A few more problems with the “literal truth” of the Bible

Further to my previous post about the problem of God's attractive nuisance in the garden of Eden, here are some more questions from Genesis for readers to ponder.  First, exactly where did Cain's wife (in Genesis 4:17) come from?  The book of Genesis never says God created her from scratch,…

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God’s attractive nuisance: the Tree of Knowledge

Imagine for a moment that you go into your neighbor's home one day and discover a large homemade bomb sitting in the middle of his living room.  "Don't touch that." your neighbor tells you, "If you do, the bomb will explode and our entire block will be destroyed."  How would…

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Why the creationist argument that “irreducible complexity” disproves evolution is utter nonsense

Irreducible complexity refers to a system (e.g., a living organism) in which the various parts work together to produce a given function, such that the function will not occur if any of the parts is removed.  Creationists claim irreducible complexity disproves evolution. Evolution refers to the natural adaptation of a species…

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The Same Only Different?

I'm something of an amateur historian.  I find most rewarding research that shows how someone--an individual, a community, a movement--got to where they ended up.  It's the most instructive part of studying history, because you can begin to see how things relate, how one incident, taken in isolation, may make…

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Bush’s “Wag The Dog” presidency

Further to Sarah’s post about films that help make sense of George Bush’s presidency, another film that should be required viewing for anyone trying to make sense of Bush’s America is the movie, “Wag The Dog.”  As entertainment, it’s a disappointing movie; but, as political commentary, it utterly anticipates George Bush’s presidency.

The movie, released in early 1998 (note the proximity to the beginning of Bush’s first presidential campaign), is set in modern times, and is about an American president running for re-election.  A scandal occurs immediately before the election that threatens to cripple the President’s campaign, but before the scandal can undermine the President’s chances, his political advisors realize that the best way to win re-election is to divert public attention away from the scandal by creating an even bigger story:  a war.  So, they set out to manufacture a war.

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