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From: dam@uvacs.CS.VIRGINIA.EDU (Dave Montuori)
Newsgroups: sci.research
Subject: Re: FAITH VS FACT
Message-ID: <1746@uvacs.CS.VIRGINIA.EDU>
Date: Fri, 10-Jul-87 14:48:04 EDT
Article-I.D.: uvacs.1746
Posted: Fri Jul 10 14:48:04 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 12-Jul-87 13:49:31 EDT
References: <1787@pbhye.UUCP>
Reply-To: dam@uvacs.UUCP (Dave Montuori)
Followup-To: talk.religion.misc
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Organization: U.Va. CS dept.  Charlottesville, VA
Lines: 37

In article <1787@pbhye.UUCP> was@pbhye.UUCP (Joe Wasik) writes:
>                        the religious right came upon an idea:
>if we cannot have our beliefs accepted as fact, then perhaps
>the definition of fact (i.e. scientific evidence) needs to be altered.
>
>Consider, evolution is rejected in favor of creationism by denying
>the validity of carbon dating, fossil evidence, genetic tracing
>in favor of explanations such as the Great Flood. 

This is the first time I've ever heard the Great Flood used as support
for creationism. Furthermore, the Flood isn't too far from being
a fact proven by honest scientific means. Nevertheless, the fundie
point of view is erroneous and doesn't merit being called "scientific."

>                                                  School prayer is
>promoted by relabeling traditional science as the religion of secular
>humanism.

Can you provide a logical connection between these? I am against the
involuntary lack of prayer in public schools, but I don't think that
has anything to do with how science is taught. Incidentally - correct
me with references if I'm wrong - I think the Supreme Court defined
secular humanism to be a religion in 1961.

I went to a Catholic school. There we were taught both evolution and
creationism, with the evidence for both sides presented. It was obvious
to our class that creationism as the fundies preach it is a crock of s**t.
God said Let There Be Physics, Let There Be Evolution, and the rest is
left to the reader as an exercise.

Now let's get this out of sci.research and back in talk.* where it
belongs....
-- 
From the University of Virginia at Boar's Head, C.S. Department-in-Exile:
Dave Montuori (Dr. ZRFQ); DAMONT quandum, DAMONTque futurus.
dam@cs.virginia.edu == dam1m@virginia.BITNET == seismo!virginia!uvacs!dam
"A blessing for the Tsar? May God bless and keep the Tsar... far away from us!"