Witch-Hunting to the extreem?

Andrew Del Rossi
Engl 122

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/07/2812480.htm

Witch Hunt Victim Recounts Torture Ordeal

Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings is all i think of when someone says witch, but what if someone you know practices witchcraft, would you run them out of town with pitchforks and torches, or would you burn them at the stake? As terrible and medieval as that sounds, it happens. One graphic and terrible story is that of Kalli Biswokarma, a 47 year old Nepal resident. She was accused of casting a spell on a school teacher who had fallen ill. What happened next is terrible. "Around 35 people came to my home and took me away. They trapped me in a cow shed and forced me to eat faeces and drink urine. The next day they cut my skin with blades. I could not bear the torture and I confessed to being a witch just to save my life."

This is sickening. Even though this took place in a third world country how can we as people still let such primitive behavior continue? I'm not saying there are no such things as Witches or Wizards because it is a viable religion, it's just not mine, but what i would like to relay is that these people are not free thinking, not able to accept others as they are witch or not. If America has the ability to invade countries, why can we not HELP countries, and teach them everyone is human, has their own beliefs. Unfortunately according to the article Hundreds of Dalit women are thought to suffer a similar ordeal every year in Nepal, where superstition and caste-based discrimination remain rife and where most communities still operate on strict patriarchal lines. I think America needs to stop turning the blind eye to these kinds of things. Ignorance is most definitely NOT bliss.