Comments on: Question of the Week: What Woo Does Your Family Believe In?

By: Tom W

Tom W — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 13:29:56 +0000

My gran got me book of Feng Shui for Xmas, it is hilarious. Lien Tu’s Book of Feng Shui for the Office, I think. It says crap like “If you are going north on a journey, throw some sand north. If south, throw some water south…etc”. A big load of woo, and it never even attempts to explain itself!

By: AexMagd

AexMagd — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 13:18:12 +0000

My mum has recurring knee problems, and has had acupuncture which pretty much healed her up. To her this is a sign that it works, whereas to me it’s a sign that while manipulation of the joint may have healed her, it’s got bugger all to do with meridians and probably a lot more to do with the placebo effect.

She also believes the Bible is basically a collection of just-so stories, that the Pope is an idiot, that sex before marriage, contraception and abortions are all fine and isn’t entirely sure that God exists. She’s still a Catholic though! Never underestimate the power of community…

Finally, she’s also sceptical about MMR being safe, due to a close friend experiencing the outset of autism in her kid not long after the injection. While I have often pointed out that autism tends to manifest at around the age the vaccination is given anyway, confirmation bias from hearing that MMR causes autism etc etc she still has her doubts. Understandably, she cites her childhood experiences of hearing all about how wonderful Thalidomide was, and then seeing what it did, as a reason to remain suspicious of anything until long-term effects have been seen (mobile usage, laser eye surgery you name it)

By: Hanny

Hanny — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 10:14:44 +0000

Two recent examples spring to mind:

1. Had an interesting discussion with my dad and his wife over Christmas about the bible. (They’re catholic). In the end they said they don’t believe the book that litteraly, but just that God made the Big Bang happen. (Hey and they still like me!)

2. Offended one of my close friends who said to have a degree in homeopathy by laughing out loud. When I realised he meant it, we exchanged arguments as adults, although his standard answer was: “Yeah, well, if you put it *that* way… but still I’ve seen it work.”

By: James Samuels

James Samuels — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 16:42:05 +0000

That’s a great question Colin and like many of the comments above I need look no further than my marvellous late grandmother. Oddly she was not a religious woman and detested the sectarianism that was still very evident in Liverpool. She was also a very straight forward thinking individual and something of a conservative with a large C. However, as we know many people have a chink in their rational armour, and my grandmother’s was that any mislaid object could be found with the help of non other than St Anthony. This person being the very late St Anthony of Padua who died around 1230 AD.
My grandmother would direct, prayers to him normally after a jewellery location error. Anything less than jewellery would normally be dealt with by a thorough search of the premises. One day we received a desperate call from my grandmother who had lost her engagement ring. The ring obviously had massive sentimental value as well as being a valuable object in its self. Needless to say prayers by this stage had already been offered up to St A. My mother and I started a CSI style search of the house but to no avail. The U-bend in the sink was taken out, the toilet was examined and bins emptied.
This was all painstakingly carried out before my grandmother told us she had at least made some scones, if we fancied one. Desperate times deserved the comfort of home baking. She was philosophical at this point. You’ve probably guessed the outcome, but the platinum diamond ring had been accidentally but thoroughly mixed in with flour, sugar, butter, currents and a pinch of salt and baked at 170 degrees centigrade for 20 minutes. In fact, had we not broken up the scones to find the ring I have no doubt the emergency dentist would have been required. For information purposes only the Patron Saint required in such an event is St Apollonia.

By: Stu

Stu — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 16:11:11 +0000

Myself and one of my brothers are the only people in a VERY LARGE extended family who don’t believe in some kind of woo, even if it’s just ‘there must be some kind of afterlife.’

The whole family is awash with belief in tarot, psychics (DO NOT get me started!), pseudoscience or a creator of some kind etc.

I fairness to my mum, she doesn’t believe in forcing beliefs on other people so, although a christian herself, she left her children to make up their own minds. So the fact that some of them decided to be bat-shit crazy and pass it to their own kids can’t be blamed on her.

By: Allan

Allan — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 13:28:11 +0000

Wow. 12 years old and only ever seeing a homeopath for medical treatments…

That’s got to be verging on abuse?

By: Mirko

Mirko — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 09:23:39 +0000

Well, one couldn’t really say that my family does believe in some woo. My father is rather sceptic, too. The only one who is all over the place with strange believes is my mother. Angels, ghosts, homeopathy… Well, the first two things wouldn’t really bother me, because it doesn’t hurt anyone (at least not in the stage of believe she is in – she just thinks there are such things, she does not try to interact with them, so really no big harm done).

The only real problem is homeopathy. She hasn’t went to a normal doctor since many years, and sometimes I am worried out of my mind about her. She had an inflamed cecum removed a few years ago and if we wouldn’t have brought her to the hospital by force she would NOT have gone. And what is even worse: She forced this on me, when i was a child. I have atopic dermatitis as well as several allergies and i have not seen a doctor about it in the first 12 years of my life – I was only treated with homeopathic medicine – which of course did not really do anything. This has really damaged my relationship to her in a BIG way.

After I realised just how completely insane the whole idea of homeopathy was, i went to normal doctors. I think I was 12 years old or so – just think about it: If you grow up with it, your mother tells you it’s even better than medicine and you actually feel something due to the placebo effect, it’s pretty hard not to believe it.
Thats about 12 years ago now and I actually have good control over nearly all my allergies now, but it just shows how dangerous homeopathy really is. Whoever believes in it will also treat his/her children with it, and it’s very hard for a child to realise it is not working, let alone do something about it.

By: Gavin

Gavin — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 21:38:33 +0000

My aunt believes in Tarot, Angels & Psychics so much that it almost hurts,

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:28:47 +0000

I am pleased to say that of those still alive, nothing.
My late mother was a catholic. I spent 20 years explaining evolution to her and she still didn’t really get it. She left the church but returned to the choir later ‘cos she liked the singing. When she was on her deathbed, she wished for an after life where she would meet her family again.

She read her stars in the paper ‘for a laugh’, she always prayed for me when I was about to do something important. I asked her loads of times not to do so. However when I had my viva for my EngD, which was an absolute grilling, she later told me she prayed for me. I told her that the prayers missed and hit my investigators instead. Although I did pass it.
Of people I am related to by marriage- they are all Jewish and believe in so much shite there isn’t the room to list them. I liked telling the story about my old mum though so thank you.

By: Rewinelover

Rewinelover — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:23:06 +0000

My Irish Catholic mother couldn’t be convinced that the Liverpool Humanist Group wasn’t a dangerous cult that I’d joined. She haboured similar feelings about Skeptic groups ; )

And we always had ‘holy water’, usually in a plastic tacky virgin mary bottle, in the house, although I’ve no idea what it was for.