George A. Erickson

The author takes on the task of debunking the long-standing idea that religion is a force for good, and that the evil they do is outweighed by the good. Most of the book is discussion of the suffocation of science under theocratic regimes, particularly under Christianity. The opposition to medicines, to vaccinations, to anesthetic, to birth control...all things which benefited both individuals and societies. I do think the author has his head in the sand about the present. Even though this is an older book (written years before January 6), there was certainly enough going on in the early twenty-first century to suggest that religion was gaining a stranglehold on certain areas of the government, and planned to spread its tentacles further. The author writes from the perspective of a professor at a high prestige college, so he apparently missed that. Over all, it's good, but a bit lightweight, rushing past most things it discusses with just a few paragraphs. For someone wanting a basic introduction, this might do, but this is one of the rare books I feel should have been longer.… (altro)