Christmas Card - The Light of the World

Christmas Card -The Light of the World

Christmas Cards - Mary Had A Little Lamb

Mary Had A Little Lamb Christmas Card

Terrible News, Gordon FreeMan spotted near LHC

The Atheist Turtle has recently posted about Bill Nye's comments related to science and humanity's future.  It seems fitting to remind everyone that even those immersed in science are aware that not every scientist has the human race's best interests at heart, nor can science be trusted to remain in the control of benevolent masters.


http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/09/terrible-news-gordon-freeman-spotted-near-large-hadron-collider/

Bill Nye the Poor Advice Guy

Gilbert: I see the Atheists are at it again, making unrealistic claims about science.

Turtle: They aren't unrealistic claims. Science is the key to humanity's future

Gilbert: Bill's quote is a mishmash of uncorrelated claims.  For instance -How is science the key to our future?  It's true that science and technology have, in the past, produced things that have changed our lives but those changes often result in conflicting results.

Turtle:  Like what?

Gilbert: Let's take medical advances.  There is no question that technological advances have improved diagnostic abilities but that equipment has driven up health-care costs and encourages physicians to over-use the equipment in order to pay for it.  As result health-care becomes less and less affordable and fewer people have access to it.

Turtle: But people are getting better care.

Gilbert: Some are, but what about society as a whole.  Is it better to have expensive, sophisticated diagnostic equipment that not everyone can afford or less sophisticated equipment with universal access?

Turtle: But as use increases costs go down.

Gilbert: True but then the next thing comes along to replace the obsolete equipment so the costs go back up.

Then Bill says that, "if you don't believe in science you are holding everybody back."  Back from what?  His warning sounds alarming but it is pointless.  Is all scientific advancement good?

Turtle:How can it be otherwise?

Gilbert: What about cloning.  Bill wants science to advance free from 'religious interference' but science is incapable to answering whether cloning, or many other areas of science are good things.

Then Bill says that, "it is fine if you are an adult and want to run around pretending or claiming you don't believe in evolution."  But he just finished saying that if you don't believe in science you are holding everybody back.  Which is it?  Can't he make up his mind? And why is evolution a surrogate for science?

Then he says that, "if we educate a generation who doesn't believe in science that is a recipe for disaster."

What does he mean by, "believe in science?"  That makes no sense.  There is a great deal of lying going on about the relationship of the church and science.  I'm sure that is what is behind his rant but, one cannot "believe in science."  To say that is unthinking. And what 'disaster' is he referring to?

Finally, he alternates between evolution and science.  It seems what he is really promoting is evolution.  In his book The Selfish Gene Richard Dawkins writes, "Intelligent life on a planet comes of age when it first works out the reason for its own existence. If superior creatures from space ever visit earth, the first question they will ask, in order to assess the level of our civilization, is: ‘Have they discovered evolution yet?"

Well, speaking for Christianity, it explains why we are here and to say that aliens would assess our level of civilization based on whether we had discovered evolution is self-serving and just plain wrong.  Civilization refers to relationships and infrastructure, etc.  It has nothing to do with a specific branch of science.

Turtle: But overall, science is a good thing.

Gilbert:  But, un-tempered by religious teaching those advancements pose a potential for disaster as has happened in the past.  G. K. Chesterton wrote, "What modern science fails to realise is that there is little use in knowing without thinking.  Nobody is taking the smallest trouble to consider who in the future will be in command of electricity and capable of giving us the shocks.  With all the shouting about new marvels hardly anybody utters a word or even a whisper about how they will be prevented from turning into the old abuses..."

Can Bill Nye's science guarantee that its discoveries won't be abused.  No, because science can not care.

More to come.

I want Tim Tebow to Fail Part 2 - It was luck not prayer

Bruce: (an atheist) Well, the 2011 football season ended without any miracle win by the Broncos. 

Ary(Christian) Yes, I was disappointed.

Bruce: I guess all that Tebowing did no good.

Ary: Why would you say that?  They started the season 1 and 4.  After Tebow took over they were 7 and 4 with a novice quarterback.

Bruce:  They would have done better with Quinn instead of Tebow.

Ary:That is pure conjecture.  There is no way to prove that.

Bruce: But you have to admit that Tebow got the nod to replace Orton due to fan pressure not ability.

Ary: That may be true as well but the proof is in the pudding; once Tebow started playing the Broncos started winning.  Whether Quinn would have led them to a win over the Super Bowl Campions is another unknowable and if prayer didn’t work how does one account for the turnaround and final record of the Broncos?

Bruce: They got lucky under Tebow.

Ary:You don’t believe in prayer but you do believe in luck?

Bruce: Not the way you mean.  I mean Tebow’s weaknesses helped wear the defenses down. The whole game, the line is chasing the quarterback, which wears down the pass rush. Meanwhile, the backs are chasing receivers, but when the QB only throws eight passes they get lazy.  Then it only takes one big pass, for a touchdown.

Ary: So Tebow tricks the opposing team not to do their job so the Broncos can win?

Bruce:  Exactly, plus, the other Bronco players make Tebow look better than he really is, a lot better.

Ary: The fans seemed pretty happy with his performance.

Bruce:  I don’t understand that; no matter how many bad games Tebow plays the fans think that he’s great. I'll never understand that.

Ary: It seems to me that no matter how many good games Tebow has you aren’t willing to give him any credit.  He’s rather inexperienced as an NFL quarterback, he has a lot of critics, people who not only are waiting for him to fail, they are actually rooting for him to fail.  But even with that extra pressure, he led his team to a winning season.  It sees rather bizarre for a member of a team to be complaining about its leader, especially one who has been successful.

Bruce:  Tebow brings it on himself.  He makes a big show of being religious and praying and all.  He should knock that off.

Ary: He doesn’t seem to be making a big deal about it to me.  As for praying, what is he supposed to do, leave the sidelines and hide somewhere while he’s praying?

Bruce:  Just don’t kneel. If he wants to pray, just stand there and pray.

Ary: maybe Tim isn’t comfortable doing that.  Besides, with all of the negative associated with athletes these days, having one who promotes a positive set of values and faith seems like a good thing.

Bruce:  But it turns people off. It offends them.

Ary: For the life of me I don’t see how.  If you are watching him kneeling you aren’t watching the game.

Bruce:  But he’s always thanking God on camera too.

Ary: If I had a nickel for every athlete, movie star, and celebrity who thanked god on camera I’d be rich and based on their life styles most of them are just saying it.  I think the problem is that people know that Tim really means it.

[Bruce was silent for a minute before speaking.]

Bruce:  do you really think that Tebow’s God cares enough about a football game to interfere with the outcome, and if he does isn’t that cheating?

Ary:  I’ll tell you what I do know – God cared enough to have His Son to pay for our sins.  That makes us pretty important to Him.  If you want to know if God guides Tim’s arm, or gives him extra speed, or whatever, I can’t answer that, why don’t you ask Him yourself.


The above was adapted from an article located at the following URL accessed on 2/21/12
http://aol.sportingnews.com/nfl/story/2012-02-21/tim-tebow-denver-broncos-brady-quinn-sour-grapes?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl4%7Csec1_lnk2%26pLid%3D137176#ixzz1n3JeZhfY