Sssh... Don't tell them about the electrons powering their website!
Sam Hart
2007-02-20 00:40:35Chances are, you've heard about the Republican Congressmen who said that Evolution is a myth spread by Jews. Well, from that article you can find a link to a site that was mentioned in another memo from another elected official, namely fixedearth.com.
fixedearth.com is a site that claims, among other things, that the Earth is really the fixed center of the Universe and everything else revolves around it. It also says that any and every evidence to the contrary is part of some "Kabbalist physicist Albert Einstein" conspiracy.
Wow.... Just wow....
You know, I'm constantly amazed at how many genuinely stupid people there are still out there these days. I know I shouldn't be, the one thing that humans are known for is incredible ignorance. But, damn, to live in the 21st century with things like space exploration a semi-regular occurrence, and still think that the Copernican model of the solar system as well as every scientific discovery since then is wrong is just... just... GAH! Sub-moronic!
See, now I can understand how people don't understand a lot of this stuff.. It is complicated. But the thing is, if you don't understand it, you can try and learn about it. And as soon as you do, you discover pretty amazing things.
For example, in my undergraduate physics labs we performed many classic experiments. These experiments were honestly very basic, and were intended to teach the scientific method as well as experimental attentiveness (e.g., taking good notes, paying attention to details). But they also proved to those running the tests that the scientific principles they showcased were not only true, but indisputable.
In these labs I was always amazed at the most complex principles that you could very easily prove with simple equipment.
And you can easily verify that the Earth is NOT the center of the Universe by gazing into a Telescope for a few nights and observing the movements of the stars! How can people seriously think that this is all a giant conspiracy?!
Now, here's the deal, I'm a religious person. We've established this on many occasion. And I am someone who believes strongly that everyone has a right to their own personal beliefs. However, the sort of hate-mongering that comes from my fellow religious persons is astounding.
In addition to the above, I ran across the following image scanned from a newspaper editorial:
"Believe any way you want .... but you must believe?"
First of all, let's just ignore the fact that atheists are technically believing in something: They believe that there is no God. Instead, let's focus on just how hateful that editorial is. Also, just how contrary that editorial is to the fundamental teachings of most major religions.
In fact, considering the references to other religions the author of that page mentions ("Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, etc"), I'd wager that the author was Christian. If so, they seem to be forgetting a very important teaching of Christ: "He that is without sin... let him first cast a stone".
In other words, unless you're perfect (and none of us are), you're in no position to condemn. Something tells me that Alice Shannon (author of that editorial) needs to go back and review her scriptures....