(Hat tip to Sean and Will for their conversation on Facebook that inspired this article.) The evangelists for evolution make a lot of strange and contradictory statements. I am routinely ridiculed and characterized as some sort of anti-Darwinian nutcase who doesn't understand the basic concepts of evolution theory because I tend to paraphrase what the "experts" have written and said with dripping sarcasm. One of my more vocal critics was asked his opinion about this six-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyTcINLKq4c Prosanta Chakrabarty Sean replied, That's the kind of explanation I would have given. I only have a couple of provisos:(1) I would disagree that there are lots of <<theories>> of evolution. I would say there was one overarching theory with lots of associated hypotheses.(2) I'd disagree that birds are reptiles. I think reptiles are a paraphyletic group, which excludes aves. Other than that, I think it was a good overall summary. Hmmm. Was that video really a good summary? Professor Chakrabarty began his speech with a joke formed as a loaded question frequently attributed to creationists: "If we evolved from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?" And the punchline? "Well, because we're not monkeys. We're fish." The really funny thing was Chakrabarty wasn't joking. According to the theory of evolution, humans are directly related to fish primarily by descent with modification via sexual reproduction, by isolation of a breeding population, over long periods of time. It seemed to me that Professor Chakrabarty was making a number of … [Read more...]
A bargain at any price
Okay, so the people who have followed my blog are probably asking themselves, exactly what will we be getting that we haven't been getting already, that we weren't getting for free? The short answer is: a lot. The slightly longer answer is: now that I'm treating my blog like a business instead of a hobby, I'm going to be posting frequently. Probably not multiple posts every day like I've been doing the past week or so, but almost certainly I'll be writing between four and five posts per week minimum, unless I'm offline from the internet for some reason. I haven't taken a vacation in about ten years (I don't count taking the grandkids to Disney World as "rest and recreation" but it was fun) and have no plans for one in the immediate future. I'm not going to commit to a specific number above one or two blogs per week because I've learned the "art of the deal" from Donald Trump. The secret to a happy customer is to under-commit and over-deliver. Promise less and give them more. Photo by J.E. FitzGerald. Reproduced by permission of J.E. FitzGerald, ©2001. One of the benefits of my new attitude and approach to the blog is that when I learn about something cool, you'll be the first to know. Until about five minutes ago, I'd never heard of a marble statue called "The Veiled Virgin", sculpted by an artist named Giovanni Strazza. My wonderful and talented musical friend from Down Under, Brad Luke, shared a photo of this exquisite masterpiece with me on Facebook. The photo took my breath away. It is one of the most beautiful sculptures I've ever seen...and I became … [Read more...]
Grumpy Bear mode
When I get fired up about something, my passion is often mistaken for anger. Oh, I do get angry sometimes, and that's when I transform from a relatively mild-mannered Southern gentleman into what liberals perceive to be a raving lunatic, or from my own perspective, this mythical creature known The Credible Hulk. The image below is actually the background on my Facebook page. It's true: liberals don't like it when I'm angry, because I am always ready, willing, and able to support my arguments with a barrage of common sense, logic, facts, and solid documentation. I'm the opposite of lazy when it comes to being able to source a justification for anything I might say or write; I'm a little neurotic (maybe O.C.D.) about being able to provide a reason for the things I say and write. You can safely assume that if I make a strong, declarative statement about some current controversy, I'll have an extra tab open in my browser window with my supporting evidence waiting to be offered to the first critic. That's how I lose friends (and sometimes even family) on Facebook, because I'm not willing to compromise with evil. It's not in my DNA. Evil must be defeated. It cannot be mollified, and concessions only give it strength. You've got to go full Conan on evil: you must crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V30tyaXv6EI And as far as losing virtual friends on Facebook is concerned, at least there is a bright side. Once upon a time I was a Boy Scout, and I've never forgotten the … [Read more...]
A quick question for readers
In case you've been wondering who pays me and how often, lately I've been wondering the same thing, too. After 12 years of faithful service, my van died and I had to buy another car, which means a new car payment and more expensive insurance coverage. This month went from bad to brutal after my dog was poisoned by eating treated grass (after eating a thousand-dollar emergency vet bill, she's absolutely fine and acts like nothing ever happened) and two days after that, the washer and dryer both had to be replaced, to the tune of another two grand. Sorry if this reads like whining, but I felt kind of like this guy here... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d75rXHWU854 So, why am I telling you about my problems? Well, for the past eight years, I've been reticent to ask for contributions or donations from readers to support this website. I thought people who like to read my articles and blogs would also want to buy my books and novels. In retrospect, that assumption proved incorrect. It turns out that people who read my books probably don't read my blog, and vice versa. I either need to figure out how to sell a lot more books, monetize the website, or (gasp) get a "day" job. For the next several days, I've placed a small, temporary PayPal "Donate" button on my home page under my signature. I'm looking into creating a Patreon account as a more long term opportunity for readers to show their appreciation for my work. If you want to show your support for my blog, your financial contribution will be greatly appreciated. Even if you can't afford to spare a dollar … [Read more...]
Internet extortion
Got a pretty scary email early this morning...it alarmed me at first glance, at least for about two seconds or so. Three seconds, tops. The ominous sounding extortion threat read as follows: Hello!Do not mind on my illiteracy, I am from India.We loaded the malicious program onto your system.After that I stole all individual information from your OS. Moreover I had slightly more compromising.The most interesting evidence which I received- its a record with your masturbation.I set virus on a porn page and after you downloaded it. As soon as you chose the video and clicked on a play, my virus instantly downloaded on your OS.After downloading, your camera shoot the video with you masturbating, moreover software saved exactly the video you masturbated on. In next week my malicious software captured all your social media and work contacts.If you want to erase all the compromising evidence- pay me 470 euro in Bitcoins.I provide you my Btc number - 13UEudUHf3yzJm9791w7qRH2edooCpoyWY You have 20 hours to go since now. When I receive transaction I will eliminate the evidence in perpetuity. Otherwise I will send the tape to all your contacts.Wilks Drone -- "Think twice extortion email" Sorry, but I will mind the illiteracy as well as the stupidity, because I don't like being threatened or blackmailed by prevaricating wankers from India. The timing of the email was admittedly a little worrisome because my laptop had lost the internet connection while I was feeding the dogs, and it took a few seconds to figure out how to restore order, but that seemed to be Comcast, not my … [Read more...]
