Podcast 8. Religion and Politics

The first rule of conversation in polite company is to not talk about religion or politics. We're not overly concerned about being polite and neither is the guest for this podcast: Ophelia Benson, the author of "Does God Hate Women?" and publisher of the popular blog, Butterflies and Wheels.

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks on the USA by religious fanatics, plenty of otherwise complacent commentators are starting to seriously consider the effect of religion on our society. Indeed, terrorism is only one of the more dramatic consequences of religion.There are the insidious and far-ranging impacts on women's freedom and erosion of respect for human rights. And what are the consequences of speaking out against religious encroachment on secular societies? We discuss this and more.