Well, I didn't discuss the issue with these parents, as I felt somewhat embarrassed that I had nearly shown the show to the kid in the first place and I didn't know how to broach the subject without sounding condescending.
However, I've heard what other conservative religious types have said about it and they have mentioned a few of these things.
There is a difference between LOTR (and chronicles of Narnia) and HP, Shrek. LOTR and Narnia were both written by christians (Tolkien actually helped convert Lewis) and Narnia is christian allegory. This, I have maintained for some time, is the real difference.
OTOH, I read an article somewhere the other day where a conservative religious type was going into some detail about his perceptions of the differences. In Narnia and LOTR magic are treated reverentially, and with some caution. HP and Shrek promote occultism by not engendering a reverence for magic. It sounds like cavilling to me, and many of these guys are trying to get HP out of the classroom and school (and public) libraries. In that situation, I wouldn't hesitate to debate the subject, but as I said, I thought it would be unpleasant to do it at a birthday party for my girls.
k
