Lucky underpants: "the smart British male is putting his belief in his briefs...."

"So it is with a joyful heart, bedecked with boughs of holly, that we read of modern men, real grown-up ones with jobs and everything, who have handed over their destiny to a more benign ultimate deity. They believe in the power of their Lucky Pants.

Actually, only 20 per cent believe in Lucky Pants; more are convinced of the providential authority of a particular pair of socks (25 per cent), and even more (33 per cent) that an item of jewellery is what brings them fortune.

[...]

Lucky charms, whether pants, socks or a St Christopher's medal, can be imbued with any amount of significance. That's the beauty of being human. We decide. If you believe something is meaningful, then, to you, it is.

[...]

It all stems from the same desire. We want to control our lives. And despite our best efforts, our lucky knickers, our significant socks, our beliefs in the divine, in fate, or that there's no God and it's all up to us, it makes no difference. We can't control things. We are not in charge. So maybe you should believe in your pants...."

Miranda Sawyer, With fundamentalists and atheists slugging it out for the high ground, the smart British male is putting his belief in his briefs, The Observer Magazine, 14.12.2008, p.8