Creationism vs. Evolution

[pears]

There are basically two groups of creationists:

 

The first group are simply liars. They now very well that their claims are BS and lie deliberately, for financial or political gains. This group includes (probably) all creationist gurus - do you think all these creationist "scientists" with MSc's or PhD's REALLY don't know that e.g. atoms don't bond by random chance? Their claims would be akin to seeing a physicist claiming that when you drop a ball, the chances that it will start falling downwards (and not upwards or to the left) are so small that it requires an "intelligent pusher" to explain this.

 

The second group are ordinary people. They either don't have enough brains or are in such a deep state of denial that no evidence can convince them.

 

In my whole (albeit short) life I've seen just one case of creationist becoming an evolutionist - and that was the case of an Iranian apostate from Islam, Ali Sina.

 

I agree to a point with the first point. Some are simply deceivers. Perhaps some from this group are also deceiving themselves.

 

As for your second point:

 

 

I wouldn't say it was brains they lack, but rather training in critical thinking and other intermediate education. Some of the phrases creationists use can seem pretty compelling because they're based on misinformation, so if you aren't in the habit of checking sources and reasoning things out, or if you didn't have the correct information to begin with, their arguments can seem controversial. "If we evolved from monkeys, why do we still have monkeys?" is one that gets a lot of people. If you don't know why the question itself is wrong, it's hard not to think that's a good question.

 

I definitely agree with this. There is also a strong cultural influence (sub-cultural). If you are surrounded by people who all believe the same things and constantly reinforce it and don't really engage with people of differing viewpoints, it can be very difficult to see that there is a problem or that one's thinking is faulty.

Edited January 10, 2014 by pears

[davidivad]

 

I agree to a point with the first point. Some are simply deceivers. Perhaps some from this group are also deceiving themselves.

 

As for your second point:

 

 

I definitely agree with this. There is also a strong cultural influence (sub-cultural). If you are surrounded by people who all believe the same things and constantly reinforce it and don't really engage with people of differing viewpoints, it can be very difficult to see that there is a problem or that one's thinking is faulty.

 

maybe we are looking at the problem the wrong way.

who wants to argue with someone who is always right?

this is indicative of poor communication skills.

great for science, bad for effective communication.

 

i had a friend once who, for the life of him, could not get his wife to open up to him. taking a step back, i realized that he was a slow talker. when he wanted his way, he would make a logical statement and then use it to prove he was right.

 

i told him that he needed to show a little weakness and that it was ok not to win every time. sometimes you have to make sacrifices. "show the woman that you are a human being and you will win her heart."

[SlavicWolf]

I don't know how many creationist "scientists" deceive themselves... Note that even Michael Behe, the mastermind behind the Intelligent Design "theory" has (after a humiliating defeat in the court) renounced most of his claims and now he advocates theistic evolution instead of literal creationism.

Edited January 12, 2014 by SlavicWolf