Santa and god.

Imagine if you met an 18-year-old, a student at a college say, very charming, very bright. But he told you, during your conversation, that he believed in Santa Claus. He was convinced that every Christmas Eve, St. Nicholas loads up his sleigh with toys, lines up his reindeers and travels all around the world delivering gifts to children everywhere who wrote their requests to him care of The North Pole. You would think that person was a little bit deranged and lose all faith in whatever intelligence you credited him with. But frankly, I don't see any difference between that and the equally absurd belief that there is an unseen god someplace who knows everything you're doing and actually gives a damn. On a planet with billions of people, the idea that someone is always there to listen to and evaluate your insignificant prayers to me is an insane concept. I find it astonishing that after a tornado in which dozens of people, including children, are killed that so many people will thank god for sparing their lives even as they stand in the ruins of their home which,according to them, must have been destroyed by you know who. This is madness far beyond thinking there is a white-bearded old man with a flying sleigh. No wonder so many people don't believe in evolution. It's because despite all our achievements we haven't yet evolved beyond this most widespread and illogical of superstitions.