Intelligent Designification & Creationism

"We have concluded that [Intelligent Design] is not science, and moreover that ID cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents,"

--U.S. District Judge John Jones

This has been a victory in the war against those who want to force so called 'Intelligent Design' to be taught in our nations classrooms. In a time when our schools are already horribly underfunded, and American children are receiving a substandard education, it would be unwise to feed their ignorance even further. As I have stated previously, Darwins theory of evolution neither claims to be anything other than a theory, nor does it claim to explain the origin of life in the universe, however to offer 'ID' as having equal scientific backing, and to attempt to force it into the required curriculum for science classes is ludicrous. I would not put up an argument if all they had wanted to add was a disclaimer to reinforce the case that evolution is only a theory, but it is obvious that their intent was to try to lend scientific credibility to the concept of 'ID'.

There are a variety of sources that one can use to discredit the proponents of Intelligent Design, although it is generally futile to try to convince someone who bases their decisions on faith, as they can easily explain away centuries of scientific evidence and research with 'God did it'. The author of this site has compiled a great list of the beliefs (and ways to counter them) of those who support the concept of creationism (which is what ID really means). As he points out, not all creationists believe the same things, and it is important not to set up straw men just for the sake of making the case against creationism. In recent years, religious scholars and the faithful have attempted to convince the public that it is possible to use science to prove their beliefs to be more than just beliefs. It is difficult for a scientist to be truly unbiased, however it is necessary in order for any of their research and experimentation to have any basis in reality. It is impossible for someone who closes their eyes and accepts things on faith to have this kind of detachment from their work.

The Scientific Method requires that you do not accept anything that cannot be proven or repeated, and even then to understand that your perceptions and methods might be flawed. All faith based 'science' is doomed from the very beginning, due to the fact that the researcher has already determined what is and isn't true, and they are more than willing to overlook any evidence that doesn't support, or is contrary to their beliefs. Science is not infallible, and does not hold the answers to all of our problems. Those who place all of their hope in science are sure to be let down. It is simply a tool for gaining greater understanding of our universe. On the other hand, it has allowed us to harness the powers of nature, and create technology for communications, space travel, medicine, and other things.

Not unlike bioligical evolution, science and invention have evolved for thousands of years. Nothing happened all at once, each invention led to another--sometimes seemingly unrelated research holds the key to overcoming problems previously considered 'impossible'. Every step of the way there have been naysayers to claim: 'it'll never work', and they are repeatedly proven wrong. There will always be those individuals who dare to push the envelope, to ignore the criticism and to take the steps necessary to see their dreams become reality.

Next Time: Torture For Fun And Profit...