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On Richard Owen, that least convivial of 19th century scientists…
I used to be ashamed of hating him so much, but now I will carefully cherish my hatred & contempt to the last days of my life.
~Charles Darwin
Filed under: Humor, Science | Tagged: charles darwin, Richard Owen | 1 Comment »
Intelligent design is fundamentally dishonest.
Filed under: Misc | Tagged: intelligent design, Thought of the day | 3 Comments »
That’s what Melody Weeks of Oakland wants, anyway. At least that’s what she said in her response to one of my past letters to the editor.
After reading two letters from Michael Hawkins regarding his discriminate view that “creation” shouldn’t be taught in public schools, I am compelled to write this letter.
He considers evolution a science that should be taught because evolution is “scientifically proven.” OK, show me one human being conceived, carried and delivered by apes. What? Can’t do it? Then I guess you can’t prove it, eh?
His is one of theory and speculations by “educated” human beings.
I can’t prove creation. I believe in it as it is so logical but only by faith. So why is creation any less of a theory than evolution? What is Hawkins so afraid of that he can’t provide children different theories and allow them, their parents, and their personal faith to dictate their own beliefs?
Is this the only problem he has with candidate Paul LePage? Personally, I think it’s about time we get rid of career politicians and lawyers in any branch of government. Maybe then, the average American, could understand the tax laws and state regulations under which they are forced to adhere.
I think a good farmer would be the very best candidate as they know what it’s like to work hard for very little. They share no entitlements unlike our current “leaders.” Why can’t our representatives, senators and Congress brown-bag it for lunch? Why are they given $30 for a meal? And the rest of us, if we’re lucky, eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Oh yeah, because they write the laws that entitle them to it. I keep forgetting. I just live here, and pay taxes for them to thrive.
Melody Weeks
Oakland
I’ll humor Melody.
1) All humans are apes. There is no evolutionary or taxonomic distinction.
2) Yes, evolution is a theory. Just like gravity.
3) Creationism is less of a theory than evolution, Melody, because (as you point out) it is based upon faith. It has no evidence; not in its common form, not in its dishonest intelligent design form, not in any form. Evolution has nothing but evidence behind it. (This, by the way, is one good example of the damage religion, and specifically faith, does to science education.)
4) I’m afraid of telling children things known to be false. That is a wrong in the world.
5) No, I also have the problem with LePage that he’s a liar who sucked money from the state while claiming his policies somehow saved the city of Waterville.
6) I don’t care about the rest.
Filed under: Creationism | Tagged: Creationism, Evolution, letter to the editor, Melody Weeks, Morning Sentinel, Paul LePage | 2 Comments »
I find many theists to be roughly this genuine when they claim to appreciate science.
Filed under: Humor | Tagged: Mystery Science Theater 3000, Werewolf | Leave a comment »
One of the worst argument I hear on a surprisingly regular basis is that objective morality is somehow evidence for God. It isn’t any such thing; it assumes the existence of God.
Filed under: Misc | Tagged: Thought of the day | Leave a comment »
One of the things many founding documents and fledgling governments have done is enshrine rights as broad principles, open to slow, steady interpretation. This allows for the biases and prejudices of the majority to be counteracted with a rational basis. This has been a great source of achievement for civil rights because it offers a method to come to a greater internal consistency based upon liberty rather than the capriciousness of the morals of the day. The Mexican Supreme Court is a testament to that fact.
The Mexican Supreme Court has ruled, 8-2, that same-sex marriage in Mexico City is constitutional, dismissing arguments that it violated guarantees to protect the family.
Because same-sex marriage protects families.
Filed under: Rights, Same-sex marriage | Tagged: Gay, Liberty, Mexico City, Same-sex marriage | 3 Comments »
Go take a look at PhilosophyExperiments.com. Specifically, take a look at this thought experiment.
This activity is a treatment of some of the issues thrown up by a thought experiment called ‘The Trolley Problem’, which was first outlined by the philosopher Philippa Foot, and then developed by Judith Jarvis Thomson and others. But before we start properly, we need to ask you four preliminary questions so we get a sense of the way that you think about morality. There are no right or wrong answers. Just select the option that most corresponds to your view.
And it goes on from there.
The thought experiment is one of the most powerful tools in philosophy, so it’s worth following through.
There is also one about belief in God, but I found the wording on some questions to be pretty crappy.
Filed under: Philosophy | Tagged: Judith Jarvis Thompson, Philosophy experiment, The Trolley Problem, Thought Experiment | 2 Comments »
It’s still possible to see the northern lights tonight, so I hear. I just took a look with somewhat clear skies, but I couldn’t see anything. Of course, something so spectacular is worth a second shot in a couple of hours.
Info and image via Starts With A Bang.
Filed under: Astronomy/Cosmology/Physics, News | Tagged: Aurora borealis, Northern Lights, Starts With A Bang | 1 Comment »
Judge Vaughn Walker has made the decision today that California’s Prop 8 is unconstitutional. He lists a number of reasons it is an illegal amendment, but I think the best quote of his so far is this one:
“Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license,” Walker wrote. “Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples.”
Targeted persecution isn’t exactly allowed under the U.S. Constitution.
There’s going to be plenty said about this, especially when it gets to the Supreme Court, but I think the biggest complaint from bigots is going to be that this undermines the will of the people. That’s an intellectually dishonest, political, rhetorical, empty, lie of an argument. Rights aren’t dependent upon the say of the majority. As James Madison once said,
There is no maxim, in my opinion, which is more liable to be misapplied, and which, therefore, more needs elucidation, than the current one, that the interest of the majority is the political standard of right and wrong.
Or Ayn Rand,
Individual rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual).
Or Thomas Jefferson,
All, too, will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression.
And when the 65+ crowd starts to fade away, support for equal rights for gays will become the will of the majority. It’s just sad that, like in the greatest days of the civil rights movement, it takes a court to protect the obvious rights of a group. This does, however, shine some light on the current day bigots’ support for the past court decisions that brought some degree of equality to racial minorities – despite what the majority thought. Depending on one’s source, roughly 2/3 of Americans were against interracial marriage a full year after the Supreme Court knocked down the laws against it. If the current day bigots were honest – and they aren’t – they would be howling that past Supreme Court decisions were wrong because they were counter to the beliefs of the majority.
Filed under: News, Rights, Same-sex marriage | Tagged: Judge Walker, Just marriage, marriage, Prop 8, Same-sex marriage | 3 Comments »
I have limited time at the moment, but this is too important to not report upon immediately.
Proposition 8, California’s controversial voter-approved gay marriage ban, was struck down by a federal judge on Wednesday in a ruling that deemed the ban unconstitutional.
Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker’s 136-page decision ruled that the same-sex marriage ban violates equal protection and due process rights that are guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
….
“Today, the sun shines a little brighter on the Golden State. A federal judge has affirmed what a majority of Californians know to be true: that love does not discriminate and that marriage is a civil right, not a privilege reserved for a select class of citizens. The decision handed down today in Perry v. Schwarzenegger reaffirms the notion that separate is never equal,” Villaraigosa said in the statement.
“Although this is a landmark case and one of tremendous importance, we all know that this will not be the final word on marriage equality. We will continue to fight as tirelessly as ever before to ensure members of the LGBT community and all Californians are afforded the same rights and privileges under the laws of our nation,” he continued.
Filed under: News, Rights, Same-sex marriage | Tagged: California, Prop 8, Same-sex marriage | 8 Comments »
For the Sake of Science 