Now, now, you know the experts know best. That's why they've declared themselves to be the experts.
Nope, Dover didn't "settle" this issue. Not even close.
I feel sorry for Christian evolutionists should this issue ever be "settled" on behalf of the hardcore evolution political lobby. Right now, the Dawkins types grudgingly accept people within their ranks who believe evolution was "God's method of creation", but that's because they need them. If the issue is ever "settled" the way Judge Jones thought he was "settling" it, those Christian evolutionists will get unceremoniously shown the way to the door. And if you think there's a lot of mocking of Christianity now during evo-debates, wait'll you see the fury unleashed on believers once Christians are no longer needed to keep evolution politically viable.
Interesting point of view. I think you're right.
I think you're right, too. Just like the ACLU and others are using evolution in their efforts to force religion out of the schools under the guise of *keeping science pure*. The Scopes trials were supposedly just to make the teaching of evolution allowed alongside creation. Look what's happened now. We've come a long way; from allowing it to be taught together, to an outright ban on teaching creation. That had to be their agenda all along. When the ACLU is done with them, they'll be the next targets.
ID proponents has not been picked up by churches and televangelists, such as Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, Gary Bauer, James Dodson, and the like. ID is almost never mentioned on Christian radio.
Preachers know that sermons like, "The Intelligent Designer loves you; Accept irreducible complexity into your heart" does not lead parishioners to open their wallets and checkbooks---the essential ingredient of a successful sermon.
Many preachers consider that ID has muddied the waters from the simple notions of creationism, Noah's Flood, and Biblical inerrancy. The main creationist groups, Institute for Creation Research and Answers in Genesis, have never embraced 'intelligent design'. They appreciated that ID diverted questions about Noah's Flood, which was impossible to justify on scientific grounds, to the "God issue", but they are unhappy that ID has never addressed moral values and skirts the issue of of who the "Grand Designer" is.
After Kitzmiller, the Discovery Institute could only whimper, claiming they never believed ID should be in schools. This directly contradicted their "Wedge Document." And the expert testimony sponsored by DI was caught in several contradictions at the trial, which Judge Jones pointed out. Even the Thomas Moore Center--the legal counsel engaged "to defeat the ACLU" ---was appalled by DI undermining their legal filings. So 'intelligent design' lost face big time with potential backers. DI has tried to reply with ad hominem attacks on Judge Jones, with a campaign to "teach the controversy", with attempts to brand critics as "liberal elites", but these attempts have backfired.
To make matters worse for ID and the DI, a distinct schism between Catholics and some evangelical Christians has arisen. Several important Catholic leaders have spoken out to say that the scientific theory of evolution is not inconsistent with Catholic doctrine. Discussions on this are certainly continuing, but the bottom line is that neither the Roman Church nor the Orthodox Church have become champions of "intelligent design". Without this support in the largest Christian congregations, ID has no real base.
I agree.
The best solution is to apply natural selection to an area we can all agree it works--- the market. Get rid of the government monopoly on schools with vouchers so that parents can decide what schools their kids can go to... Maybe after vouchers have become commonplace and the monopoly is gone, they and government schools can be done away with.
Parents won't want to send their kids to schools that turn out kids with poor math and science skills, and those will whither on the vine.
I doubt reading "The Design Inference" and criticism of it by the likes of Elliott Sober will cause a school to so whither, though... just the opposite will likely be the case.
I agree.
The best solution is to apply natural selection to an area we can all agree it works--- the market. Get rid of the government monopoly on schools with vouchers so that parents can decide what schools their kids can go to... Maybe after vouchers have become commonplace and the monopoly is gone, they and government schools can be done away with.
Parents won't want to send their kids to schools that turn out kids with poor math and science skills, and those will whither on the vine.
I doubt reading "The Design Inference" and criticism of it by the likes of Elliott Sober will cause a school to so whither, though... just the opposite will likely be the case.