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the_archfiendA few days ago, I posted something about the Minister of Science for the Republic of Ireland and his supremely odd choice of books to promote with that responsibility in mind. The book itself is something called The Origin of Specious Nonsense, and its author - a thing calling itself John J. May - is capable of some quite interesting prose, to say the least (as related by the forums at politics.ie):
7 Reasons Why I Detect and Reject Evolution
(7 reasons why he detects evolution as well? Boy, this'll be rich...)
1: It teaches us to be satisfied with - not understanding origins.
(Too bad he has the purpose of most paleontologists, biologists, anthropologists and everyone else working in related fields *ss backwards, but hey...)
2: It promotes the dangerous nonsense of no first cause - no supreme scientist
(Go ahead and laugh at the 99,876th time this sort of handwaving's been used in lieu of an actual argument. I did.)
and suggests order came from disorder.
(Wrong discipline. Ever heard of physics, John? Cosmology? Somehow, I doubt it.)
3: It is a mataphysical (sic) speculation, a doctrine dressed up in scientific garb.
(But CR3AT1I0N1SM 1S TH3 ABS0LUT3 TRUTH, right? How many times have we seen this argument, exactly? Is anyone still bothering to keep track?)
4: Anyone who teaches evolution is either ignorant or deliberately suppressing the known scientific facts.
(I'm sure his examples of ignorance are based on...well...ignorance. And the "scientific facts" May prattles on about are probably just as sound as Ken Ham's "theories" about how thousands of pairs of animals could be stuffed on a boat and not cause it to sink like a rock.)
5: It is a toxic poisonous mind virus
(Hey! Not while I'm still reading The Cassini Division, damnit!)
which destroys the hearts immune system against hope and common sense.
(That's pretty dotty language to begin with, but shouldn't that read "immune system
promoting hope and common sense" instead? I mean, appeals to emotion are appeals to emotion, but at least get the words right, for crying out loud)
6: It is an anaesthetic against reason.
(Whereas this book is just an anesthetic, period. I'm sure it could put a grad student who's hopped up on five triple espressos for his midterm exam to sleep in a matter or minutes. )
7: It cripples sanity,
(Pot, Kettle, Black, John. Seriously.)
promotes myths,
(Strike two on the PKB question, I think...)
obscures reality
(And the batter is ouuuuuuut!)
and elevates matter above a maker.
(I'm sure you'll have to have a chat with the likes of Kenneth Miller on all of this, John. Being a fellow Catholic and a biologist, he can help. Seriously.)
Boy, that was a handful, wasn't it?
Now I suggest you watch a few episodes of Nova in order to stop grunting.
7 Reasons Why I Detect and Reject Evolution
(7 reasons why he detects evolution as well? Boy, this'll be rich...)
1: It teaches us to be satisfied with - not understanding origins.
(Too bad he has the purpose of most paleontologists, biologists, anthropologists and everyone else working in related fields *ss backwards, but hey...)
2: It promotes the dangerous nonsense of no first cause - no supreme scientist
(Go ahead and laugh at the 99,876th time this sort of handwaving's been used in lieu of an actual argument. I did.)
and suggests order came from disorder.
(Wrong discipline. Ever heard of physics, John? Cosmology? Somehow, I doubt it.)
3: It is a mataphysical (sic) speculation, a doctrine dressed up in scientific garb.
(But CR3AT1I0N1SM 1S TH3 ABS0LUT3 TRUTH, right? How many times have we seen this argument, exactly? Is anyone still bothering to keep track?)
4: Anyone who teaches evolution is either ignorant or deliberately suppressing the known scientific facts.
(I'm sure his examples of ignorance are based on...well...ignorance. And the "scientific facts" May prattles on about are probably just as sound as Ken Ham's "theories" about how thousands of pairs of animals could be stuffed on a boat and not cause it to sink like a rock.)
5: It is a toxic poisonous mind virus
(Hey! Not while I'm still reading The Cassini Division, damnit!)
which destroys the hearts immune system against hope and common sense.
(That's pretty dotty language to begin with, but shouldn't that read "immune system
promoting hope and common sense" instead? I mean, appeals to emotion are appeals to emotion, but at least get the words right, for crying out loud)
6: It is an anaesthetic against reason.
(Whereas this book is just an anesthetic, period. I'm sure it could put a grad student who's hopped up on five triple espressos for his midterm exam to sleep in a matter or minutes. )
7: It cripples sanity,
(Pot, Kettle, Black, John. Seriously.)
promotes myths,
(Strike two on the PKB question, I think...)
obscures reality
(And the batter is ouuuuuuut!)
and elevates matter above a maker.
(I'm sure you'll have to have a chat with the likes of Kenneth Miller on all of this, John. Being a fellow Catholic and a biologist, he can help. Seriously.)
Boy, that was a handful, wasn't it?
Now I suggest you watch a few episodes of Nova in order to stop grunting.
