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I agree that the carnage affects society as a whole, but should we turn to the government to protect us from ourselves once again? What you are suggesting has been attempted and it didn't work so well. It was during the middle ages and it resulted in inquisitions. It came to where if you didn't agree with the king or authority you risked persecution, or even execution. Then a different authority would gain power and they would persecute for different reasons. There was no freedom for the individual and the carnage was much much worse. I would suggest that tyranny exists where dissent is forbidden and governments as a rule to not like dissent. Adolf Hitler allowed churches to exist but they had to agree to support his agenda. If they did not they were shut down. The same holds true in certain dictatorships today such as China. They are deemed "not good for the people". Is that what we want? Churches or worship centers that have to abide by rules set by a governmental authority in order to function? What about those who refuse to abide by the governmental requirement, what should happen to them? Should we arrest them, perhaps put them in labor camps or perhaps (ahem) concentration camps? With respect to the U.S. government, they have a lot of problems as it is. Congress just approved a spending bill and it's considered a great victory, even an historical event. Well woop de doo, they agree on something! Let's see, what have we seen from the U.S. government since 9/11? Now they listen in on your phone calls and they read your emails-invasion of privacy. They've also taken to tapping the phone lines of other governments, even our most trusted allies, just to listen to what's going on. The IRS has been caught targeting certain conservative organizations in order to delay their formation. Not because the organizations were subversive, but because their political views were at odds with current administration. Their department head even lied to a Congressional investigation then hard evidence surfaced leaving no doubt as to the antics of the IRS and he was dismissed. The Veteran's Administration has come under fire for failure to address the health needs of veterans resulting in death in some cases and serious complications in others. They have muddled in the affairs of foreign governments, bribed, and in some cases assassinated other leaders in order to gain an advantage on the world stage. All of these things were done for the "good of the people". This week it was learned that our CIA was engaging in torturing prisoners to get information. When confronted, the answer we heard was this was necessary in order to get information to save American lives. In other words, it was for "the good of the people". I could go on and on, but I ask you, are these the people you want deciding where who and what you can worship (or not worship)? If you're going to have a government that allows freedom of religion then you're going to have cults. If you're going to have a government with freedom of speech then you're going to have hate groups spouting venom. If you want to be "free" from all of that then your only alternative is tyranny and thence a forfeiture of your freedom.