In MondayâÄôs article âÄúReligion in decline across America ,âÄù Karl Quickert of The Rock asks how, without God, people would know that murder is wrong. This is a very frightening question if it is seriously posed. For the sake of everyone, I sincerely hope that Quickert never loses his faith. He also believes that no one can be held accountable for their actions or âÄúbe moralâÄù without God. Many godless creatures have existed on this planet for an amount of time incomparable to religion, humans among them. It is unfortunate that Quickert doesnâÄôt seem to believe he is accountable for his actions, but even more so that he believes no one can be. Bryan Kessler University student Religion is extremely influential in regard to the choices we make and our view on life in our society. After all, this country was founded from the desire for religious tolerance, and the founding fathers realized the importance for separation of church and state, a fact which this past administration lost sight. As Jeff Campbell said, President George W. Bush used his faith as justification for many of the policies created and actions taken. Religion can be a comfort to many Americans faced with the vastness of our universe; however it can have dangerous consequences for the world as well. I think we need to keep the discussion of religion open and easily accessible to all who realize the stakes of this topic. It worries me that people arenâÄôt more willing to talk about religion since it is so fundamental to our world, but I think some are opening up to the questions within themselves. And when they canâÄôt find sound answers in religion, they turn to logic, historical facts and science for more valid responses. There wonâÄôt be a moral decline or murdering rampages sans religion. In fact, some religions advocate the murder of âÄúunbelieversâÄù who are seen as lesser beings. That is a dangerous belief! Atheism, on the other hand, does not advocate violence and would not irrefutably lead to immoral behavior. Many atheists still believe murder is wrong without some higher authority threatening unimaginable punishment if they do so. One looks to oneâÄôs own conscience or to the certain downfall of society if murder was allowed. It raises the question: If we must have the threat of pain to keep us in line, does that really make us virtuous beings? Is there no such thing as altruistic, selfless, behavior? Mikaela Krantz University student