Orion Spur

I’ve been waiting for this for quite a while: A book that squarely addresses the fact that superstition is superstition, no matter from under which rock it crawled. The Judaeo-Islamo-Christian religions: superstition in a tuxedo, times 3. Very easy to take potshots at them and hit the target smack in the noggin.  What has been harder to do, because it’s so sneakily ephemeral, is to give New Ageism a nice punch in the gob.  Especially pseudo-scientific New Ageism. 

I’m talking about quantum consciousness, one-with-the-universeness, that shit.  And, please, it is shit. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, channelling, crystal healing, reiki, homeopathy, astrology, numerology, praying to Deepak Chopra, invoking Fritjof Capra … attempts to prove this crap scientifically always fail.  God (and I say that ironically, you prick), the human race is fucked.  The only good thing you can say about these smug, trembly-lipped escapists and scam artists is that they fall on the less violent end of the religious-lunatic scale.

The title of this mother of New Age debunking tomes is Quantum Gods: Creation, Chaos, and the Search for Cosmic Consciousness. Author: Victor Stenger. He holds dual professorships in philosophy and physics.

"The public understanding of modern physics is seriously out of whack, thanks largely to pop junk like The Secret and What the BLEEP Do We Know? [that] promote a bogus version of quantum mechanics—the belief that ‘you create your own reality’ by controlling the laws of physics with your mind…," said Geoff Gilpin, author of The Maharishi Effect: A Personal Journey Through the Movement That Transformed American Spirituality. "The world has needed a book like this for a long time. If you care about scientific literacy, Quantum Gods is not optional."  Full Gilpin review here.

New Scientist says, "In this much-needed book, physicist Victor Stenger isolates and then debunks the claims of two kinds of "quantum belief"… With Stenger in charge…we are on sure ground. He adds even more value by weaving a thorough beginner’s course in quantum physics into his debunking exercise… Even though he skips rather dizzyingly between traditional religious beliefs, quantum spirituality and quantum physics itself, Stenger is a pleasure to read. And, pleasingly, the title Quantum Gods: Creation, Chaos And The Search For Cosmic Consciousness sounds just crackpot enough to attract those readers who will benefit most." Full New Scientist review here.

Not convinced? Well, at least I tried. And I’m not gonna stop anytime soon.

Original article here.