Kat wrote, "...why is it necessary for the sceptics among us to denigrate, make assumptions, and generally treat with disdain, the spiritual beliefs/practices of some of the rest of us?"

That is a pretty sweeping generalization. It seems to "denigrate, make assumptions, and generally treat with disdain" our scepticism. Remember we want to believe these claims but require proof before we can make that leap. When proof is presented we will be able to ask Bearheart to cast a horoscope and will be happy with the results. Until then Astrology and the other "new age" beliefs remain superstitions to us.

Alice had a bad experience. It left her with a hard edge where it comes to these new age things. She, like the rest of us here, represents a minority of one, i.e., herself. She may not meet the definition of sceptic.

I too used to have a hard edge but that was only intolerance learned from my parents. I lost some of that when I lost my girlfriend. Part of the reason I lost her was my disrespect for her own new age beliefs. I hope I learned a lesson there.