I've read a lot of reviews on various web sites, and I still don't
have a clear idea which will allow an amateur photographer to take the
best possible picture- a lower cost (<$1400.00) 6 megapixel SLR or an
8 megapixel point and shoot. And to complicate matters a little more
there's the new Olympus E-300 8 megapixel SLR.

http://www.epinions.com/buyers_guide/Digital_Cameras_buyers_guide_p1.html

In my humbe opinion:

The SLR.
-seeing what you are going to get at the time of taking the shot.
The viewfinders in P/S cameras provide no depth of field preview, and
the LCDs are hopeless in terms of resolution and use in bright light.
- overrides
Most p/s cameras provide only a few override functiond for adjusting
say exposure due to a bright background.
- availability of interchangeable lenses/filters
3 or 4 x optical zoom is OK as far as it goes, but it is not far
enough;  you really need to have specialist lenses in your kit too. 
Llikewise, the greater maximum apetures of SLR lenses allows for much
greater flexibility in terms of lighting
- rapidity of response. SLRs are more likely to expose the image when
you release the shutter, rather than possibly seconds later once the
AF and AE functions have been completed.
- CCD design and electronics may be better in more expensive SLRs. 
The "blooming" effect seen due to charge leakage to adjacent pixels
can be quite detrimental to image quality.  This *should* be improved
in more expensive SLR sensors.
-general build quality will be higher in SLRs

Really, the only advantages of P/S cameras are: price, simplicity of
use, and smaller size.  Under most circumstances they will take a good
snapshot.  Under ideal conditions and with a lot of fiddling and many
false starts, they can produce fine images.

With an SLR, it is usually the photographer that limits the quality of
the image.  More often, with a P/S, it is the camera.

One important consideration is shutter lag.  If you want to capture
the moment immediately rather than anticipate it, an SLR is much
faster.  Also, if the images are going to be published in a magazine,
colorspace is important too.  Some of the  P&S cameras out there may
not allow you to change the colorspace of the camera (e.g. sRGB to
AdobeRGB).

There's no question the SLR types have more flexibility and options
and professional capabilities. But the real point is what you are
comfortable with, because some of the point and shoot versions have
wonderful lenses and are much smaller and might allow you to take it
with you more or shoot more fluidly. That in the end will mean more
picture and perhaps better pictures. If you have a notion you want to
tinker and experiment and feel like you are really getting serious
about the equipment, get an SLR. By the way, the Olympus is nice if
you want to jump into a whole new system and that's a bit smaller, but
the Nikon D70 gets the best all round reviews, with the Canon digital
Rebel right behind. Hope this is some help.