creationism
pharyngula | September 21, 2009This is hardly a fair fight. Cristina has about ten times the brains of Kirk.
In further news, Ray Comfort has announced that his give-away of the edited Origin of Species has changed: he's going to give away 100,000 books at 100 universities, Darwin's text will be left intact (although his page counts don't add up), and he'll be revising his 50 page foreword to be more fair to atheists and evolution. I'm beginning to suspect he's lying to us.
pharyngula | September 20, 2009Just watch a little of this video of Pat Robertson and Ray Comfort — it's stupid squared!
Comfort has the same old schtick he always uses: the first dog that evolved wouldn't have a mate! Everything (except God) has to have a creator! Everyone sins, so you need to believe in a savior, Mohammed Jesus! If you choose to watch it, be sure to have a bucket handy.
gregladen | September 20, 2009Yay!!! Wooohooo!! Yipeeeee!!!!
OK, let's see what Kirk has to say about it:
sa smith | September 18, 2009If you live in the OKC area, youve got a problem. Sure, you want to go see the TARD parade at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History, you can always count on Creationists for a good time. But the problem is, Wells and Meyers are incredibly stupid. While recreational exposure to Creationists Claims can induce euphoria and irrepressible giggles (aka, 'the lulz'), long-term exposure to pure TARD from DI fellows can cause seemingly irreversible brain damage.
Good news! September 29th, the museum will be extending their hours! Instead of closing at 5, theyre going to be open from 6 pm to 11…
gregladen | September 18, 2009WPTV.COM has a poll asking "Should educators be fined or jailed for offering prayer in public schools?" and the possible answers are "yes" and "no." Which I guess means they are not really asking an "either/or" question although it is worded that way. Anyway, this relates to THIS STORY about people who work for a school system who are currently in trouble for contempt of court. Contempt of court is a jail-able offense, and it is NOT "offering prayer in public schools."
Of course, it is true that these individuals were originally in trouble for violating the First Amendment Rights of the…
pharyngula | September 17, 2009Back in June, I reported on this new sleazy tactic by Ray Comfort: he produced an abridged edition of Darwin's Origin of Species, and then had the gall to tag on a preface that he had written himself, full of the standard creationist misconceptions. Comfort is astoundingly ignorant of basic biology; the best analogy to what he's doing here would be if I were to give a chimpanzee a few blank sheets of paper and a convenient pile of his own feces and ask him to write a theological exegesis of the book of Genesis.
Oh, wait. On second thought, the chimpanzee would probably do a smarter job of his…
gregladen | September 17, 2009We know there is a link between education, church going behavior, and the inability or unwillingness to accept that evolution is real and that humans evolved. But what exactly is the relationship? I think the following diagram includes the correct answer, but I'm not sure which one it is:
What am I missing?
laelaps | September 16, 2009Yesterday I questioned the path by which Simon Conway Morris and James Valentine, two evolutionary biologists, came to appear in the new creationist film Darwin's Dilemma. Created by Illustra Media, a film company that has worked closely with the Discovery Institute, the film claims that the "Cambrian Explosion" provides evidence for intelligent design. I now have more information.
Simon Conway Morris was interviewed for the film. In an e-mail by Lad Allen, the producer of Darwin's Dilemma, the filmmaker provided evidence that he had interviewed Conway Morris on November 14, 2006. The…
pharyngula | September 16, 2009The director of the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History (the one hosting a Discovery Institute event) has posted an open letter about the program. I presume there will be more coming, because while it's a beginning, I'm not too impressed yet.
Although the museum does not support unscientific views masquerading as science, such as those espoused by the Discovery Institute, the museum does respect the religious beliefs of all people. Moreover, the museum is obligated to rent its public space to any organization that is engaged in lawful activities, free speech and open discourse. The museum…
sa smith | September 16, 2009Haha!
The Sam Noble Museum of Natural History has issued an official statement regarding The TARD Parade:
The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is dedicated to science and to elucidating the remarkable evolutionary history of life on Earth. The museum actively engages in public programs, undergraduate and graduate education, outreach education, and other efforts to increase the scientific literacy of visitors to the museum and the people of Oklahoma.
The museum does not support antiscientific views masquerading as science, such as those espoused by the Discovery Institute, although…
tfk | September 16, 2009On Monday I posted a reply to Jerry Coyne's clique-ish and philosophically naive report on a talk he didn't see. I thought this would be a useful exercise because:
Coyne is a former professor of mine, I respect him, and don't want to see him embarrass himself.
High school-level cliqueishness seems unbecoming in a tenured professor.
Philosophically naive claims about the nature of science are unbecoming in a tenured biology professor.
Launching invective-laden attacks on a talk one hasn't seen is entirely unbecoming.
I reply again because efforts to address some of the issues underlying the…
pharyngula | September 16, 2009You don't need to watch a spooky movie or visit a haunted house to see dead zombies walk: you've got an Intelligent Design creationism conference going on in Castle Rock! Watch them stagger about, drooling, looking for some brains, frustrated because there aren't any on stage. They've got Michael Behe, Stephen Meyer, and David Berlinski (oooh, a zombie with an affected air of superciliousness! Creepy!), and they're going to explain to you how Darwin drowned the world in a sea of meaninglessness. And you get to learn how to turn the tide! Right.
It's a little bit revealing, too, that this is…
laelaps | September 15, 2009Update: I have released important new information about this story here.
Creationists have made a habit out of tricking scientists and historians into appearing in pro-creationism films. Such "culture warriors" view their dishonest tactics as fully acceptable. They think their deceit is working for the greater good, and scientists must increasingly be aware of who they are being interviewed by. (For a relevant discussion of dishonesty among evangelicals see the chapters on conservative philanthropist Howard Ahmanson Jr. in Republican Gomorrah, particularly the portion about Ahmanson's…
pharyngula | September 15, 2009The Discovery Institute is up to their usual shenanigans — they're pushing another propaganda movie (say, whatever happened to their research program?), Darwin's Dilemma. It's complete nonsense.
This documentary will examine what many consider to be the most powerful refutation of Darwinian evolution--the Cambrian fossil record. Charles Darwin realized that the fossil evidence did not support his theory of gradual, step-by-step evolutionary development. He hoped that future generations of scientists would make the discoveries necessary to validate his ideas. Today, after more than 150 years…
tfk | September 14, 2009Jerry Coyne is nervous. He isn't sure if NCSE's Genie Scott will sit next to him at lunch, and he's not sure if he wants to sit next to her, when you get right down to it.
Why? Because in a talk at DragonCon (a talk Jerry didn't attend and only has second-hand information about), Genie said that there are "ways of knowing" other than science.
This is all part of the long and tedious battle between a clique of atheists who seem intent on enabling creationists in their muddling of the nature of science (enablers) and people who think it's possible for science and religion to exist without…
sa smith | September 14, 2009No, not Myers. Meyer. Stephen Meyer. Looks like John Edwards mutant cousin? You know him. Got some earth science degree so he for some reason writes about molecular biology? I dunno why, but I always get him confused with Paul Nelson.
And Jonathan Wells. The HIV Denier? In that Moonie cult, but for some weird reason Evangelicals have a boner for him? Co-authored that book with DembskiTARD, where they tried to steal from 'Inner Life', AGAIN?
Yah, theyre going to be here to show us the DI bukakke, 'Darwin's Dilemma', then squirt some Creationist spooge irl with a Q&A. And I guess…
gregladen | September 13, 2009... Or so I'm told.
Chris Holmlund says of "Creation" in an email:
"The film was chosen to open the Toronto Film Festival and has its British premiere on Sunday. It has been sold in almost every territory around the world, from Australia to Scandinavia. However, US distributors have resolutely passed on a film which will prove hugely divisive in a country where, according to a Gallup poll conducted in February, only 39 % of Americans believe in the theory of evolution."
Here's a trailer:
mikethemadbiologist | September 11, 2009I've often said on this blog that everything I know about movement conservatives, I learned from watching (and opposing) creationists. One major lesson is that words have no intrinsic meaning: they are simply means to manipulate people for your own goals. Well, Margaret Thatcher, an icon of anti-Communist opposition, admitted:
...the destabilisation of Eastern Europe and the breakdown of the Warsaw Pact were also not in the West's interests. She noted the huge changes happening across Eastern Europe, but she insisted that the West would not push for its decommunisation. Nor would it do…
pharyngula | September 9, 2009Don't you just love a challenge? I'm always looking for some splendid argument from a creationist that would make me think, but they always give me such silliness, instead. And then, I saw this: a mainstream newspaper (well, the Telegraph…but at least it's not the Daily Mail) offers us an article with a tantalizing promise: they're going to give us the the five very best arguments to support creationism. Whoa. Cool. I'm sure they also put their very best science reporter on the job to get some real stumpers for scientists.
Here goes. Brace yourselves. Prepare to be provoked and excited!
No…
pharyngula | September 9, 2009I've been promoted. I'm now a member of a ruling cabal that forms a world dictatorship. BWAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAHAAHAHAAAA!
At least, that is, according to this email I just got.
Darwinism is under official protection in 95% of the countries of the world. People are forced to believe this false theory imposed on them as an official ideology.
THE GLOBAL DARWINIST DICTATORSHIP MUST APOLOGIZE TO THE ENTIRE WORLD,
for presenting innumerable frauds to the scientific world for 150 years,
for imposing Darwinism as the official ideology,
for trying to keep Darwinism alive by means of official protection…