[FoRK] "Where do beliefs come from daddy?"

[Tom Higgins]

There are other ways to spot them as well, like if they support the
killing of children...as mentioned here (which beings us back around
to letting the truth tell the tale. It is a great thing that the more
you are able to think and digest data the less you link yourself to
the superstitions that seem to be a part of many of the problems we
have today.)



http://www.ovo127.com/blog/2007/12/trevor-blake-what-religion-and-science.html
"What Religion and Science Can Do for Us

Religion:

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/storyhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif/0,,2224553,00.html

Tracy McVeigh, Children are targets of Nigerian witch hunt: Almost
everyone goes to church here [the Niger Delta]. Driving through the
town of Esit Eket, the rust-streaked signs, tarpaulins hung between
trees and posters on boulders, advertise a church for every third or
fourth house along the road. Such names as New Testament Assembly,
Church of God Mission, Mount Zion Gospel, Glory of God, Brotherhood of
the Cross, Redeemed, Apostalistic. Behind the smartly painted doors
pastors make a living by 'deliverances' - exorcisms - for people beset
by witchcraft, something seen to cause anything from divorce, disease,
accidents or job losses. With so many churches it's a competitive
market, but by local standards a lucrative one. But an exploitative
situation has now grown into something much more sinister as preachers
are turning their attentions to children - naming them as witches. In
a maddened state of terror, parents and whole villages turn on the
child. They are burnt, poisoned, slashed, chained to trees, buried
alive or simply beaten and chased off into the bush. Some parents
scrape together sums needed to pay for a deliverance - sometimes as
much as three or four months' salary for the average working man -
although the pastor will explain that the witch might return and a
second deliverance will be needed. Even if the parent wants to keep
the child, their neighbours may attack it in the street.

Science:

http://www.fortunewatch.com/miracle-man-walks-again/

Robin Bal, Miracle Man Walks Again: He survived against all the odds;
now Peng Shulin has astounded doctors by learning to walk again.When
his body was cut in two by a lorry in 1995, it was little short of a
Medical that he lived. It took a team of nearly 20 doctors to save his
life. Skin was grafted from his head to seal his torso - but the
legless Mr Peng was left only 78cm (2ft 6in) tall. Bedridden for
years, doctors in China had little hope that he would ever be able to
live anything like a normal life again. [...] But recently, he began
exercising his arms, building up the strength to carry out everyday
chores such as washing his face and brushing his teeth. Doctors at the
China Rehabilitation Research Centre in Beijing found out about Mr
Peng's plight late last year and devised a plan to get him up walking
again. They came up with an ingenious way to allow him to walk on his
own, creating a sophisticated egg cup-like casing to hold his body
with two bionic legs attached to it. He has been taking his first
steps around the center with the aid of his specially adapted legs and
a resized walking frame. Mr Peng, who has to learn how to walk again,
is said to be delighted with the device.

[Articles continue at links. Mr. Peng was cut in half and is today
walking around, thanks to science. Those children murdered by
superstitious monsters won't have a second chance. Sometimes theists
talk about science and religion as seperate magistrate, each with its
own contribution to the world. That seems supported by the facts, as
science makes things better and religion makes things worse. Every day
I ask myself what I can do to make religion less palatable to the
average person. So far, the truth seems to be the most appropriate and
effective tool. - Trevor Blake]"


-th