Shit, diet (healthy eating) should be taught as a mandatory subject. Look at the way things are going. Everyone is getting fatter and unhealthier. And it's a big problem. Get everyone to eat healthy and our healthcare problem would go away.

But as long as people choose to eat all the cheap unhealthy food that is available, things are going to get worse. Of course the drug companies and HMOs want everyone to be unhealthy. They won't rake in millions and billions of dollars if everyone is healthy.

When I said "diet" I wasn't talking about health. I was talking about the variations in people's diet in different parts of the world according to their local culture. There are places where people regularly eat raw fish, other places people eat dogs, or squirrels, moose, or whatever...dpending on their culture and what is available.

As the world grows and connects, these differences in diet become less dependent on where you live and seemingly more dependent on how much you cling to tradition.

how true. I'm shutting off all tv's in the house for one hour, in that time my wife and daughter have to exercise.
I had my therapy and my client was amazed at my stamina and strength.
I ended up pushing them to push me harder. on the bike they told me to pedal at 50rpm, I did 100rpm averaged 96rpm.
treadmill they started at level 3, I had them take it up to level 6.

and I didn't break a sweat.*LOL*

As far as religious classes are concerned, I took a "World Religions" class last year, and a somewhat more focused "Western Religions" this semester, and enjoyed both. The former was teaching a (albeit very brief) history, philosophy, beliefs, and practices of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Budhism, and a couple other East-Asian ones I can't put a name to right now. And frankly, it was all stuff I wish I'd learned back in high school. It would have done me a lot more good than knowing what Columbus or Jaques Cartier did. And both my teachers were pretty good. Neither one demonstrated any bias/favor towards any particular faith, and presented them all equally, although it was obvious that they knew more concerning some of them than others. Which is normal, really.

As someone already stated, regardless of one's own beliefs (or lack thereof), religion plays a large role in many people's lives. Maybe even a majority of people. Understanding their beliefs can help one to understand how they think, and why they act the way they do. Understanding others can help reduce conflicts. Probably not eliminate them, but reduce, perhaps.

As my teachers pointed out, there is a difference between Religious Studies and Theology. Religious studies is the study of religions, whether all or one in particular, from an objective view. Theology is also the study of religion, but incorporates/implies belief or profession of faith. Religious Studies is important for all and should be taught in all schools/universities where possible. Theology, on the other hand, should be taught by their respective Churches/Religions, and are only as important to any particular person as their personal beliefs are. For some very, for some not at all, but it's their own choice to study/attend as they will.

Personally, I consider a religious element to be an essential component of education specifically for that reason, but also to help people realize that what *they* believe is NOT the only world view, may not even be in the majority.

Oh, and a basic course on nutrition ought to be mandatory too, but, like for religious studies, the people who most need it would probably ignore it anyway.