Expelled

[Jservic2]

[rusmeister]

[Jservic2]

[mitchellmckain]

[rusmeister]

I've kind of said it before, but feel it's worth repeating/clarifying. I'm fully ready to admit that the scientific approach of IDer's is whacko, but I won't take sides on that. What I DO think important that they are absolutely right about (as I know through personal experience) is that US academia, despite its pretence of tolerance, is quite ready to exclude beliefs that do not line up with the pluralist ideology at the core of everything. If you insist on traditional values and beliefs, you run the risk (depending on what your discipline is and how it comes up) of being failed, excluded, expelled or whatever just for that, and these people ARE right to complain about that, even if their science is idiotic (although I'm not saying it IS, either).

[sqrt[-1]]

[Shadowland Dweller]

[Shadowland Dweller]

[Larry W.]

[Tuke]

The thing I dislike about Carl Sagan's atheism is his dishonesty. He always explained the beginning of the universe by saying gases super condensed until they exploded in the Big Bang. He never offered even a suggestion as to where the gases (matter) might have come from and his adoring supporters never required an explanation from him. Why? Because every scientist knows that matter can not come from nothing and nowhere. An Intelligent Designer/Creator is the only explanation for the appearance of the first atom. Atheists have more faith denying the Alpha & Omega than Christians have accepting Him.

[Larry W.]

I don't think it would be accurate to say he was dishonest. You may not agree with his view of where the universe came from, but he stated and explained what he believed quite clearly in his books and television series (Cosmos). And was quite consistent with that in his entire life. He was not a Christian, but he was a great scientist in many other ways. He gave people the desire to explore the universe. I think it would be more accurate to say that he was an agnostic instead of an atheist. I remember him saying in an interview that there was nothing wrong with believing in a God as long as you also accept the discoveries and insights of science. An atheist would not say anything like that, though for him the existence of God would require scientific proof. It's pretty narrow minded to reject everything that someone said just because you disagree with their religious views. It's like saying that Beethoven's music is not acceptable because he was not a Christian, or that Jefferson, who was a deist, had nothing to contribute to our American way of life . Isn't such an extreme view kind of silly?

Larry W.

[Karen]

[alecto]

[Larry W.]

Sagan, whether one agrees with him not, inspired people to love science and astronomy. The book and movie Cosmos did this in a way that no other science documentary could have. I wonder if many Christians could be as successful in promoting a love and awe of God's creation. Someone who isn't a Christian may do more to help you to appreciate God's creation than some people within the church who have an exploitive attitude towards nature.

Larry W.

[Tuke]