I think my comment came off wrong. I'm not American, nor am I pro-American. I do however believe that the governments of major powers such as USA and Russia pit the people against each other and create an atmosphere that the world is on the brink of war as an excuse to remove civil liberties.

I agree with what you're saying but I think it works in all directions, not just unilaterally USA towards Russia.

"A Gallup poll this year found negative American sentiment toward Russia at a post-Cold War high, with 70 percent unfavorable and 24 percent favorable."

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jun/30/anti-american-sentiment-surges-in-russia-and-the-f/?page=all

or for a non-american and slightly more neutral source:
http://observer.com/2015/11/russia-and-putin-are-winning-the-public-relations-war/

This isn't real, it was posted to re'dd'it first as a joke. Look at the blue tiles, see the triangle? This was created by a re'dd'itor (feed_the_pigeons or something, its supposed to be a pigeon in the triangle) last week to joke about people who post re'posts and make rubbish content from other peoples screencaps.

Russia deliberately gave USA an ugly monument. They know USA won't make a big deal about announcing it, then Russian government can act insulted and keep up the "USA are the enemy" rhetoric with the Russian citizens.

Don't want to follow the well defined rules generated in response to the opinion of the majority of society, given to you in advance? Don't drive then.

This goes back even further still, to Saint Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century - http://philosophy.lander.edu/intro/governance.shtml

The philosophy is still debated and there are compelling arguments on both sides.

However, the biggest argument really is that biology is NOT perfectly designed. When you get down to it there are many flaws in biology, and subsequent workarounds, which are often the causes of many diseases. For example imperfect duplication of DNA leading to mutations, allergies/autoimmune disease, improper cleavage of APP leading to Ab and Alzheimer's disease. I could go on.

To me this leaves two possibilities for the existence of God - either it is not perfect, or it is deliberately placing these flaws. If the former is true then it shakes the foundation of Abrahamic religious beliefs. If the latter then you have to ask why?

The classic cop out answer is "God has a reason". But that reason could only be to inflict suffering and/or as a method of 'testing us'. As time goes on it just gets harder and harder for us to have faith. Science and philosophy has lead us to question God and offers alternatives. Humanity didn't have those (to this extent) 1000 years ago and as such people were much more religious. So why test us more now than back 1000 years ago when it was easier to believe? That suggests that it is now actually harder to get into paradise than before. So now we have an unfair God. If paradise is the ultimate goal then what we do on earth is a pointless test with no impact.

If God is indeed great then we wouldn't need to be tested, it would already know the outcome. Time would not exist for such a God and everything would simply 'be'. Either God knows the answer - in which case by making us live a pointless life it is being vindictive and cruel, or God does not and is not all powerful.