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From: ethan@utastro.UUCP (Ethan Vishniac)
Newsgroups: net.origins
Subject: Re: misc. creationist topics
Message-ID: <550@utastro.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 19-Sep-84 14:54:01 EDT
Article-I.D.: utastro.550
Posted: Wed Sep 19 14:54:01 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 26-Sep-84 01:12:31 EDT
References: <32500002@uiucdcsb.UUCP>
Organization: UTexas Astronomy Dept., Austin, Texas
Lines: 27

[zot]

It may be too late already, but I have a suggestion for the rules
of discussion here.  Quite a lot of Ray Miller's most recent message
seem to boil down to this: "All of our mutually held highest ideals
about human beings are baseless if one believes in evolution."
Now personally, I think this is a crock of shit.  However, I also
think that it is irrelevant to this discussion group.  If creationism
has any scientific validity then it must be established by appealing
to the evidence at hand.  Ray seems to be suggesting here that because
he can't see any reason not to lead a life of rape and pillage if God
does not exist then the existence of God had better form the basis for
our understanding of the universe.  (I'm a little confused as to why
a belief in theistic evolution wouldn't do as well as creationism, but
that's beside the point).
    Let's try to discuss creationism and evolution in terms of the
physical evidence.  If we can't, then I submit that that simply shows
that creationism is not science.  If Ray really wants to categorize
non-believers as being divided into hypocrites and immoral monsters
then I suggest he take the argument to net.religion.
        
                         
"I can't help it if my     Ethan Vishniac
    knee jerks"         {charm,ut-sally,ut-ngp,noao}!utastro!ethan
                           Department of Astronomy
                           University of Texas
                           Austin, Texas 78712