Singapore’s population increased by 611k (24%) from 2.5 million in Year 2000 to 3.1 million in Year 2010. During this period, the number of people who identified themselves as Buddhist actually fell from 555 k to 442 k.
Apparently the numbers were off from the start. Many people in Singapore with practiced Doaism were identifying themselves as Buddhists in the census data.
Will need to check on line for the article I saw that in.
As for Evangelicals and the most powerful nation on Earth, well this article explains it all. I urge everyone to read it.
http://rt.com/op-edge/north-korea-usa-cia-639/
The narratives we hear in the West usually is that missionaries pitch up in a 'heathen' country and the locals are so impressed with this teaching that they immediately jump ship and become happy little christians. The article above gives us a more sobering view. Religion and humanitarian assistance is used as a tool by the West to assert ideological, economic, cultural control over other nations. Missionaries are often all to happy to destroy the entire cultural fabric of a nation (not just the local religions) with US assistance.
As for animism and superstition: (these terms are so loaded with monotheistic baggage its not even funny) I've asked this before, from a buddhist point of view, what else about 'animism' & 'superstition' is 'backward'?
besides the fact that it obstructs samma ditthi.
What makes a belief animists? According to my understanding the Buddha there is no sliding scale of wrong view (attachment to god, gods, spirits)
its all gotta go.
I think the dismissal of Thais and their beliefs (however wrong they may be) have a lot to do with their ethnicity.i.e.
Brown people superstition = bad White people superstition = good
Dhammafriend