Sacred <i>laissez-faire</i>

An economist makes a cogent argument for a free market in belief and religion

Religion is, of course, sacrosanct. Quite literally. Even among many academics, it is treated with exaggerated respect, its various claims given a respect that other such claims would not be accorded; and in countries like India, where the law essentially criminalises open discussion of religion, this deference is even more marked. Meanwhile, most rationalists tend to be so infuriated by religion that they spend ages pointing out what seems obvious to them: namely that religious beliefs are not possible. In the process, people’s religious beliefs and behaviour tend not to be analysed the way that, say, their spending or eating