Carnivalia, and an open thread

No Friday Cephalopod? It's the highlight of my day!

Maybe this will prompt you:

http://www.tsfr.org/~russell/squid.html

It's not me, however, there but for the grace of effective birth control go I...

Thanks, for the links PZ, I understand why you believe what you do. I know why you consider evolution fact. The evidence is ovewhelming without an external cause. If one does not believe in an external cause one could come to no other conclusion than macro-evolution is fact. The chasm between you and I is one that cannot be crossed.

I leave with a new respect and understanding for your perspective. I walked in your shoes and saw the same thing you did.

Thanks

Wow. I'm impressed.

That Hovind Thread...

I'm a little concerned at the direction that one took. Look in the middle of it, I tried to steer the topic back to the original subject, and yet, it still turned out to be whether macroevolution was a valid scientific theory or not (that's probably giving one of the debaters far too much credit; since I'm most-decidedly an atheist, you can figure out which one I mean).

I know that, in theory, you have a three-post rule, but at this point, it seems more like a suggestion than a rule. I wanted to talk about the film itself; I think it's fair to say that conversation got hijacked. When things go that far off topic, isn't there some way to allow the conversation to continue somewhere else? So those of us who want to laugh at Hovind still can?

Was "The Physicist" actually defending Hovind? Why else post those kinds of comments?

Anyway, just thinking out loud. I'd love to see you be able to say, "Conversation redirected" and give a URL for the new conversation. The comments about the film largely went away after about the 8th post.

Thank you for the soapbox.

Carnival of Mathematics!

:P

I'm impressed as well. Loaning your shoes to someone is quite generous; they are such a personal thing.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY OH INVALUABLE ONE! We bow before you!

PZ scks.

If one does not believe in an external cause one could come to no other conclusion than macro-evolution is fact.

Why does believing in an external cause keep you from this, when it doesn't have that effect on a billion other Catholics, including at least the current and the preceding Pope?

Yeah but the pope and the rest still consider him the creator...
I think he saying god is the first cause.

I don't know if anyone else has heard about this, but apparently the ever-despicable Jonathan Wells has a quote on Starbucks cups now. I've got the quote and my enraged reaction in this post; Waiter, Jonathan Wells is in my drink

I wrote a letter of complaint to Starbucks and the general feeling of the response was "Well, this is meant to spur discussion and we issued a David Quamman cup, so we'll post your letter on the website but we won't do anything else."

Laelaps, that is a horrifying turn of events that makes me glad I go to Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf for my caffeine needs.

Okie dokie 2 things:

1) I see The Physicist has pulled a Kurt Wise. I feel no contempt, only pity.

2) Starbucks have Wells on their cups? Yikes! Ok then Starbuckeroos, these quotes are meant to engender discussion, right? I have a couple for you: "I hate niggers" by pretty much every member of the KKK and "Women are good for nothing but cooking and fucking" by pretty much every misogynist bastard the world over. I don't doubt that Starbucks will find those "quotes" as abhorrent as I do, but one thing they WILL do is engender discussion. How about it Starbucks?

;-)

Louis

Coturnix had a rather poignant post on the early days of Milosovic's reign in Serbia that seemed to garner rather less attention than it deserved.

YMCA refuses to renew contract, Camp Quest must move

Darwin trivia - Emma's diaries now online:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/6440599.stm

If one does not believe in an external cause one could come to no other conclusion than macro-evolution is fact.

Why does believing in an external cause keep you from this, when it doesn't have that effect on a billion other Catholics, including at least the current and the preceding Pope?