From: "Bad Habits Lounge"To: "Positive Atheism Magazine"
Sent: January 27, 2002 9:32 AM
Subject: Re: Creationism Bill
Washington Creation Bill:
Hoax From
The Onion or SatireWire
Larry Beat
From: "Bad Habits Lounge"
To: "Positive Atheism Magazine"
Sent: January 27, 2002 9:32 AM
Subject: Re: Creationism Bill
Cliff,
I don't know how they did it. But, that bill on the State of Washington's website, is clearly a joke from either The Onion or SatireWire. For Christ's Sake! This is the 21st century. Or are we all dyslexic living in the 12th century?
It's the worst part of being an Atheist: the reality of being completely surrounded by ignorant, backwards people who have been told all their lives how intelligent they are. Then, the nightmare really begins when these fools are elected to office.
What really makes me sick to the stomach, is the almost non-existent public outrage against those who are, brick by brick, tearing down "The Wall."
Sincerely,
Larry Beat
Mary Esther, Florida
From: "Positive Atheism Magazine"
To: "Bad Habits Lounge"
Subject: Re: Creationism Bill
Date: January 27, 2002 4:50 PM
No, this thing is really real! Check out the State of Washington's official web site. That's where we got it!
http://
If they'd have hacked it, it would be down by now, don't you suppose? I don't think The Onion or even Landover Baptist could have come up with something this off-center and make it sound realistic.
But then, the reality itself doesn't sound very realistic, does it? Otherwise, you wouldn't be suggesting that this story came out of The Onion!
That's what's so baffling about this particular bill: it is so out-of-touch with reality that if The Onion or Landover Baptist or George Carlin had spun this argument into one of their bits, we, the audience, might have considered it a dud for being so unrealistic.
Maybe you're right! Maybe we are still in the twelfth century as far as our thinking style goes! Just look at where a lot of us of us get our science education: from a pre-Copernican political tract known as The Holy Scriptures! They've hoodwinked many of us into thinking not only that this thing is true but also that it's good. I say it's neither, and please keep it away from our kids! Don't let them build one of those things anywhere near any of our schools!
If nothing else, the Washington State Legislature has provided a wonderful service to the afficionados of comedy and satire everywhere, for they have stretched the real-time definition of desperate, goofball politician so that a whole world of stupid legislator jokes now become funny because they now square with what we have seen to be real.
Seeing these clowns elected to office is a nightmare, to be sure, if by "nightmare" you are referring to a dream. The fear is misguided, in my opinion, because even if this thing passed (it won't; it can't! -- can it?), it still has no teeth. Any middle-school student with honors in English can tell you what's wrong with it and why it does not make sense.
The outrage in defense of The Wall, now, that's different: this is not a dream but reality. I am more upset that they're introducing yet another bill to replace science with religion than I am over how stupid this particular bill happens to be.
The message is clear: I think we need to buckle down and teach our own children Liberal Scientific Method if the schools will not do this. I am convinced that if youngsters (and adults) have a working grasp, an intimate familiarity, with the processes which scientists use to determine fact from fancy, the debate over creationism and evolution will not be scary at all. At all. Nobody would have a problem with it except a few isolated fundamentalists here and there.
We also need to fully familiarize our children with the logical and rhetorical fallacies that we've listed in our Clues Index and in the third section of our "Introduction to Activistic Atheism."
These fallacies are being foisted upon us every day of our lives, in attempts to convince us to go along with this or that proposal. The politicians have no clout in and of themselves. In order to pull something off they must hoodwink the public and fool us into thinking that thus and so is what we really want.
But if enough people are armed with the tools for deconstructing their arguments and detecting their falsehoods, they won't be able to fool us.
Cliff Walker
Positive Atheism Magazine
Six years of service to
people with no reason to believe
From: "Bad Habits Lounge"
To: "Positive Atheism Magazine"
Sent: January 28, 2002 11:09 AM
Subject: Re: Creationism Bill
Cliff,
Thanks so much for your thoughtful, as well as, lengthy reply. I paste below Barry Karr's response to my e-mail concerning the Washington legislation.
Yes, we did see this [Washington State creationism bill] and thought about sending out a note, but instead received the following advice:
Barry Karr |
Larry Beat
Mary Esther, Florida
From: "Positive Atheism Magazine"
To: "Bad Habits Lounge"
Subject: Re: Creationism Bill
Date: January 28, 2002 12:50 PM
Even if he gets a flurry of letters, who cares what he thinks?
But I doubt he will get more than a handful, even from us: most of our readers will realize that what I did was tongue in cheek, and that the point was to get the info across as to how to write letters. We merely used this incident to liven things up a bit. Of course, you knew that!
Cliff Walker
Positive Atheism Magazine
Six years of service to
people with no reason to believe
Material by Cliff Walker (including unsigned editorial commentary) is copyright ©1995–2010 by Cliff Walker. Each submission is copyrighted by its writer, who retains control of the work except that by submitting it to Positive Atheism, permission has been granted to Positive Atheism to use the material or an edited version: (1) on the Positive Atheism web site; (2) in Positive Atheism Magazine; (3) in subsequent works controlled by Cliff Walker or Positive Atheism Magazine (including published or posted compilations). Excerpts not exceeding 500 words are allowed provided the proper copyright notice is affixed. Other use requires permission; Positive Atheism will work to protect the rights of all who submit their writings to us.
