You'd do better to try reading the other side - that of Atheism. If you're going to tell me to read religion, which I have (as well as gone to their schools), then it is your turn to learn about Atheism - the thinking man's philosophy. Maybe you have not been personally hurt by religion yet, but I guarantee you that many folks have - and that gives people like myself the drive and desire to stomp it out.

The people that are killing in the name of the religions you revere are sick - and must be stopped. This includes Christians and Jews, and the Muslims are outdoing them both in terms of long-range destruction.

Religion is mental illness, and we have to come to terms with that. If we do not, the future will not be good - if there is any.
I feel I need to say something here. I get the impression that your views on -and experiences with- religion are making you jump to generalized conclusions about -and partially cloud your judgement over- situations in which religion plays at least some part in, like the islamic factor in the current conflict between the west and the arab world.

Your stance is all but unknown to me, both in a personal and a third-person way. I too -like you I assume- have experienced and am still experiencing fierce suppressive acts by the organized religion in the fields of personal beliefs, ideas, expression,thought, and behaviour for being an atheist in the "wrong" society.For you it was the school, possibly the family and a portion of the surrounding world.

For me there was more!Living in a country of christian orthodox zealots that LEGISLATES religiously in matters concerning education,work and taxation, I had consequences on almost every part of my life.I had to obligatorily attend church along with my class on several occassions each year or be expelled when I was at school, I had to carry an ID that stated my religion, informing every civil servant I ever dealt with that I was to be treated in the worst possible way since I was an atheist, I couldn't get a job working for the state because non-orthodoxes are not allowed in and I had to win my teaching licence in court for the same reason.

But you see, I never saw the the civil servant who would profoundly ignore me and make me wait for 2 hours until I had a document signed as a willing member of the scheme, neither did I long-term dislike my class mates for rounding up on me after church was over cause I wouldn't kiss the icons or do my cross.Why?Because they were being manipulated -through religion,true! and they had their share of fault -definately. But overall, as a whole,as a sum could they help it? NO

Manipulation is easy when you have something of a method that can't be questioned, religion can be such a thing. When you put your axioms into it, shape it the way you want, there's no questiong it whatsoever in short-terms.
Simply physically hurting it's followers or it's leaders doesn't make it's form vanish -maybe it even enhances it,enhances it's control. Let alone the alone the fact that you're commiting a crime against a manipulated person still innocent up to a point however naive,uneducated or short-sighted it may be or you call it to be. The only way you can save yourself and himself the harmful effects when your worlds collide is show him reason, even when you feel you're wasting your breath. The other alternative is totally destructive for at least one of you and greatly damaging for the other

I left the top-dogs for last. Religious leaders are just like political ones:all they want is power. They ensure they support the politicians through the religious manipulation of the public and the politicians support them by making laws in their benefit. They need each other, they rely on each other, they're in love with each other

So, you see I think power can take up many forms. But in viewing just one side of the coin you are only distracted you from a great number of facts -and the picture as a whole