Hi RJT,

Every time someone close, or even known to me, it is the same. It strengthen my atheism. It has been so since I have been an atheist which was a slow/gradual process that became real to me in my late 20's, probably. I definitely was brought up and educated religiously.

BTW, I make a point of watching Jim Lehrer's hour (or a repeat of it since I am not in the US) most days, and I always make sure to stop what I am doing and concentrate on the pictures, when they are shown, at the end of the program, of those servicement who died in Iraq. I feel the same about those that I do about closer ones. It has the same effect to me, it strengthen my atheism, especially when I see the age of some of those. They truly are mere kids who imo had no clues. I remember when I was that age: I was doing commissioned officer training.