Thursday, June 07, 2007
Time Flies When You're Having Fun
Well, I'm back.
I was gone just five short days, but so much has happened in my absence. Ken Ham's Creation Museum had just opened and already the holier-than-thou Ham is being sued by his creationist friends down under.
According to The Australian, "Brisbane-based Creation Ministries International has filed a lawsuit in Queensland's Supreme Court against Mr. Ham and his Kentucky-based Answers in Genesis ministry seeking damages and accusing him of deceptive conduct in his dealings with the Australian organisation."
Red State Rabble readers will be fascinated to know that The Australian coverage of the suit mentions that a report of Ham's shady business practices includes this little tidbit: "John Mackay, a former associate of Mr. Ham in Queensland... was excommunicated in the 1980s after making allegations of witchcraft and necrophilia against a fellow member of the ministry."
The devastating cultural impact of evolution, it would seem, is found everywhere. Even among the most fervent creationists.
While we were off the grid, mousetrap man Michael Behe published a new book, Edge of Evolution. Nick Matzke of the National Center for Science Education has already demonstrated that the man is clueless. That fact, however, won't have any impact on sales. The book is aimed at the utterly credulous.
Speaking of books, the Discovery Institute is also touting Explore Evolution. I haven't read it yet and can't really say anything about it. I will offer this hypothesis: Explore Evolution will contribute little science or evolution, but reveal much about the Terra Incognita of the intelligent design brain.
Lest you doubt the truly scientific nature of the Explore Evolution enterprise, Discovery is quick to assure potential readers that the publisher specializes in science and nature books of "exceptional quality."
Perhaps Explore Evolution is part of the publisher's line of priceless and rare antiquarian -- did they mean antediluvian? -- reprints. Discovery, hilariously, recommends it as a "stimulating capstone" for AP Biology classes -- but not before the test.
Oh yes, the five short days I was gone seemed to fly by, but there was still time enough for Evolution News and Views to publish nine posts about Iowa State University's denial of tenure to ID activist Guillermo Gonzales.
Although Discovery, apparently, was able to use what remains of its influence to dilute a negative review by Publisher's Weekly of Behe's "over the edge" book with a series of glowing testimonials from the usual suspects on the book's Amazon page, they had less impact on tenure process at ISU.
Gonzalez' appeal was denied.
I was gone just five short days, but so much has happened in my absence. Ken Ham's Creation Museum had just opened and already the holier-than-thou Ham is being sued by his creationist friends down under.
According to The Australian, "Brisbane-based Creation Ministries International has filed a lawsuit in Queensland's Supreme Court against Mr. Ham and his Kentucky-based Answers in Genesis ministry seeking damages and accusing him of deceptive conduct in his dealings with the Australian organisation."
Red State Rabble readers will be fascinated to know that The Australian coverage of the suit mentions that a report of Ham's shady business practices includes this little tidbit: "John Mackay, a former associate of Mr. Ham in Queensland... was excommunicated in the 1980s after making allegations of witchcraft and necrophilia against a fellow member of the ministry."
The devastating cultural impact of evolution, it would seem, is found everywhere. Even among the most fervent creationists.
While we were off the grid, mousetrap man Michael Behe published a new book, Edge of Evolution. Nick Matzke of the National Center for Science Education has already demonstrated that the man is clueless. That fact, however, won't have any impact on sales. The book is aimed at the utterly credulous.
Speaking of books, the Discovery Institute is also touting Explore Evolution. I haven't read it yet and can't really say anything about it. I will offer this hypothesis: Explore Evolution will contribute little science or evolution, but reveal much about the Terra Incognita of the intelligent design brain.
Lest you doubt the truly scientific nature of the Explore Evolution enterprise, Discovery is quick to assure potential readers that the publisher specializes in science and nature books of "exceptional quality."
In addition to Explore Evolution, its books include The Concise Atlas of Butterflies of the World (2001), The Birds of Asia, vol. 7 (1992), The Mammals of Australia, vol 2 (2002), and World Butterflies (2006). A publishing partner of the Natural History Museum in London, Hill House has been awarded an exclusive license by the museum to produce authentic facsimiles of priceless and rare antiquarian books, prints and maps from the world-famous libraries of that institution.
Perhaps Explore Evolution is part of the publisher's line of priceless and rare antiquarian -- did they mean antediluvian? -- reprints. Discovery, hilariously, recommends it as a "stimulating capstone" for AP Biology classes -- but not before the test.
Oh yes, the five short days I was gone seemed to fly by, but there was still time enough for Evolution News and Views to publish nine posts about Iowa State University's denial of tenure to ID activist Guillermo Gonzales.
Although Discovery, apparently, was able to use what remains of its influence to dilute a negative review by Publisher's Weekly of Behe's "over the edge" book with a series of glowing testimonials from the usual suspects on the book's Amazon page, they had less impact on tenure process at ISU.
Gonzalez' appeal was denied.
