Creationist humor?

Zeno makes an obvious point: creationists have no sense of humor. He singles out this tedious comic strip running on the Answers in Genesis pages, called CreationWise, and of course when anyone thinks of an unfunny religious apologist with a strip, they think of Johnny Hart. But even worse than any of these is Dan Nuckols. Seriously, if you enjoy cartoons, if you have any sense of humor or even an appreciation of the skill it takes to put together an amusing story in a few panels, don’t follow that link; it’s like snorting ammonia, it’ll ruin the flavor of everything for a few days.

Zeno does point out that sometimes they are inadvertently funny, in ways the artist doesn’t intend. This strip doesn’t make any sense from a religious perspective, but it is mildly amusing if you imagine someone like me behind the door.

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Nah, it’s not particularly funny even then. Just true.

OK, since Blake hinted at it, here’s a link to his improved version of the cartoon.

Veeery interesting…

Zachary Moore had a casual conversation with a Discovery Institute staffer at one of their “Darwin vs. Design” conferences, and it sounds like said ID drone spoke a little bit too openly.

In fact, it was so friendly that as I was waiting in the auditorium lobby for the conference to start, I struck up a conversation with Todd Norquist, one of the Discovery Institute’s employees in the Center for Science and Culture (the department that advocates for Intelligent Design). I asked him how many of these conferences were planned by the Discovery Institute, and he seemed hesitant, telling me that he didn’t know if any more of them were going to be possible, since the costs were too high for the Institute to handle. He mentioned something about it costing $70,000, although I don’t recall if that was the amount to produce the Dallas event alone, or if that was the current cost for the whole series thus far (the only previous event being in Knoxville). He complained that there had been virtually no money allocated for advertising, the sole contribution being $1000 paid to Scott Wilder for an “interview” of Stephen Meyer a week previously. He then told me (quite openly, also, which I thought was odd) that the financial situation of the Discovery Institute was grim, and that they were “bleeding money” and were “barely able to keep the lights on in Seattle.”

Now that could be an example of pleading poverty as part of a pitch for more donations, or it could be a revealing peek at the DI’s declining status after Dover. I suspect it’s a real symptom of the slow collapse of the Discovery Institute — even if you were sympathetic to their aims, wouldn’t you be reluctant to back a dog of a losing organization like the DI right now?

Virginia Tech on everybody’s mind

Here’s what the various ScienceBloggers are saying about Virginia Tech.

I’m not personally enthused about turning the whole ugly episode into a rallying cry for whatever cause you favor right now, but I do side with Dunford: of course this is a time you should express your positions. This is a good time, when events have made the concerns more immediate and when people are looking for answers. It’s not a good time to act on those positions, because emotions overwhelm sense, but they are also good indicators of what is important to people.

For instance, if you see this as an excuse to cage all the foreigners, I’d like to know so I can stay upwind of you at all times. If you’re concerned about what we can rationally do to prevent these tragedies in the future, even while distraught about the evil that has been done, then OK, I’ll try to remember that you are a fellow signee of our mutual social contract. So please, keep it civil, and remember that we are a community of civilized beings, not a mob of barbarians.

Fist vs. Chi — who will win?

This is an amusing (but somewhat violent) movie that is an apt metaphor for the strengths of science. It starts with a Kiai Master, one of those woo-woo martial artists who claims to have the power of knocking his opponents flat with his mystical chi—and it’s awfully funny how all these martial arts students come running up and do pratfalls when he waves his hands at them. Then, in a fit of hubris, derangement, or just plain stupidity, he challenges someone to come against him with ‘mere’ natural, physical combat skills. The results are predictable and a little bit cringe-inducing.

The woo sure looks impressive when it’s performed with a mob willing to play along, but it only takes a few seconds for reality to flatten “let’s pretend”. Keep that in mind, creationists: it’s easy to find obliging crowds in your churches, but the rest of the world isn’t going to play the game with you. When the United States deludes itself into thinking creationism is legitimate, we’re setting ourselves up for another nation to knock us down with a single punch of solid science.

State of shame: Indiana!

Kentucky has Ken Ham’s wretched creation “science” “museum”, but now Ligonier, Indiana is getting in on the act with their own version of a pseudoscientific parade of lies in the name of Jesus. At this point, they’ve just begun restoring a decrepit old building to house the monstrosity, but they promise lots of stupidity to come.

The Discovery Express History and Science Museum is about relating biblical truths to current culture through history and science.

Imagine learning how to identify the trees of northern Indiana and learning about the ways they are used…and then thinking, “I wonder how plants show that there is a God?” Maybe you will ask that question skeptically…or maybe because you really want to seek the One who created you. Either way, the answers will intrigue and encourage you.

The first floor of Discovery Express will be the home of “His Kids Preschool” for area preschool children. The first floor is dedicated to depicting local history and culture from the past to the present. There will also be a museum book store filled with great gifts and resources.

The second floor of Discovery Express will house a unique history and science museum. It will feature interactive exhibits designed for all ages. Guests will explore the days of creation, the “Garden of Eden,” Noah’s Ark, and the Tower of Babel. There will be opportunities to learn how science and history confirm that the Bible is trustworthy and accurate in all that it teaches.

Science and history confirm that the Bible is a collection of self-serving delusions, they mean. That’s why they need these fraudulent smoke-screens claiming that they are scientific — they need a big lie to prevent people from scrutinizing their claims carefully.

Dinobase!

Kids underfoot? Are they pestering you for entertainment? Tell them to go look up dinosaurs in Dinobase, and to come back when they’ve got them all memorized. I remember as a kid it was easy to wow the grownups by memorizing a few dozen genera, but now … whoa. There’s more minutia there than you’ll find in packs of baseball cards, that’s for sure.