[js1138]

A universe with consistent natural laws would be difficult to reconcile with a young earth. I someone wants to believe the universe was created with the appearance of a long history, I have no problem with that. But the nature we have available to study has a history of billions of years. That history, and the laws of nature that describe it, affect how we look at the present and the future.

There has been a lot of Muslim bashing here recently, and one of the prime jokes about Muslims is their constant reference to the will of Alah in themost minute details of life. Most Americans, and the majority of Christians believe miracles are rare and are unlikely to affect the outcome of scientific investigation. So science has a built-in bias against the assumption of miracle as the first choice choice to explain anything. In fact science has a rather aggressive tendency to assume that nothing is explained by miracles. This is not atheism; it is an attitude necessary in approaching hard problems.

[CobaltBlue]

Speaking of Muslim-bashing, I was very surprised to learn that some sects of Hasidic Jews, here in the United States, do not allow women to drive, or work outside the home, or go outside of the home with the head uncovered, or interact with men outside their own family members, and, in the event of divorce, the husband gets the children.

Shades of Saudi Arabia!