For a country that has benefited immensely from the scientific

[KlatooBNikto]

tradition, it doesn't make any sense to believe in the cockamamie theories of the rightwing religious zealots,i.e. creationism, intelligent design,etc.What makes Jerry Falwell and others such authorities on scientific knowledge?

[Gildor Inglorion]

1. Obviously, they're not...

they engage in "willful ignorance," blithely ignoring any evidence, however well-demonstrated, that conflicts with their own preconceived notions of the way things are. Rather like the Irish archbishop who decreed that either Oct. 22 or Oct. 23, 4004 B.C., was the exact day of creation despite the demonstrable fact that there had been thriving, literate civilizations prior to that date. I don't know if this is true or not (of course), but I read once that a Muslim ruler of Egypt once justified burning the great library of Alexandria with this reasoning: "If the writings conflict with the Koran, they are evil and must be destroyed. If the writings are in accord with the Koran, then the Koran is sufficient without them, and they may be destroyed." I believe this is the attitude of the highly intelligent and decent Mr. Falwell and others of his ilk, who would, if they possessed the power, cause the destruction of everything that conflicted with their own peculiar version of holy writ. Unfortunately, that power is not as far from their collective grasp as it once was.
:evilfrown: