The National Review's Andrew Stuttaford has taken it upon himself to set up a "
Superstition Watch." Here's the kinda stuff that concerns him:
For over a century, a statue of a wild boar stood in the center of England’s oldest public park. It was damaged during the Second World War. Finally, it has been restored. The old boar was going to be put back where it belonged. Not any more. These plans have, apparently, now been "abandoned for fear of offending Muslims, whose religion considers pigs to be 'unclean'."
And if you want another tiny example of the West’s supine response to Islamic fanaticism – that’s it.
I'm concerned that the focus of his watch may be too narrow, so I emailed Stuttaford with the following:
Now, is this going to be a "fair and balanced" superstition watch?
Will you make a note every time a Catholic priest decries the use of contraceptives? Or every time the Intelligent Design folks make it into the news? Or every time John Derbyshire comes up with a debunked theory about the evils of homosexuality? Or every time a poll is released showing that the majority of Americans still believe in the devil, demons, and guardian angels? Will you strive to shine the light of reason upon them, too?
Or are you really just picking on Islamic superstitions and the people who tolerate them?
Many of us here in the United States manage to stomach religious superstition every day and you don't seem to mind that.
Cheers,
Robert
