Posted on 05/06/2009 3:36:34 PM PDT by BlueStateBlues
Chris Matthews used a gotcha question about evolution to ambush a GOPer off his game yesterday, and gloated about it today. Now here's a way conservative reporters can get prominent Dem. leaders and other liberals to cross a line, hem and haw, or look stupid: "Sir or Madam, are you an ape? Are you a great ape? Answer this question directly, yes or no."
A lot of folks don’t understand that.. I think the point is just to make Chrissy look like a fool. Of course most Conservatives believe in evolution, including, gasp, even many (maybe most) Christians.
I love the evolution debate.
So I offer up mine.
God created man. He took the rib from the man and created woman. Before he created man, he created trees, grass, vegetation, fish, horses and eventually he got to primates.
Sitting there, happy in his work, God wanted to take it a step further. He liked the fact he created a beast who walked relatively upright, ate, drank, slept and had some intellect. But he knew that Primates were limited in scope. Plus, he wanted something to command all the beasts as well as the world he created.
Hence, God gave us man......and his wife, who I am pretty sure looked a lot like Anna Kournikova.
For some reason, most people that don’t believe in “evolution” seem to have such a grossly simplified view of how it works that it’s just sad.
No, we are not apes (or monkeys). Millions of years ago, a common ancestor of ours (let’s call it a proto-ape) lived in some part of africa. Eventually, groups of proto-apes spread out and, while living in relative isolation from one another and facing different environmental pressures, gradually developed into incompatible species. Some of these species gradually developed traits that enabled them to reproduce much more, live healthier lifestyles, and spread out and adapt quickly to other environments. One of those species turned out to be humans, others turned out to be things like great apes, etc.
I know, but for some reason the ones who don’t seem to congregate on FR...
Don’t equate “anti-evolutionist” with “creationist” in my statement. Creationism is one of many possible opposing theories that are included in my intended meaning for “anti-evolutionist”. Ever the agnostic.
He should have said...Oh what Chris, you believe in Darwinism huh. That you evolved from some slimy ooze? In your case I can believe that, and it wasn’t so long ago either.
Both sides have their magic. Both of them are pretty much unbelievable. I don’t know why it’s so hard for people to say “We just don’t know?”... Pride maybe? In the end none of it even matters. If you’d devoted your life to either side it’s pretty sad really. What’s the point?
What is more PROBABLE, that we were created by God, or Aliens far more advanced constructed humans by mixing DNA they had collected from far away planets in just the right combination to make some pre-humanoid to seed earth? A non-answer of "neither," "who knows" or "it is impossible to answer" is an intellectual cop-out. The question is not which is true, just which in their opinion of the two choices is more probable? True atheists will tend to opt for the Alien theory, revealing their real issue is with God as a concept than a possibility.
I’m curious, but what are they? I have yet to hear an alternative explanation besides “god created it” or “god told it to evolve this way” (which is basically just someone who used to say “god created it” grasping at straws now). As someone who studied an awful lot of science, it drives me crazy that nobody complains about quantum mechanics, general relativity, DNA mapping or most complex scientific fields, but when it comes to evolutionary biology, suddenly anyone with a holy book thinks they’re an “expert” in the field.
I could chew up Chrissy too if I could get a word in edgewise.
I’m not sure I know of any biologists claiming to know the initial circumstances that got life rollin’ on this planet. It’s just like “what caused the big bang?” We don’t know. We might know in the future, but we don’t now. But devoting your life to studying evolutionary biology gives you all kinds of insight into how life works, with useful implications for things like medicine (ever wonder why antibiotics don’t work as well as they used to? Evolution!), genetics and disease research. As far as I can tell, people that devote their lives to alternate theories have yet to provide us with any useful, practical results from those theories.
The fossil evidence is what it is. I see no proof of evolution therein. I see no proof of creationism therein. Either might turn out to be true, or neither.
I have honestly never understood why there is a controversy about creationism or evolution. To me, they don’t really belong in the same arena of discussion. And they aren’t mutually exclusive. Just because we evolve, doesn’t mean we weren’t created, right?
We adapt and evolve. Look at your kids. Look at the size of beds 300 years ago. Its happening all around us. I don’t see what the conflict with Christianity or any other major religion is. Evolutionary and Darwinistic theories do nothing to address the question: Where did we come from? Evolutionary theory leaves science and enters religion when it is used to explain man’s origins. There is no solid link between man and any other species. Thats a fact.
But i do believe, that humans, as biological organisms, evolve and adapt. Liberals take it one step further. In their deranged minds it explains away God. Very simple thinking on their part as usual. So, it becomes convenient, that they feel superior because they are no ‘dumb hick’ or ‘bible thumper’ or simpleton. They then proceed to push it on everyone around them (i.e. Global Warming).
Liberals tend to be attracted to theories they don’t really understand, co-op them to fit into their own perceived sense of the world (i.e. global warming). Evolution does absolutely nothing to address the real question.
I agree with you that it is best to leave these issues alone as most people don’t bother to think deeply about these questions. And frankly, it should be outside of the purview of government.
p.s. - Chris Mathews is a foaming at the mouth blowhard. For a southern gentleman like myself, its hard to stomach his dismissive treatment of women, and guests in general. I agree more often with Bill O’Reily but i find him equally repugnant on a social level.
ping to #34 (mean to copy you to)
So please explain your pro-life position in scientific terms, Mr. 4 Life guy.
BTW, do you think OH4choice would be a good handle for trolling the DUmpster?
I agree. Any GOPer who gives legitimacy to clowns like Matthews deserve their fate. It’s one thing to put the message out to non-believers and engage them. It’s quite something other to ask for a pie in the face.
Pence is a dolt.
Most are just quiet, why get into the debate.. this is a political site mostly, which is why most are here.. there are hundreds of thousands of members, but it is usually the same four or five folks on threads on said topic.
I am not going to argue what I thought was long ago considered settled science. The way that dogs adapt and evolve within a single generation is undisputable evidence of evolution before our eyes and has been studied extensively. Creationism relies on a belief system of a religious minority on this planet and is orthogonol to this discussion.
I know, it’s just hard to resist. I almost suspect they’re dem trolls that just want to make us look bad.
On a more practical level, I think leaving threads like this to creationists scares off a lot of educated people visiting this site for the first time. There is no future in a political movement that rejects science education and scientific theory as one of its core platforms.
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