10 Reasons to Reject Evolution

1.) Because I don’t like the idea that we came from apes…

2.) Because I’m too stupid and/or lazy to open a fucking book or turn on the Discovery Science Channel.

3.) Because if I can’t immediately understand how something works, then it must be bullshit.

4.) Because I don’t care that literally 99.9% of all biologists accept evolution as the unifying theory of biology.

5.) Because I prefer the idea that a (insert god of choice) went ALLA-KADABRA-ZAM MOTHAH-FUCKAHS!!!

6.) Because I can’t get it through my thick logic-proof skull that evolution refers ONLY to the process of speciation, not to abiogenesis, or planet formation, or big bang cosmology, or whether God exists, or where they buried Jimmy Hoffa, or why the sky is blue, or how many licks it takes to get to the center of a fucking Tootsie Pop.

7.) Because the fossil record doesn’t comprise the remains of every single living thing that ever existed on this 4.5 billion year old planet, even though fossilization is a rare process that only occurs under very specific circumstances.

8.) Because science has yet to produce any transitional species… except for the magnitudinous numbers of them found in the fossil record which don’t count because… I uh, OOH LOOK! A SHINY OBJECT!!! *runs away*

9.) Because I know nothing about Darwin except that he had a funny beard.

10.) Because the theory of evolution (which, according to scientists, perfectly explains the richness and diversity of life on Earth) contradicts biblical literalism… ya know, flat Earth with a firmament that keeps out the water, talking snakes, people rising from the dead, bats are birds, flamey talking bushes, virgin births, food appearing out of nowhere, massive bodies of water turning into blood… etc etc.

Plus 40 more

h/t to The Barefoot Bum (who, by the way, is now no longer a communist).

What Evidence Would Disprove God?

I didn't post this weekend. For one thing I had to work both Saturday and Sunday, and for another, on Saturday night I completely forgot about Daylight Saving Time, probably because it starts so early in the year now (stupid Congress). I had set my alarm clock (I hate a world where we are forced to "alarm" ourselves out of sleep; in a just world wouldn't we be allowed to wake up naturally, after our bodies have had all the rest they need?) for my usual morning wake up time (allowing, as always, for a good number of snooze button hits) but failed to set it ahead one hour. When I was finally up (before the alarm went off, as will sometimes happen, and then I usually fall asleep again) I checked my cell phone (I have some crazy "night owl" friends who are unaware that not everyone is that species of owl, so they often call or text message after hours) and noticed the time. You never saw someone shave, shower and dress so fast in your life, but at least I now know it's possible, and that it's also possible to barrel down the freeway on a Sunday morning going well over the posted speed limit without being pulled over by a cop. I did make it to work on time, but not all did. I wasn't the only one to overlook the tyranny of artificial time, as several were late arriving. I never recovered from losing that hour, and was too tired for much of anything for the rest (what a beautiful word that is) of the day.

Which finally brings me to the following, from comments I made here in response to the blog author, Victor Reppert.

The idea that God might have a good reason for not preventing evil that you don't understand, (and even some that you might understand) is swept aside, of course.

Yes, of course, all suffering and evil, even that endured by the most defenseless, must somehow, in some mysterious way, be necessary. Is every last second of suffering by a child dying of cancer necessary? Is there a good reason for it? Remember, we're talking about an omnipotent god to whom nothing is impossible. You are asserting, without argument, that God must allow each instant of suffering and evil for some greater purpose or good and that He must know there is no other way to achieve such good without such suffering because He is omniscient. But this is simply begging the question. Just another theistic "mystery"; how convenient for theism (classical theism with a tri-omni god, that is).

One claim of many Christians and other theists is that nothing would prove god to a hard hearted atheist. Even miracles would be explained away as hallucinations, or aliens with advanced technology working behind the scenes. But this is nonsense. Atheism is easily falsified, while theism is inherently unfalsifiable. No matter what occurs, no matter what the state of our knowledge of the universe, there is always room for a god, especially if that god "works in mysterious ways" and chooses to remain hidden.

There are plenty of examples that would falsify atheism, however, or cause someone to at least consider that god may be real after all. If amputees were to regrow limbs after being prayed for, I would consider that good evidence for theism.

What would falsify theism? Is there any occurrence or any scientific discovery that would disprove the existence of God? Is there any statement, that, if proven true, would disprove the existence of God? If all the apparently needless suffering that a supposedly all good, all powerful, all knowing god allows hasn't already disproved the existence of the god of classical theism, what would? And suppose god is not "all good", even disregarding the Problem of Evil (which does, essentially, disprove the tri-omni God) what would falsify any god's existence? It is theism that is truly unfalsifiable.

Emergency!

As reported by Dad and confirmed by Mom, there was an emergency the other day at the house. It started the other evening when my aunt was visiting them and spent the night. My aunt sometimes has a difficult time getting to bed, and repeatedly asked Mom for snacks, warm milk and other comforts before going to sleep. Mom generously complied with these requests, but fulfilling them caused her to retire at a later hour than is usual for her. This was the genesis of the crisis.

The next morning, Dad was in the kitchen preparing the morning coffee when he heard a scream. The piercing sound barely had time to register when Mom came running from the master bedroom.

"Get dressed!" she shouted, "It's an emergency!"

Dad didn't know quite how to respond to this, but did manage to ask calmly the nature of the emergency.

"You've got to go to the drug store right now and get me some special cream. My face is gone! Look at it, I may never get it back! My eyes are all puffy, I look terrible, and it's all her fault, keeping me up so late, I need my rest. Oh, I've lost my face and I'll never get it back!"

Thankfully, after applying the cream Dad had made a run to the store to purchase, and after also taking a good long nap, Mom got her face back.

Blog of the Moment: The Commentator

And also my favorite Canadian blogger.


The Commentator

The High Miles Club

2,676,045 miles!

Come Back Little Debit Card

I was in the local supermarket, just picking up a few items on a quiet evening, when I got out my wallet and opened it to get my "club card" out so I could receive the "discount" on the items I was purchasing. I then searched in vain for my bank debit card. It was nowhere! I checked my wallet three or four times (like you tend to check anything pointlessly over and over when you "know" something is supposed to be there) and finally accepted defeat. I would have to pay cash with my remaining five dollar bills. Who pays cash anymore? I didn't see a single person ahead of me in line pay with anything other than a debit card.

As soon as I was home I searched every place I thought the card might be, including all the pockets of all my shirts hanging in the closet. Nothing. I then had the scary thought that I must have left it at the ATM machine the previous day. What if someone had taken it and used it to drain my account? That wouldn't be hard to do, considering the lax attitude that so many retailers have toward confirming that the purchaser actually has a card that belongs to them. One only has to choose the "credit" option when paying to avoid having to enter an unknown PIN, and how often is ID asked for in such situations? If it is asked for, the crook can just say they forgot their wallet, request "their" card back and leave.

I called the bank after hours to check my balance, and no unauthorized transactions had occurred and my funds were intact. In the morning I went back to the bank branch where I'd used the ATM and spoke to one of the tellers, explaining what had happened and asking if anyone had turned in a card.

I was told that if someone turns in a card and it's not claimed within 24 hours, it is shredded. The card was canceled as I stood there, and a new one ordered, but I wondered why they would fail to call the person who had lost the card. They had my phone number, after all, but I never received a call. I mean, do you simply destroy the card of one of your customers without first letting them know you've found it? What if I hadn't looked in my wallet that evening, and had the next day gone for a drive, and being out of cash had reached for my debit card to pay for a fill up? I guess I would have been up Bankster Creek without a bailout.

Life Without Garfield

Look at Garfield in the picture above. Does he seem happy? He has his bear and his snacks and his pillow, and probably a television remote as well. He represents the average American quite well, an overweight, junk food eating couch potato, escaping the bleakness of existence through a drug of one sort or another, be it food or alcohol (liquor sales go up in economic downturns) or even imaginary friends like Pooky (Garfield's teddy bear) . Pooky, in fact, represents more than just a comforting stuffed toy; Pooky is really Spooky, the big invisible ghost that "controls" everything, and that allows so many to remain in their zombie existence, satisfied with the momentary pleasure that their drug of choice brings them, confident that somehow Spooky will "protect" them and keep them from harm and eventually make everything right. But what if we remove the Garfield mentality from the picture? What if we take away the drugs and the ghosts, what happens then?





Garfield Minus Garfield

No, on second thought, that is too bleak. I will stick with my drugs (ice cream and blogging) and my own version of Pooky, i.e., my imaginary multitudes of admirers, and remain at least somewhat happy as a result of these distractions.

h/t to Trial & Error

Butter Pecan For Better Blogging

I wonder as I sit here if it's time to reinvent this blog. I started it in December of 2007, about a month after signing up for a Blogger account, and I only did that so I could comment on another blog. At that time (or at least at that blog) the only way to do so was to sign up with Google Blogger, so I did, not thinking or even slightly considering writing a blog of my own. As the days passed, though, it began to seem more and more like the perfect way to say some of the things I wanted to say. I wasn't always sure I was capable of saying them, but I knew I would give it my best (some of the time, anyway). And so it began, and it's been up and down ever since. There is a lot I want to do here (or somewhere, hint, hint) and write about and share and tell you. I have some thoughts, feeble ones though they may be, on religion and politics and the usual nonsense that issues forth from the practitioners of both, and I'll write those pieces, humble ones, no doubt, but I'll also write much more in a personal vain, and do many fewer copy and paste posts that link to others material. Those I often do because I want to share what someone else has said better than I could, or sometimes just to fill some space, but always to give my few readers things I think are worthwhile.

Now, I know, for anyone who has spent any length of time here, that it's no surprise that I write the personal sort of thing, but I'll probably be writing even more of it. I'm also going to have regular features that actually are regular features, and that don't just start out that way with a few posts and then disappear. As an example, Sunday will feature Sunday Food, Proclamations and Reminders, and possibly Sunday Funday (I'll explain later) and maybe even Sunday School (I was once a brainwashed Christian, ya know, so I do know a little Buybull). Other days will have their own features, and there will still be the random posts on all other subjects too, and hopefully if you don't like one feature, you'll enjoy another. I'm also considering fiction, in the form of short stories, as a regular Saturday post. I am only sure of one thing, that like General Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia at Gettysburg, this will all end in disaster.

You may not notice anything too different about this blog at first, and it may seem as if nothing has changed, but I promise you, that unlike the switch from Bush to Obama, this time we're talking real change, baby! Yes, at this moment, at this place and time, change HAS come to Skeptical Eye.

And now I've got to get back to my bowl of butter pecan ice cream (it allows me to blog better, somehow) before it melts.

Did Talk Radio Wreck the Right?

Limbaugh and company certainly entertain. But a steady diet of ideological comfort food is no substitute for hearty intellectual fare.

How Radio Wrecks the Right


-h/t to Orange Punch

Proclamations and Reminders

Chicken soup doesn't do much for the soul, but it sure feels good when you're sick in bed with a cold.

The Atheist and the Bear are secret lovers, that's why they're always in those woods together.

Jello is better without nuts. No nuts! Got that?

Harvey is a funny name, but was not bad as a comic book publisher.

When some guy tries to hit on your girl at a party, just say "Liver alone, cheese mine."

Remember, those aren't gray hairs you're getting, they're just natural silver highlights.

Coughing? A smoker, are you? Never give up smoking, but on your way home, stop by the local mortuary and ask them if they can stop that coffin.

Amazing doesn't mean miraculous.

I know I can't, but I think I can.