I don't believe the world is 6,000 years old any more than you do, or for that matter, any more than Perry probably does. Most of the religious people I know fall into the "guided evolution" faction. Heck, most religious people I know don't consider the exact mechanism of the origin of humanity to be something they've given a lot of thought to, or a primary factor in their religion.

Someone's belief that God created life by some mechanism or other is no more "threatening" to me than their belief in homeopathic medicine. This is a phony red-herring issue, designed to distract voters from the real issues (economic ideas, philosophy of government, etc.) that actually will make a difference in our lives.

Go back to that poll and immerse yourself in the breakdowns. We are not talking just the "trailer park" people you often refer to.

And yet, think about this: 40 percent of Americans apparently believe that God created us in the past 10,000 years. This percentage has probably been at least this high through our entire lives, and the lives of our parents and grandparents. What real difference has this made in our lives or theirs? What real threat has ever been brought to bear on any of us?