Ive just been reading about this very subject (I can't ski every day, glass back, so take lots of books with me) and the reference to the finches is a very pertinent one in Hitchens's withering yet fascinating book on medieval superstitions that are still with us, God is not great.

However, before (too late?) everybody gets hot under the collar about this, Hitchens mentions something I hadn't really thought about. He postulates when religion became irrelevant, bearing in mind all superstitious dogma seems to put time and date to their revelations..

It was when observing religion became optional.

So, other than the constant fly swatting of those who want to abuse children by teaching them bollocks as truth, and the endless chore of pretending to respect god botherers who certainly don't respect you back, we can all go home and ponder how evolution has, in my mind, a certain flaw.

It is a couple of thousand years since many superstitions we know today had their origin, and what with flying to the moon, beer and mobile phones, you would have thought our brains were evolving to adapt to our situation?

So why the constant push to hate gays, women and fun? Why do many many people, some of whom can count beyond 10 without taking their socks off still want to bring their imaginary friend to the party of life?

What's more, why do so many people who agree that it is all bollocks still think saying so is somehow disrespectful?

Buggered if I know, ( although that seems to be a right of passage in certain adherence quarters.)