Who's the Science Stopper: Introduction

It has long been a claim of Darwinism that, as Theodosius Dobzhansky so bluntly put it in the title of his essay, "nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of Evolution".  Obviously there are many people who disagree with this (here's one organization that's a particular favorite of mine devoted to explaining biology without the "light" of evolution) and I don't feel inclined to discus the topic of how Biology can be explained without evolution.  Why then have I opened with this quote?  Frankly, because it's what got me thinking about the topic I now wish to embark on.  Not only is Biology also explained by other theories, and I think often better, there are some times when Darwinian predictions lead Biologists down the wrong track.  I'll get into the specifics later, but the fact is that there a number of times when Darwinian thinking has been a science stopper.  Don't get me wrong, many opposing views have done the same, but I think it is becoming increasingly clear that Darwinism is not only not immune to science-stopping, it is severely infected by it.  In light of this, I hope to outline a few classic examples of Darwinian-based assumptions that turned out to be science-stoppers.

First, however, I want to be very clear on something.  This series of posts are not intended to be taken as an argument against evolution or for my personal beliefs on biological or astronomical origins.  These posts are simply intended to inform the reader of facts that he may not have been aware of and offer analysis that could be new as well.  If you want good arguments for my personal view or against Neo-Darwinism, just go to the site linked above (and here too, for that matter) and browse around.  All I intend to do here is explore the idea that there may be times and places where Darwinism can act as a science stopper, just as the Church and other paradigms have acted as science-stoppers, as in the case of the geocentric model of the universe.  I leave it to you to decide whether this is merely a fluke and unavoidable human error, or sign of a real deficiency in the Darwinian Paradigm.

(By the way, you may not want to hold your breadth while waiting for the following posts.  I'll be lucky if I get them all in before the end of summer.  If you don't want to miss the up-coming posts you can subscribe to my blog via email at the bottom of the page.)

http://news.investors.com/editorialcartoons/cartoon.aspx?id=614346

With friends like these . . .

Pakistan has shown its commitment to harboring terrorists and defeating every purpose of the US war on terror yet again by convicting Pakistani doctor Shakeel Afridi, who assisted the US in determining the location of Bin Laden.  If Pakistan really is "an invaluable ally" as we are encouraged to believe why on earth do they keep arresting the people who help us and allow to remain, or even assisting for all we know, those who are our sworn enemies.  It also begs the question why we are forced, out of necessity, to cut back on our own military budget simply so we can give money to the Pakistanis to enable them to arrest our friends and hold them in prison for 33 years, as it seems will occur in this case.  It also makes one wonder what exactly this money we are giving to Pakistan is doing, since they appear to be willing to do all manner of things against our own interest with little or no fear.  If the money is really securing Pakistan as an ally than where are the fruits of this investment?  It seems that we are only funding them until they finally decide to give up what little pretending they have been carrying on lately and launch an all out war against us, or at least go completely rough like Iran.  I'd like to see someone explain why we have to cut money from our own military so that we can give it to our terrorist-harboring, agent-arresting "friends".

3/27/12, 15:30 EST; 3/28/12, 03:30 Beijing Time; 3/27/12, 19:30 GMT; En route to Lancaster PA from DC

We’re back in PA once more, just over 24 hours after we left the hotel in Beijing.  I think can say that those of us who haven’t been able to fall asleep on this bumpy and uncomfortable bus are all very glad to be back in the good old US of A (and very glad to find that the grass is quite green many flowers have started to bloom in our absence).  We had an uneventful traveling period up till now and are looking forward to being home safe and sound within a few hours.

3/27/12, 04:40 EST; 3/27/12, 16:40, Beijing Time; 3/27/12, 08:40 GMT; 3/27/12, 02:40 Local Time (almost an hour before we arrived at the airport); Over Northern Canada

We’re finally on our way home!  (But I’m getting ahead of myself.)  First off, we did get to see the Great Wall, and many of us climbed a significant portion thereof.  (It was extremely steep in one place in particular.) 

Overall it was amazing to attempt to comprehend the amount of hard work that was poured into this astounding structure.  We couldn’t even get up there without a tram and the builders had to bring all of the stone, food, and other supplies up with them (we were tired enough walking a small portion of the completed wall).  After coming back down the tram and pushing our way through the determined venders, we ate at a nice, touristy-looking place, which had very good food.  Then we took the bus back to Beijing to visit the Summer Palace.  The amount of art and sheer audacious finery in there, even after being pillaged by revolutionaries, is astounding to behold.  Though we hardly experienced the vastness and beauty of the place entirely, what we saw was plenty to get the point across.  The idea that a ruler would indulge in such finery is quite foreign to our American minds, but it also helps me understand why communism and equal distribution of resources have been so valued by the Chinese people in recent years.  After soaking in the sites and doing our best to absorb some of the history of the summer palace being recounted to us by our guide we headed off to dinner.  Finally the last thing we did was shop at the Silk Street market, where the vast majority of our party bought beats headphones for around 200 RMB (about $32.50).  (I didn’t because they don’t sound that great with classical music.)  Most of us didn’t sleep much/at all last night because we had to get up at 3am to leave for the airport anyway.  Everything went smoothly at the airport except that my iPod decided to stay in Beijing and fell out of my pocket without telling me of its intentions and is probably back in some night market in Beijing being sold for 100 RMB (about $16.50).  As we took off we got a fantastic aerial view of the Great Wall and surrounding mountains since we had a fantastically clear day for China.  (This was the only flight in which we could see any part of China from the air.)  Now it’s dark outside and I’m going to try to get a little more sleep.

3/25/12, 20:15 EST; 3/26/12, 08:15 Beijing Time; 3/26/12, 00:15 GMT; Beijing, China

You’ll be glad to know, I hope, that I make it through the festival alive (but just barely) along with the rest of our group.  Only one person fainted and had to go to the hospital, fortunately not one of ours.  (Going to a Chinese hospital doesn’t sound like a very pleasant experience to me, but I speak in ignorance, thankfully.)  Yesterday we rode the bus back to Beijing, dumped our stuff in the hotel and headed off for the Forbidden City on foot.  I must admit that I didn’t find it as interesting as places like civil war battlefields, which I have more historical context for.  (That is, for which I have a historical context.  Stupid language.)  However, the vastness and ornateness of the place was impressive and it’s good to know that it really does look exactly like the pictures.  We left the Forbidden City via Tiananmen Gate and saw the infamous square.  This had a lot more meaning to me, even though I wasn’t alive during the protests.  After that we walked to walking street (aptly named since they won’t allow cars on it) so that we could walk some more and eat and shop and practice our bartering skills.  After spending around four hours there we walked back to the hotel check in and get some sleep.  This morning we had breakfast at 7am and left soon after for the Great wall, which we are currently on our way to see.

3/23/12, 21:15 EST; 3/24/12, 09:15 Beijing Time; 3/24/12, 01:15 GMT; Tianjin, China

The 21^st was our last day in Chengdu and we didn’t go anywhere except the international school.  While there, we got to see some presentations on things like the earth quake of 2008 and a movement to strengthen families.  We also had the privilege of seeing a spectacular performance on the Chinese banjo (known to some as the Pe Pa). 

After that we ate at the cafeteria and those of us who were chosen to be part of the impromptu CLCHM praise band, myself included, tried to throw something together for a special fellowship time at the school, following the regular chapel, which our team sang in.  Fortunately the kids from the international school did most of the leading, since they did a great job.  I must admit that it was a bit odd for me making up accompaniments for praise songs on the violin for the first time (not to mention being miced).  I don’t know that I prefer it to more traditional styles, but I was extremely glad that I got to have that experience, in China of all places.  After the fellowship session went out to eat as a group for our last dinner in Chengdu and returned to our host families to pack.  The next mourning we said our farewells and left for an uneventful day of travel, with the exception of a unique billboard depicting a small boy urinating from long range into a western style toilet and some nasty illnesses which we have all ended up with now.  When we arrived in Tianjin we had a bite to eat at a plaza with a number of restaurants and checked in to our hotel.  The next day was spent singing and singing and singing and singing some more for the nation-wide festival of international schools which we journeyed here to attend.  After getting back exhausted and sick the sane ones among our party (a small minority) went to bed and the insane ones, myself included, sat in the lobby and sang (perhaps some did neither, but I don't know anything about that).  Today we have another day of grueling singing ahead of us, which none of us are looking forward thanks to the fact that all of us are suffering from varying degrees of illness (except for the ones who don’t have to sing, of course).  Ah well. 

3/20/12, 08:50 EST; 3/20/12, 20:50 Beijing Time; 3/20/12, 12:50 GMT; Chengdu, China

On Monday (I can’t believe Monday was just yesterday) we started the day by visiting a local migrant school along with the choir from the international school and performed a number of pieces for them outside before mingling with their 9th graders and starting a basket ball game.  After that we returned to the international school and ate lunch before leaving again to tour the religious sites of Chengdu. The first was the local Mosque, which didn’t really have any surprises. 

The second was the Three Self Church, government sanctioned church (self-governance, self-support and self-propagation), which was pretty much just a large sanctuary much like one would find in an Episcopalian church around here in the US.

We sang a couple of songs in there, which sounded very nice thanks to the gorgeous acoustics of the room. Finally, we also visited a Buddhist temple, which was a very depressing experience. The most striking aspect of the entire place was its oppressive nature. There are literally angry gods, demons, and other nasties coming out of the woodwork.

Comparing this hope in incense candles offered to enormous scowling statues that look like they’d love to rend you in pieces to the hope I have in Christ almost impossible.  It’s interesting to think that the deep sadness I feel for such people now is not felt by them at all, as they must see it as simply another form of insurance. It’s so clear to see the utter despair, sadness, and hopelessness of anything besides the one true God.  It’s terrible to think that the metaphysical Idols in my own life are just as horrible evil, oppressive, and destructive anything in that temple, if not more so.  After the temple, we went to a dirty little restaurant near by and had some delicious Tibetan cuisine, while being serenaded by a somewhat tipsy gentleman who knew some cool songs and shook each of us by the hand as we left.  After that we returned to our host families and retired to our beds.  The next mourning (today) we went first thing in the mourning to see the Panda reserve.  

Although I don’t seem to appreciate Pandas in the same way that others in my party do, I did see some interesting birds roaming the premises along with the Red and Giant Pandas in there, some of which I was able to identify including Yellow-bellied Tits, Collared Finchbill, and the omnipresent White-browed Laughingthrushes and Light-vented Bulbuls.   After that we returned to the school to eat lunch at the cafeteria before going to another to take part in a cultural exchange, which I found extremely interesting and entertaining (except for the part we did).  There was an oriental orchestra, Tai Chi, an Erhu solo, and a dance called “face changing” which involved two dancers and A LOT of masks.  Afterwards they walked us around some of the local shop and treated us to dinner at a fancy restaurant.  The coolest part was that a guy from the Sichuan TV station filmed us the entire time we were there, which I assume means that we will be broadcasted on province television.  Needless to say, we’re back at our host family’s houses now and I need to get some sleep.

3/18/12, 10:10 EST; 3/18/12, 22:10 Beijing Time; 3/18/12, 14:10 GMT; Chengdu, China

Well, now that we’re here there’s barely enough time to do everything planned let alone write about it, but this is worth a little sleep loss.  Yesterday mourning our group visited an orphanage in a nearby city.  I could say all the cliché stuff that people are wont to say after something like this (which is mostly true judging from my experience), but I think I’ll just sketch a little bit of the scene instead.  (Figuratively speaking, of course, I’m not in the habit of drawing much.)  The afore mentioned orphanage is specifically for special needs children, although there are some children without special needs and some adults with special needs there as well.  The disabilities of the children/adults there vary quite a bit from a repaired cleft lip to some severe mental and physical disabilities.  While we were there we threw around some balls and frisbees and did our best to interact despite the language barrier, which worked pretty well in most cases.  I guess if my writing in this area is a bit stiff and even worse than my other writing it’s because I’m still somewhat over-whelmed by the entire experience more than 30 hours later.  The combination of laughter and play with seeing people in wheel chairs tied to the wall made for a rather confusing and difficult experience.  

After that excursion we returned to the school to play some frisbee until dinner.  My particular group of four accompanied our host family to a local restaurant where I was finally forced to use chop sticks or starve (which I was able to do with some success, as I certainly did not starve by any means).  I personally had pulled noodles, which we were able to see pulled outside the restaurant, submerged in a tasty broth.  After that we took a little stroll and enjoyed the unusually dry weather.  (In Chengdu, if you can tell for sure where the sun is, it’s a clear day.  We were able to see Venus and Jupiter relatively clearly during the night.)  After that we returned home and finished Dolphin Tail with our host families little girls and watched the first half of The Fellowship of the Ring with their boys after the girls went to bed.  Sunday mourning we were able to fellowship at the international school and sang some songs for and with the gathering.  (I personally accompanied on my host families violin along with some other students who played drums, piano, and guitar.)  After that, one of my room mates and I played soccer with some kids, including our host families boys.  Finally, this evening we went to the night market in Xiepoo (I’m not sure if that is an accepted pinyon spelling, but it’s pronounced she-poo).  Probably the coolest things I ate there were cuttlefish and duck intestine, both of which were grilled on a stick.  

The duck intestine in particular tasted a lot like bacon, due to the seasoning, and the cuttlefish was quite tasty.  Another interesting food item we had was sugar cane, which tasted . . . sugary.  The vendor selling it simply lopped off the ends of the cane and the outer shell and hacked it into a number of pieces.  Then we simply bit off a piece, extracted the juice, and spat the fibers out on the street.  (People spit and throw all kinds of things all over the place in addition to having their children relieve themselves on street.  No I didn’t get any pictures of that.)  Anyhow, my “host dad” tells me that “a Christian on his way to heaven goes to bed before eleven”.  Fortunately it’s actually 23:08, but I think I should still go to bed rather than risk my immortal soul.  Bonne nuit.

If you're getting tired of hearing about me . . .

Here's some commentary you won't find on MSNBC.

http://clearysviewpoint.blogspot.com/2012/03/normal-people-bullies-and-totalitarians.html

http://clearysviewpoint.blogspot.com/2012/03/race-and-justice-in-america.html

http://clearysviewpoint.blogspot.com/2012/03/muslim-tolerance.html

3/16/12, 07:30 EST; 3/16/12, 19:30 Beijing Time; 3/16/12, 11:30 GMT; Chengdu, China

I’m currently doing my best to stay awake as long as I can in an attempt to adjust to local time.  My three room mates seem to have succumbed and I’m not sure how long I can hold out.  Probably trying to write under the influence of jet-lag is about the dumbest thing on earth, but here I sit.  By the time the lines for getting the boarding passes opened in Beijing, we were running a little close to our departure time.  Then we had to switch lines a number of times before we got in “the right line”.  By this time we were getting a little concerned about making our flight, but were able to race through security and make it on the plane on time and with limited loss of property.  Once we were on we settled down and tried to eat some of the airline food provided.  I’m not sure which is more revolting, Chinese breakfast gruel or airplane food, but I do know that the combination of the two was not very appetizing (although I must allow that, due to its bland nature, it couldn’t really be called disgusting either).  Of course, things started to pick up after we landed and left the airport and actually got to see some of China.  (Dawn was just breaking when we left Beijing, and all of China seemed to be enveloped by a large cloud during our flight to Chengdu.)  One of the things that surprised me most about Chengdu initially is the amount of greenery.  Almost every roof is covered with bushes, small trees, and other plants.  After arriving at the private school that will serve as our base of operations for the duration of our time in Chengdu we went strait into rehearsing our music, taking a break in the afternoon for lunch.  After we finished practicing (maybe around 15:00) we were all connected with our hosts, and had the opportunity to take a shower for the first time since Wednesday mourning (about 45 hours and ____ miles ago) which most of us took advantage of.  After that, my room mates and I joined a different family for dinner, since our own host family had another engagement, where we are currently residing/sleeping. 

P. S. I managed to stay awake until we returned to our host family’s apartment at around 21:00.  My room mates slept through the night without much trouble despite their prolonged naps.  

3/15/12, 12:40 EST; 3/16/12, 00:14 Beijing Time; 3/15/12 GMT; Beijing, China

We have arrived safely in China and are over 25 hours into our journey from the time we got on the bus in Lancaster.  We made it through customs smoothly and are now waiting out or very long (7 hour) lay-over in the Beijing airport. Life is really getting tough now.  I can handle a 13 hour flight but a 7 hour lay-over WITH A DEAD iPod BATTERIE is simply humanly impossible.  It should be illegal to build an airport without an electrical outlet at least every 15 ft.  And planes too, for that matter.  (Perhaps my weariness is showing a little.  I’m not only rambling on, a more than usual phenomenon, I’m composing sentence fragments instead of run-ons.)   Anyhow, some of the more creative (or delirious) members of our party found sources of entertainment notwithstanding the afore mentioned hardship.

I would continue rambling on so that I have something to do, but there simply isn’t anything to ramble about right now.  I was unpleasantly unsurprised to find that our party, bedecked in red shirts and hats, draws a lot of stares from the Chinese folks.  Can’t say I blame them.

P.S.  I was able to charge my iPod with one of the chaperon's power strips which he found an outlet for.  While I waited for it to charge, we talked about politics until sparks flew.  Literally.  The outlet blew up during our otherwise mundane conversation.  It was probably made in China.

3/14/12, 16:15 EST; 3/15/12, 04:15 Beijing Time; 3/14/12, 20:15 GMT; Washington International

We’re now waiting outside our gate to board for our flight to Chicago.  We saw the Capital Building, the Jefferson Memorial, and the Air Force Memorial on the way into DC.  Everyone made it through security with limited confiscation and delay.  Boarding isn’t called until 17:40, so we get to hang out here for a little while.

3/14/12, 11:30 EST; 3/14/12, 23:30 Beijing Time; 3/14/12, 15:30 GMT; Lancaster PA

The bus is rolling and our contingent of the Central Lancaster County Homeschool Choir is on its way (hence my difficulty in reading my handwriting).  Nothing to write about really, but I needed something to do.

Farewell for Now

Not that you care unless you know me well enough to have already heard, but I'll be going on a trip to China from the 14th to the 28th, so I won't be posting much during that time.  However, I do hope to post all about it after I get back (and get over the jet lag).  When I get back, I hope to hear that Santorum has won a deluge of landslide victories, but if Newt stays in and Romney continues to spend Santorum's pant's off I have a feeling I'll be sorely disappointed.  Anyhow, until the 28th (Beijing time), zài jiàn.

Cool Hybrid (not the car)

Here is a really interesting photo from Nemesis Bird of a Common Goldeneye / Hooded Merganser Hybrid.

I find it amazing that two ducks that appear so different could hybridize, (the Goldeneye is in genus Bucephala while the Merganser is in genus Lophodytes).  This is a good example of why scientists can't simply use interbreeding as a determination of whether or not a species should be merged.  On some occasions, animals of distinct species can successfully interbreed (and in some cases do so frequently enough that they form a new species, like the Brewster's and Lawrence's Warblers, which are both Hybrids of the Golden-winged and Blue-winged Warblers).

Anti Science Thinking

A recent report from the BBC (the source of all quality and and intelligent reporting) highlighted the incredibly high level of anti science thinking in the United States.  This is a rather interesting claim.  Apparently Americans don't like critical thinking and would rather hold on to the established view instead of questioning ideas, looking at the facts, and constantly attempting to test theories, no matter how well established.  That is indeed a terrible thing.  Such a rejection of the scientific method would be detrimental indeed to the function of our society.  Now lets look at the evidence for this terrible anti science thinking, this deplorable rejection of the scientific method.  1) many Americans don't believe in man-made global warming.  2) many Americans don't believe in evolution.  3) some Americans don't even believe that the benefits of immunizations outweigh the downsides.  Blimey!  I'm an anti-science bloke too!  I guess I'll have to rethink majoring in Chemistry in college!  Wait a minute.  Never mind.  The BBC meant to say anti establishment, not anti science.  It would seem that Americans actually tend to think critically, challenge the established view, and draw their own conclusions more than their European counterparts.  That, in my opinion is pro-science.  Science isn't about believe what your told.  Science is about thinking critically, questioning the establishment, making and testing new theories, and thinking for one's self.  This isn't to say, of course, that we, as lay people, should throw away what experts have to say, but when the experts disagree (as they most assuredly do in some cases in regards to evolution and anthropogenic global warming) each person must decide for themselves.  In such cases it is not always best to go with the view that the media, the democrats, or even Al Gore holds.  Rather, each person should look at the facts, read what experts on both sides of the issue have to say, and make their own decision.  If this is the case, one would expect the views of the masses to vary just like the views of the experts.  One still has a 50% chance of being correct (or at least partially correct) but one has the added advantage of using one's mind and having an educated opinion, rather than being an intellectual Mockingbird, saying whatever you happen to hear.  Attempting to quash debate, declare scientific issues "settled" and hush up the facts is about the most anti-science thing I can think of, and that's exactly what media outlets like the BBC and a whole host of others are doing.  Perhaps anti-science thinking is really a European phenomenon.  

Bronx Household of Faith v. Bd. of Education of New York

Christians who think that the US government has been waging a war on religion, and more specifically Christianity have not been comforted by a recent circuit court ruling that allowed the city of New York to evict churches that have been using public schools for their worship services on Sundays.  I personally was rather shocked when I read WORLD magazine's article on the topic.  As someone very interested in the constitution and the constitutionality of today's courts, I searched (arduously) for the official summary of the case (which I ironically could not find in any article and was about to give up all hope when I found this link posted in a comment on an article.  (Thank you "christianlawyer.)  I encourage you to read the whole document, but as I myself didn't manage to read every word, I figured you might appreciate some of the
highlights.

“The "religious worship services" clause does not purport to prohibit use of the facility by a person or group of persons for "worship." What is prohibited by this clause is solely the conduct of a particular type of event: a collective activity characteristically done according to an order prescribed by and under the auspices of an organized religion, typically but not necessarily conducted by an ordained official of the religion. The conduct of a "religious worship service" has the effect of placing centrally, and perhaps even of establishing, the religion in the school.”

"Nor is this rule of exclusion vulnerable on the ground that the activity excluded has some similarities to another activity that is allowed. To begin with, we reject the suggestion that because a religious worship service shares some features with activities such as a Boy Scout meeting, no meaningful distinction can be drawn between the two types of activities. See Dissenting Op. 56-57. Boy Scout meetings are not religious worship services. The fact that religion often encompasses concern for standards of conduct in human relations does not mean that all activity which expresses concern for standards of conduct in human relations must be deemed religion."

“There is an important difference between excluding the conduct of an event or activity that includes expression of a point of view, and excluding the expression of that point of view. Under rules consistent with the purposes of the forum, schools may exclude from their facilities all sorts of activities, such as martial arts matches, livestock shows, and horseback riding, even though, by participating in and viewing such events, participants and spectators may express their love of them. The basis for the lawful exclusion of such activities is not viewpoint discrimination, but rather the objective of avoiding either harm to persons or property, or liability, or a mess, which those activities may produce. We think it beyond dispute that a school's decision to exclude martial arts matches would be lawful notwithstanding the honest claim of would-be participants that, through participating in the matches, they express their love of the sport and [*38] their character. The exclusion would nonetheless not represent viewpoint discrimination.”

Thus the majority argues that the law in question, which gives the city the ability to prohibit religious worship services in public schools at the city's own discretion, does not violate the freedom of speech and of religious expression because it gives the city the right to prohibit the act of religious worship instead of the expression itself.  However, although this may seem reasonable at first, the dissenting offers a rebuttal.

“While I disagree with Judge Calabresi's analysis and conclusions, he at least recognizes that the two parts of SOP § 5.11 operate in tandem to effectively preclude worship and the practice of religion from school premises during non-school hours. 

[fn2] Indeed, the majority's attempt to differentiate between the "conduct of services," which it defines as "the performance of an event or activity," Maj. Op. at 36, and the conduct of "religious worship services" as two distinct categories of activity relies explicitly on the religious nature of the latter activity. Whereas a Boy Scouts merit badge service constitutes "a collective activity characteristically done according to an order prescribed by and under the auspices of an organized [civic group]" and is "typically . . . conducted by an . . . official of the [group]," Maj. Op. at 37, Bronx Household's weekly "event or activity" is barred solely because it is performed under the auspices of an organized religion and conducted by an ordained official of the religion. Thus, these purportedly distinguishing criteria squarely depend on the fact that religion is the underlying motivation for the expressive activity.

[fn3] For this reason, the majority errs by distinguishing Good News Club on the basis of the Supreme Court's statement that the Club meetings in that case did not involve "mere religious worship." 533 U.S. at 112 n. 4, 121 S.Ct. 2093; see Maj. Op. at 43, 50. The majority omits a critical modifier: the Court made clear that it did not consider the Club's activities to be "mere religious worship, divorced from any teaching of moral values." Id.(emphasis added). The same is true here: Bronx Household's worship services cannot be divorced from the teaching of moral values that are part and parcel of those services, which include Bible lessons and instruction. Indeed, how can the majority's conception of religious worship services ever be divorced from promoting moral values?”

As the dissenting opinion demonstrates, the thing truly being permitted to be restricted is the religion, not the service, since services are obviously allowed, assuming they are not religious.  Thus such restriction is unconstitutional and should not be permitted by the court.  One wonders why on earth the supreme court refused to rule on such an important case, but I suppose they would rather focus on more important issues like the legal definition of words like marriage.

This brings us to the question covered by WORLD's article.  Why on earth would anyone want to stop churches from meeting in public schools.  The relationship seems to be mutually beneficial and the school gets extra money, the church gets a relatively inexpensive location to worship in.  However, the reasoning behind permitting this unconstitutional exclusion is briefly mentioned in the majority opinion.

“The conduct of a "religious worship service" has the effect of placing centrally, and perhaps even of establishing, the religion in the school.”

With all due respect to the justice, that is absurd.  Meeting in the school when no one else is around does not establish the religion in the school any more than when churches meet in movie theaters.  To my knowledge, such theaters have not adopted Christianity or even been perceived as doing such.  If the Muslims wanted to worship in the school, they could too (before the law in question was passed).  Any number of activities besides academics are performed in the school without being "placed centrally" or being established as unduly advocated by the school.  The only reason I see that people are so sensitive to these things is that they, under the guise of tolerance, are in fact quite intolerant of anything religious, and particularly Christian, as Christianity is still the most wide spread official religion in the US.   At the end of the WORLD article, WORLD interviewed three students at one of the schools currently being used by a church.  The students were completely unaware of the church meeting in the school in the first place and that there was nothing wrong with it.  After all, as one of the students said, "it's a free country".

Gay Wrongs

As if it weren't outrageous enough that an American football player would dare to acknowledge his God rather than prance around like a spoiled four year old, like most other players, a former Australian tennis  player has said that gay unions should not be defined as marriage.  You can read more about this shocking you can read more about this horrific development here.  Fortunately, the forces of all things good and gay have created a Facebook group, encouraging people to refute this argument by waving colorful banners at the Australian open.  'At'l teach those homophobes!  

Yet again, we have here an example that the only thing these "tolerant" people can tolerate is the absence of any truth or moral imperatives.  Any expression of such beliefs is immediately attacked, the person slandered, hopefully their career ruined, and an avalanche of harsh statements declaring the moral imperative of rejecting all moral imperatives. If this belief seems strange, cruel, or even irrational to you, you must be a radical right-wing hateful homophobe, as Professor Kerryn Phelps explained in an interview with the BBC

"I think Margaret Court's name should be stripped from the arena.  The Australian open is an iconic sporting even, it has international attention, and for the name of somebody who has now associated themselves with some very extreme, right-wing views that harm a lot of people, I don't think that's appropriate for the name of that venue."

Good grief, she must have said some pretty hurtful things.  The article linked about provides an example of these outrageous views that "hurt a lot of people".

Court, the greatest women's player in the history of Australian tennis and a winner of 24 grand slam singles titles, has vowed to attend this year's tournament despite the backlash against her views about homosexuality, which she says involves "abominable sexual practices." 

She has described same sex marriage as "unhealthy, unnatural unions."

Wow, that's so . . . true.  No wonder so many "tolerant" people are attempting to silence these views and erase the recognition of the incredible accomplishments of this former athlete.  (I wonder what people would have said if she was a Muslim and not a Christian pastor?)  Unfortunately for the anti-truth gays, Margaret Court happens to be "the greatest women's player in the history of Australian tennis and winner of 24 grand slam singles titles".  Thus she will not be easily trashed and dismissed.

In savagely protecting the rights of a few, Professor Phelps has dismissed and marginalized the views of one of the most wide-spread religions of all time, Christianity.  Apparently, if you believe that the Bible is true, as I do, you are nothing but a right-wing extremist who causes harm to a lot of people.  Never mind that said people are only hurt by their own "unhealthy, unnatural unions" and the people that tell them such unions are ok, and not the people who express their Biblical belief that such actions are sin.  The Bible is quite clear on the sinfulness of the action of homosexuality.  Take 1 Corinthians 9-10 (ESV)

⁹ Or do you not know that the unrighteous^[a] will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality,^[b] 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 

[b] 1 Corinthians 6:9 The two Greek terms translated by this phrase refer to the passive and active partners in consensual homosexual acts

The Bible does not say that we should persecute gays or that we should treat them like dirt, it only says, as Court said, that homosexuality is a sin and that those who give themselves over to it in favor of God will not inherit the kingdom of God. Thus, making statements like Courts, however much people may find them distasteful, is necessary for Christians, since they know that people who embrace homosexuality are hell-bound and have an obligation to say as much to homosexuals in the hope that the Holy Spirit will use such words to turn them from their evil ways.

The Bible also defines marriage in Genesis 2:18-24 (ESV)

¹⁸ Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for^[a] him.” ¹⁹Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed^[b] every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens andbrought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name. ²⁰ The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam^[c] there was not found a helper fit for him. ²¹ So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. ²² And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made^[d] into a woman and brought her to the man. ²³ Then the man said, 

   “This at last is bone of my bones    and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman,    because she was taken out of Man.”^[e] 

 ²⁴ Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

Footnotes

1. Genesis 2:18 Or corresponding to; also verse 20
2. Genesis 2:19 Or And out of the ground the LORD God formed
3. Genesis 2:20 Or the man
4. Genesis 2:22 Hebrew built
5. Genesis 2:23 The Hebrew words for woman (ishshah) and man (ish) sound alike

 God created men and women to be partners.  But as with all other things God created, this union has been perverted in many ways; through adultery, fornication homosexuality, and other means.  The only God-honoring sexuality is inter-marital sexuality.  All other forms are a perversion of God's wonderful plan, stated in verse 24.  Any attempt to call homosexual unions "marriage flies in the face of the true meaning of the word, stated by the author of all truth in the Bible.  Those who don't believe in objective truth, moral imperatives, or other such annoying, old-fashion ideas will say that they have the right to define marriage however they want and that religious fundamentalists should just step aside and allow society to continue its progress.  But what I have never heard anyone explain is why on earth in the name of freedom and tolerance, society can no longer tolerate maintaining the original definition of words.  They seem to think that the fact that they believe all beliefs are true gives them the right to trample whatever beliefs they don't like, but in reality it only gives those who have beliefs all the more right to maintain their ways, even at the expense of the ethical nihilist, since the ethical nihilist cannot argue against others on the basis of moral imperatives.  Of course, that's not how they see it.  Typically people don't even know what an ethical nihilist is, even though they are one.  I obviously can't speak for Professor Phelps, but I would guess that her position on gay rights is based more on her subjective feeling that gay people should be told that they are married rather than a rational argument firmly rooted in her worldview.  She certainly didn't make any astounding arguments in the BBC interview.

It turns out that the Bible speaks about people like Professor Phelps.  One example is Romans 1:16-25

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jewfirst and also to the Greek. ¹⁷ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith,^[a] as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”^[b] 

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. ¹⁹ For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. ²⁰ For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,^[c] in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. ²¹ For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Claiming to be wise, they became fools, ²³ and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. ²⁴ Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, ²⁵ because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.Footnotes:

1. Romans 1:17
 Or beginning and ending in faith

1. Romans 1:17
 Or The one who by faith is righteous shall live

1. Romans 1:20
 Or clearly perceived from the creation of the world

Claiming to be wise, Professor Phelps has become foolish, and God has given her up to the lusts of her heart, to impurity, and to the dishonoring of her body.  Thank God for people like Court who are willing to stand up for the truth and attempt to bring people to the realization of their sin, and pray that Christians may continue to love homosexuals and hate homosexuality.

New Bird

As many of you already know, I'm crazy about birds (many would say insane).  As a result of this, I convinced my family to drive up to Middle Creek this afternoon, with the intention of seeing a Northern Shrike which a number of people had reported seeing.  After an extended fruitless search we gave up and started to drive off, when I noticed the shrike perched on top of a bush I had scanned minutes before.  Some birders say that birds can sense hope and will only turn up when your completely hopeless.  Maybe there's some truth to that.  Anyhow, I was able to hop out of the car and snap some pictures of the bird, a selection of which you can see here.