Via Pharyngula, there is an editorial from a newspaper that has a “Faith & Values” section. The editorial does not focus on this bit, but it caught my eye anyway. Apparently the newspaper sometimes prints stuff about other religions in addition to Christianity. The reaction:

Recent articles about Buddhism and Islam in the Faith & Values section have brought accusations from a few readers that The Dispatch has begun promoting these faiths while downplaying Christianity, the dominant religion in central Ohio.

A couple of critics wanted to know why we were wasting ink on these “false” beliefs when Christ is the only path to salvation. Another caller said he was tired of having “that Islam religion … shoved in my face.”

This despite the fact that 80% of the articles in the section covered Christianity, and only 4.1% were about Islam.

I am pretty certain that these are the exact same people who would stare at you blankly, or even be offended or outraged, if you were to suggest that their pushing Christianity on you was objectionable in some way. These are almost certainly the same people who want the Ten Commandments plastered everywhere, and who want to force your kids to pray in the classroom. The same people who think that there’s an O’Reillian “War on Christmas” despite Christmas being overwhelmingly dominant among year-end celebrations. In short, the angry white male Christian who gets the best of everything but feels like he’s a persecuted victim suffering at the hands of the minority.

The conclusion of the editorial, however, is surprising and hopeful: the writer realizes that while about 12% of the population is “nonreligious,” the newspaper prints little or nothing that covers their beliefs. So:

Although Faith & Values isn’t ignoring Christians, my tally does suggest that we are giving nonreligious people less attention than they deserve. We’re already taking steps to correct that.

Wow. Considering that Atheists are despised in America more than gays and Muslims, that’s a very progressive attitude. Kudos for this guy.