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Science with Pre-Ordained Conclusions

One problem for creationists has been the lack of publications in peer-reviewed journals. In a typical attempt to bypass reality with labels, Answers in Genesis has duly produced a “peer-reviewed journal,” the Answers Research Journal. A major problem, of course, is that “peer-reviewed” tends to imply more than simply that there is a panel that…

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When Neutrality isn’t Neutral

The news of Chris Comer’s suit against the Texas Education Administration claiming she was forced out illegally should come as no surprise to anyone. The reasoning behind the dismissal clearly silly, and the explanations did not ring true as the real reasons she was asked to resign. But as a moderate who likes to see…

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Evolution as God’s Tool

A post on the Panda’s Thumb today calls attention to this post from Uncommon Descent, which claims that theistic evolutionists must believe contradictory things: I would not have a problem understanding evolution as God’s “creation tool,” if TEs conceived of evolution as a “tool” in the strict sense. A tool in the strict sense is…

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UMC General Conference Endorses Clergy Letter Project

I’m a little behind the power curve on this one, but I found out about these via an e-mail from Michael Zimmerman of the Clergy Letter Project. The first resolution is #80990 (tracking) which includes the line: * endorses The Clergy Letter Project and its reconciliatory programs between religion and science, and urges United Methodist…

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How it Happened vs. Probabilities

I may be hopelessly naive in the matter of probability, though it is the one area of math that I have actually studied, but I am simply not terribly impressed with probability arguments. That’s probably (!) a major reason why I’m not impressed with intelligent design (ID). I’m particularly not impressed with probabilities calculated for…

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Distinguishing Freedom and Ability

I have always preferred our classic statements of rights, such as the bill of rights, to such statements as Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms.” What interests me is that while our classic statements of rights indicate things that the government is not permitted to prevent you from doing, the latter two freedoms from Roosevelt’s list, and especially…

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My Advice for Florida Creationists

Which, for those in doubt, includes advocates of intelligent design (ID). I know they won’t take it, but here it is: Just tell the truth. John West, over at Evolution News and Views, has written a quite disingenuous post in which he wonders about the motives of advocates in the Florida House who insisted on…