Nataraja

Umm...no, they haven't had as much success as they would like you to think. Even out here in the Bible Belt, you will find many pseudo-Christians. A lot of the people I talk to sound a lot like pantheists or deists or extremely liberal Christians. I know a woman who does not acknowlege the existance of Hell. Even my psychotically religious, Jerry Falwell-worshipping grandmother sees no real problem with abortion. I've never actually met an evolution denier in person (aside from my grandmother and only one of the pastors I like to chat with). We just need to keep doing what we're doing. Religious stance cannot be measured in numbers or by what people say about themselves. If all Christians agreed with those quiche-eating fools, evolution would have been banned from schools a long time ago (it IS a democracy/republic, after all).

I find it unsettling, though, that they are actually managing, somehow, to slowly rewrite the Constitution. It will take decades to undo most of the damage and centuries to fully recover from their mischeif. If they are not stopped soon, all our freedoms will be written away. It may be necessary to resort to civil disobedience to marginalize their more outrageous trash.

[ October 19, 2002: Message edited by: Nataraja ]</p>

tgamble

Ohio, Kansas, Alabama. The events in those states show that they've had to much success, whatever the amount is.

Albion

Trouble is, the sorts of people who read Discover aren't the sorts of people who need to be told what a bunch of liars the professional creationists are. They already know that creationism is a religion-based attack on science. It's the general public who needs to know this, and the general public doesn't read Discover.

tgamble

True, but if the cover blazed "creation science, the fraud exposed" It might get people interested. Or maybe some other more mainstream magazine could do it.

Coragyps

It would probably have to be Reader's Digest to gain any credibility in fundyland. Don't hold your breath while you wait.

tgamble

I doubt anyone in fundyland would care. The bible says it, end of story.

But those persuaded by equal time arguments would probably read it and be open to it. People on schoolboard, votors and others who think that the antievolution crap is valid science. GeoTheo used to be a YEC.

He was persuaded. I'd like to think that there are others like him around. People who believe in YECism because they've been lied to. People who will change their minds once the truth is told. It's worth a shot anyway.

Valentine Pontifex

Well Discover has enough people reading it who really are not science types that a good introduction to the evidence for evolution and the fallacies of creationism might be a good idea.

But actually science magazines have not exposed creationist dishonesty like they should have. Even the recent Scientific American article failed to do so. It very brief debunking some creationist arguments, but did not really address creationist dishonesty as it could have. It mentioned that creationists quote out-of-context but failed to give a concrete example. I think that article would have been far more effective it it has debunked fewer arguements and added several concrete examples of just how dishonest the creationists are.

So even among those who are scientifically literate who know that creationism is wrong there are many (most?) who are probably unaware of just how dishonest the creationists are.