1. Truly Bizarre : Indians Throw Babies 50ft From Roof To Thank God.

Comment #174727 by JesusChrist on May 3, 2008 at 11:08 am

Surely this seems bizarre by our standards, but if it is true that there has been no evidence of physical harm, then how can we condemn them from the outside? If there really have been no injuries or fatalities this is a great testament to the care these people are taking. To their credit they must understand the danger of what they are doing and are taking what they believe to be the appropriate precautions. This practice still doesn't sit well with me, but we all must be willing to follow the evidence even to uncomfortable places.

Having said that I imagine it would only take one accident to provide the evidence needed to curtail or at least modify this tradition. The claim that this ritual actually helps the health of the infant is one that could and I think should be scientifically investigated. Couldn't it be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that there's no point in throwing the baby out (with or without the bath water)? On the other hand, if I were a member of this sect I imagine I would welcome the chance to prove the benefits of this ritual to the rest of the world, just as the religious tend to embrace any scientific evidence that would "prove" the benefit of prayer or any other ritual.

Aside from the inherent risk involved, I think the question of consent is a compelling consideration. Obviously these babies aren't choosing of their own free will to be thrown. I would be much more accepting of this practice if those taking the fall were of age to willingly volunteer for it. Then it'd be more like a "trust fall" or even an emergency evacuation drill, which actually could be beneficial; someone who has overcome their fear of heights through practice is more likely to be able to jump to safety from a burning 5-story building.

So for me it boils down to two questions: 1) are they really doing any harm, and even if not 2) is it ethical to do this to people without their consent?

2. Are Darwin's Theories Fact or Faith Issues?

Comment #120784 by JesusChrist on February 2, 2008 at 2:05 pm

"Billions of Missing Links" could've almost been the title of a future book by Richard Dawkins. In order to have billions of missing links there must be billions of fossils in the evolutionary record, and the "missing links" in between each must be very small indeed. If only there were so many missing links! The fossil record will never be that complete, but maybe we can be happy with "Thousands of Missing Links."