Pharyngula

Casey Luskin once again complains about the fact that the propagators of intelligent design creationism are not regarded kindly, and in fact, are frequently disparaged. He takes it very personally, even.

On a personal note, I am familiar with these kinds of attacks. In one single forum at Antievolution.org, created and owned by a former National Center for Science Education staff member, I have been called no less than “Bizarre ignoramus,” “retarded,” “suck-up,” “Pathetic Loser,” “attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy,” “an orc,” “Annoying,” “a miserable loser with no life,” “an idiot,” “dishonest,” “ignorant cheap poxied floozie,” “fanatic and lunatic,” “A proven liar,” “incompetent,” and many other far more colorful attacks which are probably best left unprinted here on Evolution News and Views.

Well, Casey, I will concede this: I don’t think you’re retarded at all. The rest…heh. Those are pretty darned accurate, especially “incompetent”. You might want to consider that when someone like you, who knows nothing at all about biology, stands up and makes ignorant comments about the subject and sends them out as press releases all over the country, you’re going to get noticed, and you are going to get assessed. And, Casey, I’m sorry to say — you fail.

I’ll note that I also stand up and say what I think (with rather better qualifications as a biologist than you), and I also get a lot of flak, including many exceptionally insulting characterizations from your side of the fence. Here’s another difference between us, though: I don’t keep a running tally of all the names, adjectives, and adverbs applied to me.

So, what have you got? A great big Oracle database with urls and citations and photographs and addresses, tracking everyone who insults you? It would have to consume a substantial chunk of the resources of the Discovery Institute to store them all.

Comments

#1 Jadehawk
December 31, 2008

“clockwork powered plush toy”?

whoever called him that should be ashamed of themselves. clockwork plush toys are adorable and fun and serve a purpose (i.e. getting the fat cat to lose a few pounds)
#2 Wowbagger
December 31, 2008

“attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy,”

That’s just superb – and stunningly accurate.
#3 PlaydoPlato
December 31, 2008

“clockwork powered plush toy”

I can’t even imagine how or why someone came up with that one, but my hat’s of to’em. LOL. Good show.

And Happy New Year squids.
#4 Bob O'H
December 31, 2008

Casey’s just bitter because we don’t give him as much attention as we do to UD. 1152 pages vs 16. Not looking to good, eh?
#5 Kel
December 31, 2008

It’s easy to think up insults for Casey Luskin purely because he shows how much of an ignoramus he is on a regular basis. If he stopped saying stupid things then maybe people wouldn’t treat him like an idiot.
#6 Matt
December 31, 2008

oh, he just loves playing the martyr…if only we could ignore him, and he would just go away.
#7 Nerd of Redhead
December 31, 2008

Poor Casey, he reminds me of the 12 step programs… Stupidity is repeating the same behavior and expecting a different result. Usually this refers to their addiction, but in Casey’s case it means being a shill for the DI. He gets trashed for doing so. If he wants a different result, STFU.
#8 Kate Holden
December 31, 2008

Poor Casey really DOES have a persecution complex. In response to his over-long email about how he would not meet with Tiana and myself unless we bowed down and kissed his precious feet, I got drunk at karaoke and drew a fairly accurate caricature of him which can be found here: http://cuddlyatheism.wordpress.com/2008/12/24/my-holiday-wish-for-you-all-and-a-small-present-for-mr-luskin/

Enjoy!
#9 Cannabinaceae
December 31, 2008

I keep hoping for an opportunity to trot out my favorite, but the worthless pieces of subhuman garbage seem to have been scared away by facts and reason (no surprise?).

“Do you have a morbid fascination with being pathologically obtuse?”

Hah. I made that up myself. Feel free to use it (with attribution!).

(Oh, and Nerf of Refheaf: I thought that was the definition of insanity; thus, for example, software testers are insane when trying to repro a bug, though my own frustration leads me to wonder if they are stupid instead, like whenever software crashes for whatever reason. Hope you don’t mind my mangling your ‘nym. Started as a typo then I sort of liked it).
#10 Missus Gumby
December 31, 2008

The US is a very litigious country. One would expect lawsuit after lawsuit emanating from the DI after the initial publication of many of the insults above. That is, of course, unless they were factually verifiable. “A proven liar” being the best case in point.
#11 Samwise
December 31, 2008

Pfft. As if anyone at DI could get Oracle to run; they break out in hives when they try to type “explain plan”.
#12 Larry
December 31, 2008

Hey, its rough out there Casey. Really rough. Apparently your designer forgot to add on the thick skin.
#13 Marc Abian
December 31, 2008

I have been called no less than “Bizarre ignoramus,” “retarded,” “suck-up,” “Pathetic Loser,” “attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy,” “an orc,” “Annoying,” “a miserable loser with no life,” “an idiot,” “dishonest,” “ignorant cheap poxied floozie,” “fanatic and lunatic,” “A proven liar,” “incompetent,” and many other far more colorful attacks which are probably best left unprinted here on Evolution News and Views.

And that’s just the women!

Oh hey, it’s midnight. Happy new year Pharyngula.
#14 Ryan F Stello
December 31, 2008

It would have to consume a substantial chunk of the resources of the Discovery Institute to store them all.

I think you just found the science in ID.
It would take great effort to manage a database of that size.
#15 Iason Ouabache
December 31, 2008

I’m trying to think of what is missing from that list and the only thing that directly comes to mind is “sycophant”.
#16 AJ
December 31, 2008

I got a nasty one: Luskin, you’re a Ken Ham!
#17 Zarquon
December 31, 2008

‘Ignorant cheap poxied floozie’ wins!
#18 Denis Loubet
December 31, 2008

I bet he wishes he could get death-threats like you, PZ! That would be the icing on his persecution cake.

But oddly, I suspect death threats are not bi-directional. I wonder why only our side gets them.

Actually, I don’t wonder at all.
#19 theinquisitor
December 31, 2008

Is this a reversed form of the ad homonim fallacy?

“I’m right because they insult me”
#20 ERV
December 31, 2008

Wait, Caseybaby bitches about AtBC, but doesnt link to it?

Terrible online manners.

Casey Luskin Thread
#21 Sir Craig
December 31, 2008

I just finished skimming Luskin’s little whinefest, and I find it amusing that he can’t understand why the evil “Darwinists” would stoop to call IDiots and its supporters the new “Taliban.” Maybe if it were explained to him thusly:

There are no “Darwinists,” you moron; there are those who challenge, test, and come to accept the factually-based Theory of Evolution. Even an “attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy” would know this, rather than ascribe some kind of cult status to (and thus attempt to diminish) said individuals. You attempt to diminish “evilutionists” because ID’s position is so incredibly weak the Discovery Institute couldn’t provide anything but comic relief at Kitzmiller v. Dover.

The sad part, Luskin, is your little organization warrants every bit of derision that can be thrown at it. The emptiness of “intelligent design,” ID’s total inability to provide any kind of proof to support it other than falling on the old “Well, evolutionary theory hasn’t been able to answer such-and-such, so it’s clear goddidit” reasoning or introducing that idiot argument “irreducible complexity,” is enough to make anyone wonder why ID shouldn’t be tossed onto the trash heap along with astrology and flat-earth claims. Yet it is you and your organization’s insistence, with the help of very moneyed/influential meatheads, that this stealth creationism be introduced as a viable alternative into science classes which has the rest of the rational world fuming at the relentless and mindless attacks you and your organization are perpetrating on science education. What you are doing is nothing short of educational terrorism: By threatening religious persecution and endless lawsuits designed to drain much-needed funds from school systems in an effort to introduce a “theory” your organization not only couldn’t even begin to defend at trial but was shown to be born of actual creationist tactics (remember “cdesign proponentsists?”), you have more than earned the moniker “Taliban.”

And let’s face it: Your argument in regards to bicycles and “irreducible complexity” was a work of pure performance art. I mean, honestly, you couldn’t have been serious, could you? Comparing non-biological machinery to biological processes? You can’t possibly be that thick…

I thank you all for allowing me to rant. I’m stuck at work on New Year’s Eve and needed to vent.
#22 natural cynic
December 31, 2008

persecute: verb
1. to pursue with harassing or oppressive treatment, esp. because of religion, race, or beliefs; harass persistently.

examples:
Luskin persecutes those who know evolutionary biology with his bothersome, silly and altogether nonsensical critiques.

Evolutionary biologists justifiably persecute Casey Luskin because he is a shill for the DI.

2. to annoy or trouble persistently.

examples:
With his ignorant and annoying statements, Luskin continues to persecute biologists, so that they feel compelled to to counter his pitiful critiques with simple and elegant refutations.

The continual cogent refutations that include snarky insults leads Luskin to whimper and whine about how how his betters continue to persecute him.
#23 recovering catholic
December 31, 2008

OK, my fellow Pharyngulites–I’m finally admitting that throughout the computerized part of my career as a biology teacher I used Comic Sans for almost everything I had printed out for my students. I thought it looked a little “friendlier”, perhaps, than say Times New Roman.

Can someone who’s been here longer than I please tell me how Comic Sans became associated with stupidity? Just curious!
#24 Jim
December 31, 2008

I assume Oracle was used in the derogatory sense. MySQL or Postgres are almost always smarter choices. I’m not sure SQLite supports the storage size needed to track the number of instances dude is called “ignorant.”
#25 Burning Umbrella
December 31, 2008

Trolls I’ve seen aplenty, but orcs have been somewhat sparse lately.
#26 Cloudwork
December 31, 2008

HAppy NEW yEARt
#27 strangest brew
December 31, 2008

“Bizarre ignoramus,”
“retarded,”
“suck-up,”
“Pathetic Loser,”
“attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy,”
“an orc,”
“Annoying,”
“a miserable loser with no life,”
“an idiot,”
“dishonest,”
“ignorant cheap poxied floozie,”
“fanatic and lunatic,”
“A proven liar,”
“incompetent,”

Fail to see his point…?

Can add…

Hysterical jeebus toe sucking cretin…or even

absurd
dolt
fatuous
witless
imbecilic
ludicrous
moronic
asinine
puerile
fatuous

And justice will still not be served…

Casey stop thinking and saying silly things then you will not have to suffer the slings and arrows of outraged rationality!
#28 Rey Fox
December 31, 2008

These people bruise easier than bananas.

“The internet Darwinist track record of name-calling against ID proponents speaks for itself”

It speaks for how tired we all are of your bullshit, yes. Why should I ever trust a smiling face? The worst policies in the world are put forth and enacted with a smile. They’re just mad that we won’t roll over and let them poison as many minds as they can with their authoritarianism.

“I don’t list this example to complain — I happily forgive those who have attacked me”

Di’nt hurt, nuh-uh.
#29 Cloudwork
December 31, 2008

It’s 0038 here in uk now,,.
#30 clou dgwork
December 31, 2008

sorry drank alittleg bit don’t thikn i’i typing very well,
#31 Knock Goats
December 31, 2008

It’s 0038 here in uk now – Cloudwork

What do you mean, in the UK? It’s 00.38 on 1st January 2009 everywhere! Just because foreigners from the USA, the Andromeda galaxy etc. get it wrong, doesn’t mean we should truckle to them! Stiff upper lip man!
#32 Nerd of Redhead
December 31, 2008

Cannibinaceae

Nerf of Refheaf: I thought that was the definition of insanity;

I believe you are correct. Either will do.
#33 Joe Dick
December 31, 2008

I wonder about people like this. It’s certainly true that he knows nothing about biology. I wouldn’t claim to know much, but I know that creationism is without foundation. You don’t have to look too far to figure that one out. What I wonder is, does this dolt really believe what he’s saying – and if not, what does he get out of spreading what he knows to be lies? I would be interested to know how this guy’s mind works. I don’t think he’s retarded but I do wonder what he really believes.
#34 Cloudwork
December 31, 2008

yes sir yes sir goayts sir.

my family just sh tuck u[p the tradsition of drinkin g whenear jame sdrinlks inf this gernman tradition

http://www.slate.com/id/2133551/

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8908622153579785434&q=%2522dinner+for+one%2522
#35 Muffin
December 31, 2008

“attack mouse, gerbil, rat, or clockwork powered plush toy”?

Wonderful.
#36 Dirk Cameron
December 31, 2008

How can you ignore the Bible when everyone of it’s prophecies has come true!
Especially the one in Ezekiel 4:12 “And lo the day did come to pass when the monkeys of the trees did come down and nibble on the toes of the unrighteous!”
#37 SteveG
December 31, 2008

Kel (#5):

If he stopped saying stupid things then maybe people wouldn’t treat him like an idiot.

You took the words right out of my keyboard. At least he has chutzpa, because that’s what it takes to say stupid things and then act all offended when people comment on their stupidity.
#38 harebell
December 31, 2008

Unfortunately for Casey and his ilk they are following in some extraordinary footsteps.
He and his creo/ID crowd are one belief from being flat earthers.
When you belong to an organisation who fundamentalist christian flat earthers look down on, actually being put down by those who oppose you could and should be regarded as a complement.
#39 Nerd of Redhead
December 31, 2008

Methinks this is also a case of “we are nice, so we must be right”. Sorry Casey, the facts make you right, not being nice. Without the facts behind you, you just appear addle-minded even if you are nice.
#40 Qwerty
December 31, 2008

I vote for: “ignorant cheap poxied floozie.”

Maybe we should be kind and give him a title like “Defender of the Indefensible” or “Spokesperson for the Unbelieveable” as he seems too stupid to realize the insult.

Or perhaps apologies are in order. We’re sorry you are such an idiot.
#41 Anon
December 31, 2008

Wow… what variety of insults!

It almost makes me believe that thesauruses roamed the earth at the same time as humans.
#42 John Morales
December 31, 2008

recovering catholic @23, the use of comic sans is a Pharyngula thing, PZ’s little tell.
I can’t remember when it started, but PZ recently posted: “It’s the weirdest thing, too — the majority of them [angry emails from aggravated creationists] are actually written in Comic Sans. You didn’t think I picked that font for posting ridiculous comments on accident, did you?”
#43 waldteufel
December 31, 2008

Poor, poor Casey. Incompetent, whining, sniveling, churlish, salamander-like slithering creature lurking in the dark underbelly of creationism.

Kinda reminds you of Smeagol Gollum, doen’t he?
#44 amphiox
December 31, 2008

Personally, I think the worst insult of all that has been listed here, is “Casey Luskin”.
#45 Jimminy Christmas
December 31, 2008

What?? Someone got insulted on an INTERNET FORUM???? Well I never…
#46 Falyne
December 31, 2008

clockwork: we’ll catch up to you yet!

Admittedly I’m checking Pharyngula on my qwerty cell phone from the club, but in my defense, I got here to early and nothing’s happening.

hmm…. moranic nitwitted hypersensitive discombobulated twit?
#47 Zach
December 31, 2008

Casey Luskin translates as creatonist lies.
#48 Richard Wolford
December 31, 2008

I don’t keep a running tally of all the names, adjectives, and adverbs applied to me.

Why the hell not? I’ll bet that’d be a pretty hilarious list, albeit possibly hard on the irony meter

Oh, and one more for Casey: tardspank.
#49 Crystal D.
December 31, 2008

The part of life I will probably never understand is how someone can be a liar, whether that is on purpose or due to their own ignorance, and when someone else points out they are lying, they become offended.

I also wonder how merely calling someone a name is considered so awful. I was called ‘hateful’ today for calling someone a freak. Yet the fundagelicals can come to the Minnesota Atheists forum (www.mnatheists.org if you haven’t already seen it!) and make a death threat to specific persons, and that is not considered hate? Really odd…
#50 'Tis Himself
December 31, 2008

A guy goes out of his way not only to show that he’s anti-intellectual but insists that the rest of the world join him in his disdain for rational thinking. He then has the gall to whine when people who reject his insistence of nonsense are rude in their rejections.

Welcome to the real world, Luskin. It’s got people who dislike lies and liars and aren’t afraid to show this dislike.
#51 flashbazzzbo
December 31, 2008

You know,I wasn’t paying any attetion….has anyone called him “a shriveled up nutsack” yet?
#52 flashbazzzbo
December 31, 2008

here is an “n”.Put it where it goes
#53 strangest brew
December 31, 2008

‘It’s got people who dislike lies and liars and aren’t afraid to show this dislike.’

Possibly the greatest shock the terminally idiotic have to contend with, at one time t’was not a problem, you could tell great porkies of mind numbing inanity and no one would dare to criticize cos it was for jeebus!

Now it is frustration and grief cos you cannot even lie without some atheist or other blowing your delusions to smithereens…and then laughing at you…Jeebus said it were not going to be easy… but these folks are calling me names!

They used to lick the feet of the jeebus preachers..what went wrong?
#54 GennyOnTheNet
December 31, 2008

Longtime lurker… First time poster… pfth!

Too Precious! Thank you, *all*, for one of the best laughs of 08… But mostly, thank you to “PZ and the Pharyngula Posters” (best band name ever?!), for the most engaging and entertaining reading of my boring-a$$-work-day.

And to my Newfie country-man:
“I was an alter boy throughout middle school and highschool, though thankfully I was Anglican, so my anus is still intact.”

I salute you, my friend.

Peace, love, joy, reason.
GennyOnTheNet
#55 Robert
December 31, 2008

Unfortunately, I am quite prepared to believe that Casey gets attacked that way. Aethists are people; as such, some of us are cruel, abusive and intolerant. Creo-tards are the natural target of the abusive aethist.

However: I feel to notice the death threats, or aethist-inspired vandalism. As such, in the game of “which viewpoint gathers the biggest idiots”, I am forced to concede the first round to the creo-tards.
#56 catta
December 31, 2008

@ John Morales and recovering catholic: Nope, comic sans is far from a pharyngula thing (though PZ uses it to great effect). It is passionately hated by many, especially those who are involved with typography or design. Even the wiki page for the font mentions the opposition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comic_Sans#Anti.E2.80.93Comic_Sans_movement

I don’t particularly like the font either. Don’t think it needs to be banned outright, but it did manage to destroy all hope for a typographically-aware humanity. Okay, maybe that’s a bit harsh. Put it this way: people have been using it for the most inappropriate texts, in situations where any other font would have been more suitable. Taking examples from pharyngula, there’s a certain kind of weirdness and/or ignorance in using a font that appears childish, friendly, open etc. either for a text full of obscenities and badly-spelled insults or for a “Dear Sir, I am APPALLED at your lack of dignity” letter. Comic Sans has been widely adopted, I guess, by people who think about themselves when picking a font, not about the recipient or about what the message transports. And hey, it’s all friendly and stuff, what could go wrong?

On a far less important note: Happy New Year!
#57 David Wiener
December 31, 2008

Everyone who’s wondering why Casey does this should remember that he is most likely getting paid more than most of us for spewing this filth. If he’s a religious loon and/or unscrupulous bastard, then he could care less, and laugh all the way to the bank.

It’s funny – on atheist sites, people fail to understand that a lack of morality is common. While on the fundie sites, they always assume it. Projection? I think so.
#58 Mike Haubrich, FCD
December 31, 2008

yes sir yes sir goayts sir.

my family just sh tuck u[p the tradsition of drinkin g whenear jame sdrinlks inf this gernman tradition

Since you have yet to post anything here you may regret when you are sober (as I have done,) Happy New Year.
#59 Mike Haubrich, FCD
December 31, 2008

It’s funny – on atheist sites, people fail to understand that a lack of morality is common. While on the fundie sites, they always assume it. Projection? I think so.

No, it is the primary basis for their religion. It is their selling point. We are none of us good, and none of us can attain salvation through our own works or efforts. People must be told that we are bad otherwise they have nothing to sell.

They are creating the problem and then presenting the solution. Marketing 101. “All have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God, yada yada yada.
#60 ndt
December 31, 2008

It’s always funny when liars complain about being called liars.
#61 Aquaria
December 31, 2008

I guess “delusional pecksniffer wanker fuckwit” is the on the list of insults he wouldn’t post, even thought that’s how I’d describe him.
#62 Feynmaniac
December 31, 2008

These guys get some sort of weird masochistic pleasure from being insulted. Look what Ray Comfort posts on the sidebar of his own blog:

“Ray Comfort is a %$#@! &%$#! idiot.”
“Comfort is a most bilious fool.”
“Ray Comfort is a complete moron.”
“Comfort is not sane.”
“Shut up, OK?! There is no God . . . OK!!?”
“Ray, you hypocritical chicken #!@%$!”
“Ray Comfort is an illogical @!*$! . . . I bet he’s a Republican!”
“Say what you will about Ray, he’s weirdly habit forming.”
#63 clinteas
December 31, 2008

These guys get some sort of weird masochistic pleasure from being insulted

For those guys,being ignored is the worst thing that can happen to them,so they will happily be insulted anytime,as long as their name is in the press.

Thats why I dont overly like the Ken Ham and Luskin threats,for any sane and informed person its like shooting fish in a barrel.
#64 Wowbagger
December 31, 2008

Why? Because, in their tiny brains, the ‘righteous’ have always been treated poorly and abused; ergo, anyone given the same treatment must be right.

They’ve got the bible to back them up – the way they like to paint the current treatment of Christians parallels how God’s ‘chosen people’, the Jews, were treated – that is, of course until they chose not to accept that the young upstart with the penchant for hookers and lepers and fig tree smiting actually was messiah and got themselves into ‘difficulty’.

Then there’s the whole lions vs. Christians thing, which is just ridiculous considered how short a period that was – the Christians, of course, focus on the couple of hundred years of doing it tough rather than the subsequent thousand plus years of world domination and enforced conversions that occurred after the Romans (and the subsequent Catholic Church) spotted the potential uses of the belief system.

It doesn’t seem to occur to them that being a vast majority who control much of a country’s government and most of the media can’t really cry persecution without sounding like whiny little pissants.
#65 Ken Cope
December 31, 2008

#62, I’d be surprised if his friends didn’t think of him as “Small” Comfort.
#66 E.V.
December 31, 2008

Luskin claims Hume’s book was ” leaving out crucial facts which contradict common Darwinist claims.”
And then Luskin never addresses these claims, the dishonest fuckwit.
#67 Stephen Foster
December 31, 2008

I recommend a violin; a small one would suffice.
#68 Newfie
December 31, 2008

I used comic sans for our HS reunion logo a few years back because it irked people.

Happy New Year from “The Rock”.
#69 gruebait
December 31, 2008

By the time I reached “clockwork powered plush toy”, it had become obvious to me that a poll is called for.
#70 Crudely Wrott
December 31, 2008

Many are mentioned because they do something interesting.

Some are mentioned because they do something worthwhile.

A few are mentioned because they do something ridiculous.

A select, small group are mentioned because they do nothing at all, though they do make a great deal of noise while not doing it.

A vanishing fraction make a lasting difference.

Luskin, with good company, is a solid member of the few, the lackluster, the wistful. The noisy. May he ever enjoy his company even unto the ends of the world.
#71 mgarelick
December 31, 2008

I actually felt sorry for Casey when Abbie linked to a photo of him with the words “loverly, loverly face” (see “IDiots and ERV,” 8/25/08).
#72 Crudely Wrott
December 31, 2008

May he ever enjoy his small, select company, even unto the ends of the world.

Not even the end of the year can focus my thoughts to completion! So much to think about, so little time . . .
#73 Intelligent Designer
December 31, 2008

Nead of Redhead says:

If he [Casey] wants a different result, STFU.

Neil, you have already lost your agrument. Nobody will agree with you. So you can either pack up your tent and go home, or stick around for our amusement as we mock you for your bad choice. The choice is yours. Choose wisely cricket.

Ditto Randy. Shut up about evolution.

Hey Nerd of Readhead. I think you should use a different alias. Something like “Shut Up Already” or “Cognitively Dissonant”.
#74 Nerd of Redhead
December 31, 2008

What, somebody say something? No just background noise.
#75 John Morales
January 1, 2009

Wowbagger @64, that was post of the thread for mine.

catta @56, thanks for that.
I kind of like that typeface – it’s so easy to read. But then, I’m not particularly into esthetics.

And yes, PZ uses it to great effect, as have some commenters, which is why I said it’s a Pharyngula thing, much like .
#76 John Morales
January 1, 2009

Sigh. I left an open tag.

… much like PYGMIES + DWARFS.
#77 James F
January 1, 2009

Luskin missed his big chance to be one of “The Expelled” – wasn’t Egnor’s claim of persecution that people had insulted him on the internet?

The Discovery Institute would be hilarious if they weren’t out to poison science education and usher in theocracy.

Happy New Year, everyone!
#78 Bob Carroll
January 1, 2009

Some of you seem to think that the flat earth theory is in trouble, with more and more scientists rejecting it every day.

I’d like to recomment a revised version, my “flat earthworm theory.” I’m sure you’ve seen these little buggers littering the roads, especially after a heavy rain. My theory (or explanation) for this phenomenon: the nightcrawlers are being pulled up from their cozy underground dens by the gravitational attraction of the moon, and then squashed by UFOs.

This seems at least as rational as the offerings of the ID crowd.
#79 BobC
January 1, 2009

Casey Luskin knows he’s a lying asshole. He knows he’s too stupid to get a real job, so he makes a living from being a Liar-For-Jeebus. He doesn’t care that he’s trying to destroy science education, because like most Christians, he has no moral values. His job is secure because his Christian customers are gullible idiots who are willing to believe any nonsense as long as it supports their childish magical creation myth.
#80 Jason Dick
January 1, 2009

As for the source of the “clockwork powered plush toy”, it appears to me that that can be traced to guthrie at antievolution.org, in this thread:
http://www.antievolution.org/aebb-archive/aebbarchive_casey_luskin_thread.html
#81 thehelveticascenario
January 1, 2009

How about “one-wheeled bicycle”?
#82 Insightful Ape
January 1, 2009

My heart pours out to dear Casey.
May I add “breathtakingly inane” to the list? After all, that’s what a court of law decided their hypothesis was.
#83 Farb
January 1, 2009

I’d like to fantasize that Casey’s persecution rant is the agony wail of a chronically underemployable slacker when faced with being downsized from a position that was never more than fluff work to begin with.

It’s a down economy, folks, and that means donations are down, too. DI produces exactly nothing, and only survives by means of the donations of those it deludes into believing it actually does something.

It’s accomplishments, even by its own standards, are modest, and even those are questionable. Such an abysmal track record can not be sustained for any length of time, and it’s becoming obvious.

Aside from brain-addled heirs who never made a penny of their fortunes, it’s hard to imagine any who would continue to toss good money into this Great Seattle Sinkhole. The handwriting is on the wall.

Well, Casey signed on as court propagandist, so the DI bigwigs didn’t have to sully their own hands with flinging dirt. In short, he’s expendable. Well, to paraphrase Shakespeare, “(he) but made love to this employment.”

I feel not the slightest degree of pity for this pathetic weasel.
#84 faux.mulder
January 1, 2009

while i must admit that i generally disapprove of ad hominem attacks…can only say, almost wish someone had at some time called me a “ignorant cheap poxied floozie”.

that’s just too cute.
#85 Lee Brimmicombe-Wood
January 1, 2009

I must admit, a posting that lists all the creationist insults aimed at PZ would be rather interesting. Am I being competitive, or are we atheists simply more erudite and creative with our insults? I would like to see some kind of comparison to be sure.

Personally, I think we should aspire to a higher standard of vulgar abuse.

Such abuse, I must note, is not actionable, at least under libel law. It would be perfectly allowable to call Mister Luskin a cocksucker, though irresponsible to suggest he is a man with a history of homosexual fellatio. Similarly, to call him an ignorant motherfucker as a term of glorious, anglo-saxon abuse, would receive the nod from any judge, provided we did not imply the falsehood that Luskin has actually fucked his mother.

I shall simply refer to him as a ‘chocolate speedway’, which while describing him as an arsehole does not suggest that he is either made of chocolate, or is particularly fast on the uptake.
#86 Stuart Weinstein
January 1, 2009

Hey Casey, if you’re listening, add “inane drone” to your list of insults.
#87 Richard Harris
January 1, 2009

And, Casey, I’m sorry to say — you fail.

I know that a figure of speech was employed there, but I can’t help thinking that it’s just as well that Casey & his ilk do fail. Otherwise, it’d mean that there’d have to be a feckin’ god fouling everything up.
#88 Duff
January 1, 2009

Casey, you remind me of the wonderful put down by Lord Reith. “There are people whom it is ones duty to offend.”
#89 recovering catholic
January 1, 2009

catta @56–

Thanks for the link–I had no idea! In my defense I guess I could say that all of the hundreds (thousands?) of tests I wrote were in Times New Roman–time to get serious at that point!
#90 Nerd of Redhead
January 1, 2009

Randy #73, your post caught me as I was headed for bed, so I gave you a short snide answer. I have more time today. All those quotes are explained by defining what is a responsible adult. I’m not talking about paying bills on time, obey traffic rules and the like. This is more in the area of personal responsibility. I spent a couple of hours thinking about it in college. It has worked very well since.

For example, with Casey Luskin, he made the decision to be the spokesperson for DI. Now he has to live with the consequences of the decision, which includes being insulted, and should so without whining, or stop working as their spokesman (STFU). His whining simply means he doesn’t have the cojones for the job, and indicates he is not a responsible adult.

As for Neil, there are times one must either put up or shut. Science itself is very much that way, but a truly responsible adult understands that too. Again, cojones are involved since you may need to acknowledge you are wrong, which is what a responsible adult will do.

Then we get to your quote. It was in response to you telling others to shut up. Don’t throw around things like that unless you are willing to be on the receiving end. But you should stop trash talking evolution until you can point at primary scientific journal articles backing up your ideas. After all, science is only refuted by more science, and opinion and/or philosophy is not science. You need some cojones to acknowledge that fact to yourself, and change your behavior.
#91 Aaron
January 1, 2009

So, what have you got? A great big Oracle database with urls and citations and photographs and addresses, tracking everyone who insults you?

I don’t know… Oracle DB’s are pretty hard to maintain. I would venture he’s more of the “Microsoft Access” wimp-DB variety. It fits his MO a lot better.
#92 Cannabinaceae
January 1, 2009

I don’t know… Oracle DB’s are pretty hard to maintain. I would venture he’s more of the “Microsoft Access” wimp-DB variety. It fits his MO a lot better.

Maybe he was using Excel and putting one ~~insult~~ perspicacious descriptor into cell A1, the next into B1, and so on. Alas, you only get something like 256 columns in Excel.

You do get something like 32768 rows, but he would have had to know how to copy all those cells and “paste special” them with the “transpose” box checked.

Since he is lazy and stupid that’s when he decided to go to a more advanced DMBS to maintain his list of descriptors.

Just a guess. Actually it probably gives him too much credit at that.
#93 Flamethorn
January 1, 2009

I rather like “ignorant cheap poxied floozie,”
#94 Newfie
January 1, 2009

“Gob Shite” is always a good word as well.
#95 Random Anagram-loving Chimp
January 1, 2009

I love anagrams, much wisdom can be revealed through them… for example:

Casey Luskin translates to “Sky Lunacies“

Not nearly as amusing as Catholicism (“Comical Shit”) but good enough…
#96 khan
January 1, 2009

“demented fuckwit”
#97 S E E Quine
January 1, 2009

I think he forgot ‘person who really needs to learn some basic biology’.
#98 geru
January 1, 2009

Aww, how unfair that (ID-)Creationists are being compared to the Taleban.

The Taleban are a fundamentalist religious group that opposes science and progress, and Creationists are a group who… oppose science and progress. Totally unfair.
#99 geru
January 1, 2009

Oh, and the part about the “..patently false Darwinist urban legends about Kitzmiller v. Dover”, that’s just priceless.

I’d sure like to hear a couple of those.
#100 Samantha Vimes
January 1, 2009

I like him complaining about being called an orc. Orc is a jesting insult, because orcs are not real. Anyone who calls people orcs knows this. The fact he finds it actually upsetting suggests that even when it comes to orcs, he can’t distinguish between fantasy and reality.
#101 Steve
January 1, 2009

Wow. I wish I’d thought of all of those. It’s pretty CREATIVE, I think.
#102 Owlmirror
January 1, 2009

Oh, and the part about the “..patently false Darwinist urban legends about Kitzmiller v. Dover”, that’s just priceless.

I’d sure like to hear a couple of those.

“…and they were getting really scared, so they drove away. And when they got home to Dover, what do you think they found hanging from the handle of the rear car door? A bloody skyhook!”
#103 Rev. BigDumbChimp
January 1, 2009

SQUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!
#104 Intelligent Designer
January 2, 2009

Fingers In Ears said:

What, somebody say something? No just background noise.

Kind of translates to shut up

Shut Up Already said:

you should stop trash talking evolution …
#105 Nerd of Redhead
January 2, 2009

Randy, background noise = nothing of consequence said.

Stop trash talking evolution = no evidence, no point.
#106 Kel
January 2, 2009

I wonder if Randy has finished his magnum opus to submit for peer review yet.
#107 Nerd of Redhead
January 2, 2009

Need to amend my last sentence in #105

Stop trash talking evolution = no evidence, ergo no point, just sound stupid as a result.

I’m not telling you to do anything, just giving you some sage advice. Do with it what you will.
#108 MikeG
January 2, 2009

Random Chimp, this one’s for you. A short poem:

Casey Luskin,
A cuss ye link.
Nails ye suck?
Ask nicely us.

Snakey clue is
Auk’s icy lens.
Kin says “clue”!

Casey Luskin:
“Ay! Clues Sink”
Nay, lies suck,
Ye slick anus!
#109 WRMartin
January 2, 2009

Actually, the database sounds like a good idea. Not sure about the business model. Sell ads? T-shirts? Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Include not only the URL but also the geo-coordinates. Optional fields for Google Street View link to person holding poster of ~~insult~~perspicacious descriptor for Luskin.
I envision it becoming the wiki of insult lists. Scientists can use data for research. Monthly prizes for highly ranked contributions. Audio/video files accepted. Even citations from papers. Imagine being published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal and your paper being citied in the Casey Luskin Wall of Meritorious Dishonor.
#110 MikeG
January 2, 2009

Geez, a snarky free-form poem composed entirely of anagrams isn’t enough to get noticed around here? Those damn Molly winners make it so freaking hard!
#111 Nerd of Redhead
January 3, 2009

MikeG, it takes more than one post to get really noticed. Just keep posting. Doing clever things or making sage posts helps.
#112 Suzi
January 4, 2009

keep it up.
#113 Eric Saveau
January 5, 2009

My irony meter detected Randi Stimpson referring to someone else as “Cognitively Dissonant”. That’s a lot of iron.
#114 phantomreader42
February 20, 2009

Mike G @ #108:

Casey Luskin:
“Ay! Clues Sink”
Nay, lies suck,
Ye slick anus!

I love that stanza! Should be posted everywhere the Dishonesty Institute’s attack mouse comes up!