Personally, some Buddha statues to me are very decorative pieces of art.
Same here. I experimented with Buddhism before turning atheist, and I still have quite a few Buddha statues. Buddhism is a far kinder and understanding belief system than christianity could ever hope to be.
I think Buddhism works as a life philosophy, but not really as a religion. No religion works.
The Buddha was just a man and philosopher. They really messed it up with all the supernatural stories they added after his death to make him seem like he was more than just a man.
mainly because pat roberson will personally come out and sh!t in your yard.