I apologize if offensive, btw.

I figured if people can make money from something, they'll leave it alone or even encourage it. There used to be a time when politics ruled the world and it was more about power than economy, but now it's economy with politics serving as a distraction.

I know it's almost a truism and I know life is more complicated than that, but so far every time I've looked at a complex problem and tried to figure out who is making money from this and how much money is to be made, I have not been disappointed with the kind of insight that I've gained.

So what is the solution to all religion-related problems, again? And what are you defining as a 'religion-related problem'?

I'm being vague intentionally. I was searching for interesting Nike caps and came across the Jewish skullcap with the Nike logo. That's where the idea came from. So did some quick google searches rather unsuccessfully for similar things in Christianity and Islam but these two unworn items will do. Edited it and uploaded it to tinypic. That's all.

Come to think of it, the idea was born even earlier than that, when I was watching Rachael Ray today and she was talking about the royal wedding merchandise. I thought to myself my God, this thing is nothing short of idolatry.

We can take this in any direction, really.

I think that even More merchandise should be marketed to religious people. It cheapens the whole thing, while simultaneously exposing religions as the pyramid schemes that they are.

That is why I fully support the creation of the 'Baby Jesus Butt Plug'

If you want some examples of the ridiculous things that already are marketed to religious people take a look at http://ship-of-fools.com/gadgets/index.html

That's sad.

I mean, is anyone suggesting that religions have never been about making money? Nothing can be further from the truth. In the middle ages the Christian church was the richest and most powerful supra-national organization in the world, and stuck its hand in as many pies as it could, from tithes to colonialism. As long as religion has existed, there have been countless people piggybacking it to riches, from selling indulgences, to that charlatan in the other thread who is selling books based on his infant son's fabricated encounter with god.

In my view religions, particularly those with aggressive monotheistic orthodoxies, have always been largely about controlling people for the benefit of a minority who want to keep or gain power. What better political tool than for a ruler (or rich person) to be able to say "Hey look, things may appear unequal, but after death everything will level out, so you may as well let me continue to be rich and powerful and happy." And you drum this into kids, to internalize it, so that they don't even realize they're playing to someone else's tune; they think they're religious for their own benefit. It's marketing genius. Religion is like a pyramid scheme in that it never pays out, and never need demonstrate that it pays out.

Selling idols and good luck charms and little saints and nodding virgin Marys that sit on your dashboard and crosses and bumper stickers and household shrines, it makes the delusion that bit more transparent, but believing in good luck charms is not intrinsically more absurd than believing in a god who created the world. All supernatural beliefs are equally absurd, but some are better than others at disguising their absurdity.

If everyone could not give a shit about other people's religion the world would be a lovely place. I wouldn't get woken up at 10am on a Saturday morning (Friday night = crazy night of sin) by Christians wanting to covert me. Similarly I want to walk through urban centres without collecting 3 Jesus pamphlets throughout the day.

But more importantly, wars would be a lot more honest. (You're not Satanists, we just don't like you and we want your land).