Wednesday, December 20, 2006

WIlliam Dembski Has Too Much Time on His Hands

William Dembski, a mathematician and one of the leading proponents of intelligent design has proven that he has way too much time on his hands. He created this flash animation which features Judge Jones (the Judge who ruled against intelligent design in Kitzmiller v. Dover School Board) being a puppet of evil “Darwinists.” The funny thing is that all Dembski did was read snippets from Judge Jones’ decision and sped it up as if a high pitched voice makes the points any less valid. It even had fart noises in its original version, but Dembski toned it down because too many people made fun of him for it.

In his defense, Dembski wrote on his blog, Uncommon Descent, “In most if not all of the comments from the anti-ID crowd they focus on the farting sounds or what Judge Jones is actually saying. They entirely miss the point being made. The point is that what the judge is saying aren’t his own words. They’re the words he was given by the people pulling his string. In other words, he’s nothing but a talking doll mindlessly repeating verbiage supplied by others.” Sorry Dembski, Judge Jones repeated the points because they’re the only valid arguments he heard during the trial. He is allowed to repeat what he heard if he agrees.

Of course, you need to understand Dembski, first. He feels he is a poor, persecuted scientist who will help start a new revolution in science just like Galileo. Here are some of his quotes:

“Just as a tree that has been "rimmed" (i.e., had its bark completely cut through on all sides) is effectively dead even if it retains its leaves and appears alive, so Darwinism has met its match with the movement initiated by Phillip Johnson. Expect Darwinism's death throes, like Judge Jones's decision, to continue for some time. But don't mistake death throes for true vitality. Ironically, Judge Jones's decision is likely to prove a blessing for the intelligent design movement, spurring its proponents to greater heights and thereby fostering its intellectual vitality and ultimate success.”

“Taking a longer view, I think Dover will come eventually to be be seen as a moral victory, in the same way that Galileo's condemnation is now viewed as a moral victory.”

“Ann [Coulter] is taking Phillip Johnson's message as developed in DARWIN ON TRIAL and REASON IN THE BALANCE and bringing it home to the masses. Critics will dismiss it for its hyperbole, lack of nuance, and in-your-face attitude. But she has the gist just right, which is that materialism (she calls it liberalism) dominates our culture despite being held by only a minority of the populace and has become an agenda among our elites (academy, scientists, media) for total worldview reprogramming.”

“The pressures directed against frontline ID proponents are real. From your armchair, it is easy enough to say that we need simply to get to work. But families and livelihoods really are under threat by these Darwinian fascists, and when our days are spent trying to shore up the latter, the former does not get done.”

That last one makes me laugh. So shoring up the latter means you spend your time making flash videos with juvenile humor? And still no peer-reviewed articles this year on intelligent design? Dembski, get back to work. Or can you finally admit that there is nothing to work on because ID is not testable in any sense and, therefore, not science?

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