FRDB Archives

Freethought & Rationalism Archive

The archives are read only.


Go Back   FRDB Archives > Archives > IIDB ARCHIVE: 200X-2003, PD 2007 > IIDB Philosophical Forums (PRIOR TO JUN-2003)
Welcome, Peter Kirby.
You last visited: Today at 05:55 AM

 
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 04-24-2002, 03:44 PM   #1
Regular Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: USA
Posts: 153
Post The "war" between Creationism and Evolution is on Amazon.com

Has anybody else here gone to amazon.com, looking at reviews of books on Evolution? I have recently, in the process of updating my library, and was amazed!

Somehow, it would appear, Amazon.com has become entrenched in the debate. Viewing any of the reviews on books about Evolution one is amazed by all the people reviewing the books (having supposedly read them), and debunking them through reference to other books on Creationism that are getting stellar reviews!

Are churches encouraging their readers to go on this virtual crusade?
SmashingIdols is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 04:38 PM   #2
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: NCSU
Posts: 5,853
Thumbs down

I've noticed that too. Amazon needs to do a better job policing their reader reviews. I'm sure that evolution isn't the only topic that causes this problem.

For example here is one from Ernst Mayr's new book.

Quote:
I looked to this book to present for me the best case supporting the theory of evolution. In fairness, I did not read the whole book. But, by the first page of chapter 2, "Evidence for Evolution," was this phrase: "Given the fact of evolution...". It went on to make apologies for the fossil record evidence being spotty in its support of the theory. I was surprised that a Harvard scholar would write in such a way. Accepting a theory as fact is no way to prove a theory.
-RvFvS

[ April 24, 2002: Message edited by: RufusAtticus ]</p>
RufusAtticus is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 04:48 PM   #3
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: WI
Posts: 4,357
Exclamation

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/cm/member-reviews/-/A1XLEBP9QSTJCP/1/ref=cm_rev_auth/104-6193867-9699941" target="_blank">Jonathan Sarfati (See more about me)</a>
hezekiah jones is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 04:58 PM   #4
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: NCSU
Posts: 5,853
Post

At least the crappy creationist reviews rarely have more than one star.

For Gould's new book:

I don't think this guy has even read the book.

Quote:
Every book on evolution should be in the "Religion" section of bookstores. Right next to all the other theories based on a leap of faith. 100+ years of floating unproveable theory after unproveable theory (read "lies") have ended up becoming "science". Hitler and Stalin would be proud, sad to say.

After tens of millions of U.S. tax dollars have been spent on proving macro-evolution, (with no success), there will, no doubt, be millions more spent in the pursuit of life coming from non-life, and to prove animals came from pond scum which came from water which came from a rock which came nothing.

Just admit that as far as animal life is concerned, the first slightly varied offspring of a kind would be bred right back into that kind and so sorry Charlie, birds won't ever come from plants, even if you add your normal millions and millions (or is it billions?!) of years excuse, sorry!

It is sad to see a few tax supported Marxists and Christian/Jew-haters on college campuses which give publishers and the media the wrong perception that evolution is accepted by all people, when any objective scientist would call it completely unproven.
Quote:
this is a big book -- sometimes fun and informative. The only problem is that this is also a scientific book that describes the world, and he is wrong.
For Origins of the Species:

Quote:
This was good for his time but times change and so does evidence.
First, now there are way to many objections to evolution that simply cannot be answered. Secon, the fossil record also shows that there are no fossils for these "evolutionary stages of apes'
it simply jumps from ape to man with no change. Third there is the most powerful case aganist it. That is the Biochemical Challenge about the cell. Micheal Behe' Darwins Black Box explains it beautifully. Sorry dar come up with a new one.
Quote:
Good read more for history than real science
No one can underestimate the impact of the Origin of the Species. While Darwinian evolution was never accepted by the great masses of America (about 45% of people believe in Creation Science, and another 45% believe in intelligent design or "divinely-guided" evolution), Western society's elite has literally worshiped Darwin's thesis that order emerges from disorder without any intelligent agent guiding the process. This elite has been the movers and shakers of the 20th century. It's fair to say that Marxism, Nazism, totalitarianism, heartless Capitalism, nihilism, existentialism, and a host of other philosophies that have brought 20th century man to the brink of annihilation on both societal and personal levels find their roots in this modest book.

But is Darwin's thesis true? The truth is that Darwinism explains nothing. The idea that variation plus natural selection accounts for life is nothing more than a tautology: of course the variants that were most fit for survival survived! That's simply saying the same thing twice. It doesn't account for how life arrived in the first place, and does account for why the "variations" showed up on time. The fossil record has been disasterous to Darwinism, showing that species appear suddenly without precursors, and vary very little within the duration of the species. (A theory called "punk eek" has been proposed to explain why this is, but it's totally unfalsifiable and therefore worthless.) More damaging has been studies in the field of mathematics, physics, and biochemistry, which show that the universe has not existed long enough for such evolution to take place, and that life is far more complicated on a molecular level than Darwin thought.

So why does Darwinism endure? Why does anyone who questions Darwinism find himself out of a job?

Two reasons. First, 20th century science has rigged the rules to say "a theory is always accepted, no matter what the evidence against it, as long as there is no other theory." In other words, if Darwinism can be bent to explain 25% of the evidence and no other theory exists to explain more, then Darwinism is accepted as fact. Second, Darwinism is the key component to most modern philosophy. It tells us who we are, where we're going, what we're capable of as a species. There has never, ever been a culture that doesn't have a "creation myth" that explains who humans beings are what the proper way to live is. Imagine for a moment a culture that truly has no idea what it means to be human...how long could such a culture endure? How long could people convince themselves of the rightness of their economic policies, social institutions, and pecking orders? If we admit that Darwinism is wrong but don't put anything in its place, society will intellectually collapse.

That, rather than sound science, explains Darwin's duration, despite the sick, groteque legacy he has left mankind

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/books/0517123207/customer-reviews/qid=1019695676/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/103-2523696-5219822" target="_blank">There's more crap where that came from.</a>

-RvFvS
RufusAtticus is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 05:17 PM   #5
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: St. John's, Nfld. Canada
Posts: 1,652
Post

check out this review of John Woodmorappes book.

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/books/0932766579/customer-reviews/2/ref=cm_rev_next/102-6149979-9813724?show=-submittime" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/books/0932766579/customer-reviews/2/ref=cm_rev_next/102-6149979-9813724?show=-submittime</a>

This guy teaches college level geology? Scary.

Dr. Kevin Henke's review seems to be the only one that's negative and he gives several examples of the typical deception that Woodmorappe is so famous for.

I think more scientists should expose this kind of garbage. Giveing their credentials as well. It's not good that such a lousy book gets so many good reviews.
tgamble is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 06:10 PM   #6
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Washington, DC
Posts: 4,140
Post

I've posted reviews of some of the creationist books at amazon.com under my real name. My best review is on Phillip Johnson's "Darwin on Trial".
MrDarwin is offline  
Old 04-24-2002, 06:39 PM   #7
Regular Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: land of confusion
Posts: 178
Post

Quote:
Originally posted by hezekiahjones:
<strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/cm/member-reviews/-/A1XLEBP9QSTJCP/1/ref=cm_rev_auth/104-6193867-9699941" target="_blank">Jonathan Sarfati (See more about me)</a></strong>

Damn, is Sarfati a blow hard or what?
pseudobug is offline  
Old 04-25-2002, 01:40 AM   #8
Contributor
 
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Alibi: ego ipse hinc extermino
Posts: 12,591
Post

This doesn't yet seem to be a problem at the .co.uk branch. I've only spotted it once, in a review of Dawkins's Selfish Gene. The cretinist review (29 aug 2000), and my response (2 Oct 2000), are <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/books/0192860925/customer-reviews/qid=1019727374/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_3_1/ref=cm_rev_all_2/026-3452154-7294835" target="_blank">here</a>.

Oolon
Oolon Colluphid is offline  
Old 04-25-2002, 08:49 AM   #9
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Toronto
Posts: 506
Post

I've posted a couple myself. I'd encourage everyone to do it; I've also noticed that the overall ratings for evolution books get heavily skewed by the number of creationsits posting reviews.

Get out there and write reviews! It ain't that hard.

Deb


Quote:
Originally posted by MrDarwin:
<strong>I've posted reviews of some of the creationist books at amazon.com under my real name. My best review is on Phillip Johnson's "Darwin on Trial".</strong>
Ergaster is offline  
Old 04-25-2002, 09:34 AM   #10
Regular Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: USA
Posts: 153
Post

Here is another one that is amazing - only one person has refuted the "science" in this book:

<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0932766412/qid=1019755297/sr=1-3/ref=sr_1_3/104-1939345-5434309" target="_blank">Noahs Ark: A feasability Study, by Woodmorappe ... Amazon.com reviews!</a>

Let's all follow these links and hammer away!
SmashingIdols is offline  
 

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 04:31 PM.

Top

This custom BB emulates vBulletin® Version 3.8.2
Copyright ©2000 - 2015, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.