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Talk about controversial. Well, we can guarantee you George W. Bush didn't read "The God Delusion." The typeface is too small and it is too long -- not like "My Pet Goat."

No, George would not tolerate the "rantings" of a preeminent scientist atheist. Those guys are right up there with Saddam Hussein as far as George is concerned.

So what makes "The God Delusion" such a bestseller?

Probably because it attacks the notion of our actions being judged in the light of some religious force appear so ludicrous, when religion relieves us of responsibility on the one hand for daily indiscretions, or justifies horrifying acts on the other.

And then you have the issue of conflicting absolute faiths, such as the square off between fundamentalists in the U.S. and fundamentlist followers of Islam.

Of course, the majority of people with faith, unlike Bush, do hold themselves, not a God, accountable for their actions.

But Dawkins is what you might call a brilliantly extreme scientific rationalist. His arguments make sense, but faith is not logical. Most people need faith in order to face the reality of death, illness and tragedy.

For these people, Dawkins offers an inner strength in living without the crutch of God, but that takes strength, one could argue, in and of itself.

Indeed, Dawkins can be a scathing rationalist, to the point that you might want to seek the solace of religion, but he presents a compelling argument.

Dawkins is sort of Sam Harris, author of "Letter to a Christian Nation," with a scalpel.

Whether you agree or disagree with Dawkins, he has the kind of relentless intellectual inquiry that ceaselessly challenges you to be accountable without the crutch of religion.

He'd be a great dinner guest, but I wouldn't invite him to any baptisms or Bar Mitzvahs.

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