Harry Potter books burned: Beware! Sorcery!

The future will sneer at some of our beliefs, just as we struggle to comprehend why our forefathers invested faith in things we can hardly imagine much less embrace.

Many ideas, once unquestionable, are now embarrassing if not laughable. In our world, suicide bombers are probably the most violent expression of personal beliefs. Anti-vaccination campaigners and those who still deny climate change are so out of step with today’s science that they stir something close enough to contempt — such is the power of belief.