Prepare to be smashed by the knuckle walkers.

Well. we're already #2 after Norway on the HDI, so there's not much urgent need for any fanatical secularist "reform".

Most of the highest ranking countries have majority White populations.
But of course, that "correlation" would have nothing to do with the "causation" of their success.

Absolutely Shocka, I heard of a Indian man, who although badly burned by becoming a human touch, to the point where with the top tanned layer of his skin was completely removed by the painful process?

His subsequently healed skin turned naturally white as the palms of his hands, had his I.Q tested and achieved somewhere in the top twenty?

Obviously turning white was accompanied by a serious improvement in his I.Q level!? Right?

Given the intellectual superiority conferred by being white. I've taken this obvious outcome on board and intend to stay out of the sun, least a well done tan fries my brains!

As for religion and all the wars and holocausts/crusades committed in its name? I shun something long ago predicted to become a great whore and sty in the eye of God?

Even though I like most Australians, would put Christian down on the census form just to nominate a nomenclature for the purpose of the census?

What bothers me about religion is the self conferred power and self appointed authority it wields. and about as real as smoke up a chimney electing a so called Leader!?

This so called "moral authority" the only thing that allowed the criminals in its midst to get away with some of the most heinous (mostly covered up for crimes) in history; and all allegedly in God's name?

Given that is so, Moral authority belongs to anybody but the offending religious organizations?

The secular Scandinavians perhaps?
Rhrosty.

Interesting article. But we need to create room for both Christians and secularists to live according to their conscience by getting over the idea that everyone needs to pay into public education, healthcare and social security.

Morris' book should be interesting and instructive. Secularists are always at a disadvantage, we just want the religious to mind their own business and leave us alone, however they never will, because infidels are always a threat.

Religion needs to be more than "actively opposed". It needs to be outlawed. Maybe then we can get away from the bigotry, homophobia, misogyny, pedophilia, terrorism, oppression and lies that define all religions.

What a ridiculous outburst the book sounds! How ridiculous to even bother reviewing it, if that what was attempted here.

Most of those applauding this rubbish are also the first to apologise for that truly foul religion, Islam.

To 'actively oppose' Christianity is a stupid, idiotic denial of what has made the West the best, and why we are as enlightened and civilized as we are. I am by no means religious; I am agnostic. But, as a child, I was taught Christian philosophy and the Christian way of life that laid the foundations for my moral development. It doesn't matter that I am not a church-goer or a goody two shoes: the Nicene creed has stayed with me, and I still live by it, even with all my imperfections.

These days, kids don 't go to Sunday school. Their parents know nothing. Without a Christian background as a child, you have nothing to gauge right from wrong. This is obvious in our society today; it is obvious in some of the crap regularly posted here.

Quoting Dawkins as an authority holds about as much authority as Mohammed. The author is obviously unaware or ignorant of atheism atrocious record. Not surprising as they have no moral base to draw from.

All we need is runner to keep posting "he'll drive any sensible person away from the church".

ttbn is it possible for you to post without creating at least one straw man?

Maybe Scandinavia is not so perfect:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/27/scandinavian-miracle-brutal-truth-denmark-norway-sweden

I don’t know if the book is as poorly argued as the review, but if so it does not bode well. It proceeds with a series of assertions that are not substantiated or explained.

What does it mean to say the Scandinavian countries are “more than 80% secular”? How, exactly, is that measured? Denmark, Norway, Iceland and Finland all have the Lutheran church as the State church or special laws protecting the church. Until 2000, so did Sweden.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_religion#

Is this the model the author would have us follow?

What exactly are “the covert machinations of Christianity that present the greatest unreported threat”

Why is the census figure “artificially high”, and how does this financially benefit the churches?

How can science “discounts the religious belief in a human soul”?

It may be that the book actually provides evidence to substantiate all of these claims. But the article doesn’t

Well for a start Scandinavian countries are not democratic, don't have a free press nor separation of church and state and are not known for creativity or even "progressive" ideals. Until the oil boom those nations were backward, poor, theocractic dictatorships and the butt of the jokes of other Europeans, they may have a high median IQ but so do the Chinese and they're as big a bunch of cretins as the Swedes.
As fast as Christianity falls away in those countries so Islam grows, far from a rise in secularism the churches are merely being turned into Mosques unopposed by the Nordic morons and as happened in the 19th century we'll soon see a mass exodus of Scandinavians and a return to theocracy in those lands.
Even among White Nationalists the Nordics are seen as deserving of everything that's coming to them.

mikk, "Maybe then we can get away from the bigotry, homophobia, misogyny, pedophilia, terrorism, oppression and lies that define all religions."

And those things wouldn't exist without religion?

Rhrosty, "White" is a holistic term.
Just like "Black".
Tell a Black American that Black is skin pigmentation alone and see how long it takes your bones to heal.

Albinos are not "White", they are pale.
Tanned Aussies are not "Coloured People".

"White" applies to the entire mental, physical, cultural, social and historical reality of Europeans.
Much more than just skin colour (which is usually pinky-cream).

There are few exceptions to the "White = High HDI" rule.

And those few exceptions defy the author's anti-religious assertions.

Among the exceptions are Israel (specifically created for an ethno-religious group), Saudi Arabia (ever heard of Mecca?), Japan (80% practice its unique religion Shinto) and South Korea (where Christianity has *increased* in popularity in tandem with their economic growth).

Whiteness and religion do not per se help or hinder development.
But White sure doesn't hurt.

Both the authors of this article and the book it reviews cannot be taken seriously because they have no clue what religion is, as they assume that anything connected with Christianity is automatically religious.

No doubt, many unholy attitudes and practices were attached to the Christian Churches over the years like algae to a ship's hull and it would be good to weed those out, but that's no reason to throw away the baby with the bath-water.

Bah! Do away with all religions and the charitable and other good works that many of them perform; let the taxpayer foot the bills.

There is nothing about/in the book that would entice me to pick it up even if it were sitting on the "free" pile, let alone buy it.