would you have the child born because the mother's religion forbids abortion and have the child either abandoned or abused because they are a constant reminder of the rape? Also there have been genocides because of religion like when the Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats, and Bosnian Muslims slaughtered each other because of religion. Removing religion would not get rid of the problem but neither would keeping religion. But without religion there is one less reason to slaughter people. You say that people are nicer because they try to fit in to society. However, it would be easier to fit in with society if there were no religions. There is no dominant religion so not everyone fits in, but if there were no religions no one would be excluded because of that reason. Yes, churches do give a lot, however, they keep even more. The American Catholic Church spends around $171 billion/year. Only $4.7 billion was to charity. Also, who do they give the donations to? Non-Profit organizations. Now to refute your statement about atheists being selfish. Yes we don't believe in a laid out moral code, because we have our own empathy and moral code that guides us. We don't need a book to tell us whether this is right or wrong. So your suggestion is simply unfounded. Your next paragraph has no basis in proof. I am atheist but I don't hate religion, I just question the necessity and logic of it. Also you say that Muslim extremists would still kill, which is true, but without Islam, they would not be able to rally people to their cause in such numbers. To explain, many of these extremists share the same beliefs because it is in the Quran. Jihad, the right to kill infidels, and the belief that the Quran is above the law. Many recruits commit acts of terrorism because they believe that Allah wills it. Without these shared beliefs it would only be a few of the craziest people killing for no understandable (to everyone else) reason. All in all, religion was intended to be good but it can become corrupted. This makes zealots a menace to ordinary people and is better off gotten rid of. Comfort can come from many places and removing religion won't cause people to all fall in a pit of despair. It is possible, albeit difficult, to remove religion. And there are numerous benefits to a religion free world. It is the fault of religion that keeps many archaic beliefs alive, such as the subordination of women and the homophobia. It divides people, makes them believe that they are superior because they know the "truth". It creates discrimination and prejudice while keeping their believers in a state of ignorance and narrow-mindedness. For the world to progress, I believe the out-of-date belief in the divine must stop.