I love religious people. You know, the ones who are truly humble and who try to do the right thing at all times. They're friendly and easy to get along with; they will go out of their way to help others; they don't cheat, or lie, or steal; they work hard and hardly ever complain. In other words, I love those who walk their walk, whichever walk that may be-the one they profess to believe in. Even those whose beliefs are dark and hopeless, as long as they are true to their stated beliefs, they deserve respect.
   On the other hand, I hate what religions do to the minds of their adherents. Dogma, that great dam of free thought, restricts people from expressing new ideas about the things that they supposedly believe in so strongly. If an idea produces opinions that rise to the level of a belief, surely it can withstand a thorough analysis. (In the same vein, authorities in any arena should stand ready to answer any question with which they are presented. Of course there are things in every area of study that cannot be answered by anyone, but whoever claims to be an authority in a certain subject should be able to answer almost every question posed.) By eliminating doubt, blind faith suppresses that flow of ideas that hallmark the advance of civilization. Whereas civilized behavior ought to be the goal of all religious inclinations, religion itself prevents different peoples from achieving a unified code of ethics and ethical behavior within a society provides the only support to that society's claim to being civilized.
   My understanding of sharia law is simple and undoubtedly incomplete. However simplified by me, apparently it expects corrective intervention between and amongst citizens whenever unlawful behavior is observed. If you observe your friend stealing something, you are expected to try to prevent it. Likewise with all other obvious ethical transgressions.
   In a functioning civilization, all members would serve as rectifying agents in regard to themselves and one another. Seems like a pretty good idea to me- establishing the pursuit of ethical behavior as an occasional theme of everyday conversation. Of course, humans will always find ways to circumvent rules that limit their freedom to act as they please. 
   A friend in Nevada once told me a joke about his Mormon friends, whose faith expects them to refrain from consuming alcohol. It goes like this: How do you prevent a Mormon from drinking all of your beer when you take him fishing? You invite two Mormons to go fishing.

   This is no attack on Mormons; without a doubt, every religion has a version of this joke that applies to their stated beliefs. My personal belief contends that righteous behavior only concerns behavior that has society-wide implications. Other than that, everything is in play, as long as the behavior affects no one besides the individual or some unique group whose beliefs allow such behavior. This idea provides a perfect segue from one unpleasant topic (religion) to another (politics).
   Under what amorphous cloud of reasoning would political correctness be expected from everyone? How stale and uninvigorating life would be without the freedom to get laughs at the expense of our friends and relatives! Typical gatherings with my friends would fail any test of political correctness by a large margin. Why? Because our affections for one another are unquestioned and we provide license to one another to insult, assault, hurl pejoratives, and impugn each others' characters. Group size has everything to do with this concept. The way to provoke laughter is to state the unexpected. Comedians would lose half of their arsenals if they weren't allowed to say unkind things.
   There is one group whose ability to say those types of things should be limited by political considerations-politicians. They are expected to represent the entire population in serious matters, and as such, they should not be allowed to insult anyone. It is a standard of honor that a civilized society should expect from those who have a hand in passing laws that affect everyone. If they happen to say improper things in private, and are recorded unaware, some level of understanding should be extended by the general population.