My Dad forwarded me this article from TIME mag, presumably because of the reference to the Seattle-based Discovery Institute, which preaches both “Intelligent Design,” and intelligent Northwest mass-transit solutions. A curious hybrid, to say the least.
Nevertheless, the TIME article is a good one for anyone who wants a quick primer on the forces behind the “Intelligent Design” (or I.D.) movement. The basic idea is that Darwin’s theory is (a) just a theory, and (b) too simplistic to explain life. I think the whole thing’s a bunch of hooey… just because Evolution is a theory, it doesn’t follow, QED-like, that God exists.
But these folks are undaunted. Here’s a great line:
Then there’s the assertion that evolution is “just” a theory. “They are playing on the public’s lack of understanding of what a scientific theory is,” says Bingman. “It’s more than a guess. It’s a set of hypotheses that has been tested over time.” Evolutionary theory does have gaps, but so do relativity, quantum theory and the theory of plate tectonics. West says those are different because scientists in these fields, unlike evolutionists, aren’t afraid of intellectual debate.
Oh. Gee, and I thought it was because plate tectonics didn’t immediately challenge the idea of divinity. I mean, Pangea could just have been the launching point for Noah’s Ark, right?
The best line comes at the end, from another high school teacher and critic of I.D., who notes, “I also believe that God is ultimately responsible for the process. But it’s not our job to dust for fingerprints.”
Indeed. And I’ll go you one better:
“Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” — John 20:29
Now Playing: Episode 361
The Presidential campaign gets nasty while the banking crisis goes international.
Links Mentioned: The coveted Buckley endorsement … and the Brooks non-endorsement … the European banking bailout vs. the U.S. bailout redux … Frank Rich … GM and Chrysler get cozy.
