Both battles are fought outside our movement at this moment as there are very few registered naturists who still think that we must demand special places or ghettos which limit our freedom of movement. And there are also the uninformed few who still come to our associations expecting to find easy sex.
        And yet, there is another battlefront which we have not begun to fight either inside or outside: there are many who think of us as a group of people who practise all kinds of alternative therapies, credulous people without a critical mind or people opposed to any scientific breakthrough.
        Perhaps this assumption is partially true. A given number of our members may have a certain inclination towards this belief, but it is not less true that this sceptical attitude permeates all levels in our society.
        200 years ago, Science was thought capable of putting an end to all superstitions and absurd beliefs. In fact, it was thought that astronomy would mean the end of astrology, doctors the end of quacks, pharmacology the end of magic potions, Physics the end of magnetizers, and, in short, all kinds of witchcraft would fade away.
        It has not happened, though. To the contrary, the percentage of people who believe in this kind of nonsense keeps increasing, even among people who may see themselves as cultivated or scientifically oriented. In bookshops, the sections dedicated to paranormal, magic and alternative beliefs keep on growing. On the radio, on TV shows at not so popular time slots and on numerous rubbish programmes, (some even claiming to be of a scientific nature), we are told to buy fridge-like magnets as painkillers, medicines without medicine and miraculous ointments, among others. Nevertheless, if you happened to ask these people whether they are superstitious, most of them would indignantly deny it. The feeling is that there are scientific data which support these beliefs.
        Naturism joins this third battle, which must be both internal and external to the movement, and so, we welcome a new section in these pages: ‘The Sceptical Naturist’, which aims to undo this misconception from a purely scientific and common-sense point of view. We hope you like it and look forward to your contribution.

        Greetings from,
        Ismael Rodrigo, ADN President
        adn@naturismo.org