As patriotism can be the last refuge of scoundrels, so religion can be the last refuge of bigots.
The most recent attempts to besmirch religion have come from Arizona’s Republican state legislators, who last week, on a near- party-line vote, passed a bill allowing businesses to discriminate against same-sex couples on religious grounds. The bill is on the desk of Republican Gov. Jan Brewer; she has until week’s end to sign or veto it.




In September, 2009 Atlantic Monthly named 
