[kj] (OT) The Religion of Peace, Love and Understanding

[Jim Harper]

For a start, this discussion isn't about science vs religion, or about Dawkins' views on science. It's about Dawkins' ideas on God, and his book-length treatise on why everybody else is wrong.
 
I'm also sure the majority of scientists behave in an eminently reasonable fashion, but my comments are referring to Dawkins, not scientists, and God, not science.
 
I'm also not convinced that science isn't allowed to crticize religion. Not sure I know any creationists who *aren't* regarded as wackos.

Jim.

--- On Fri, 7/5/10, Brendan <bq at soundgardener.co.nz> wrote:


He spent his whole - brilliant - career at loggerheads with Christians,
being stymied in his efforts to teach in a field he's an expert and
pioneer in. He's certainly been very successful in developing the field of
evolutionary biology, whether that's recognised 100 years in the future,
and his theories still current, who knows. But you can imagine how you'd
feel under the circumstances. It's an unfair fight when one side
(religion) is allowed to criticise the other but society won't brook any
counter argument. One of his main aims, and he's been relatively
successful so far, is to alter that situation.

Another thing - one of the dictates of the Simonyi Professorship for the
Public Understanding of Science (which was set up specifically with him in
mind as the first holder) is to make a particular impact in one area of
the public understanding of science. I think he's done a great job.

He recounts a situation in The Root of All Evil documentary, of the
admiration his class felt for a professor who had just been publicly
proven wrong about a theory he'd held for his whole career, who shook the
hand of the visiting professor who'd proven him wrong and thanked him.
That's the difference between fundamentalism and evidence based science.

The idea that he doesn't admit a single shred of doubt about science is
just plain wrong.


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