Ok, between the hormones and my out-of-control AU fantasy life, I'm having a minor Betty Draper moment right now.(one of the early proud ones.) It's a little insane. Good for him, though, in any case. I am reminded of the time my mother saw him interviewed and asked if he rolled down a hill before coming into PBS to an interview(I think wrinkles make him think he's "keeping it real"...Mom thinks there's no excuse. James Taylor got a "lucky to be alive" exemption once.) Lisah, I really liked Treme...it is sort of like Simon's Northern Exposure, though.

I didn't read the religion link - is this the same study?

American atheists and agnostics know more about religion than professed believers

A new Pew survey on religion in America finds that atheists and agnostics are more likely to be well-versed about different religions' beliefs and practices than people who profess a belief in those religions. For example, atheists and agnostics are more likely to know that during Communion (Catholicism's central rite), the wafer and wine are meant to transubstantiate into the literal flesh and blood of Christ -- they aren't merely symbolic, as 40% of Catholics believe. Atheists and agnostics are also more likely than Protestants to know that Martin Luther sparked the Protestant Reformation (the majority of Protestants could not identify him).

Seriously, Protestants have a hard time identifying Luther? Maybe it's because I went to St. Martin Lutheran Church and School, but that seems weird to me.

A lot of those could be non-practicing or just showing up for mass out of obligation rather than real interest. IMO, and I don't really have much to back this, the country is a lot less religious than the statistics make it seems.

My former roommate, admittedly a bit of a flake, went to Catholic School for *years* yet refused to believe me about the Eucharist being transubstantiation.

I'm going to say that vengeful gunmen don't belong in libraries.

I totally thought hobo, and was super-curious what kind of shoes they would wear!

Open-toed Brogans.

It's the other way around, Massachusetts is one of the best.

What? I just looked at the view all view, so I didn't read the stats, and parsed "descending order" as getting worse. Perhaps thinking too much of descent to hell.

Seriously, Protestants have a hard time identifying Luther?

I'm not at all surprised. I'm more surprised Pew even asked that question. Most of the Protestants I've ever known wouldn't have known who Martin Luther was. While I never had any such conversation with any of them, I suspect that they identified much more as a member of their particular denomination than as a Protestant. I'm certain none of them ever wondered why they were called Protestants, why they were different than Catholics, or what if anything they were protesting.

It should also be noted that I have an abysmally low opinion of the people I grew up with.

gunshot suicide at a UTexas Library and possible second gunman still at large

Eek, Ick, and all that sort of thing.

Yeah, if you're a Bible-oriented Protestant, and not a Lutheran, you could do a lot of studying before you actually got to Martin Luther.

I'm going to say that vengeful gunmen don't belong in libraries.

Indeed.

Color me so unsurprised that Louisiana is the 4th worst.

The thing about MA driving is that it's so small that you can't easily get up to crazy ass speeds that leads to lethal accidents.

I actually don't think that MA drivers are bad, just scarily aggressive.

New Orleans drivers are terrible, but not aggressively so, so it's less anxiety inducing. Till one just decides to just go through an intersection at a red light for no reason or whatever.

Most of the Protestants I've ever known wouldn't have known who Martin Luther was.

Having grown up Lutheran, I have no trouble identifying Martin Luther. Though I'm less familiar with the Calvins and Wesleys.

The Lutheran belief of the Eucharist as I remember learning it is, the bread and wine remain bread and wine, but at the same time are also body and blood. We weren't expected to understand how or why, just that it was.