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 Commenters were fired up about Bill Nye, creationism and evolution.
August 28th, 2012
10:37 AM ET
Your Take: 5 reactions to Bill Nye's creationism critiqueBy Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor (CNN) - Bill Nye does not think that children should be taught to deny evolution, and a YouTube video of him explaining why has gone viral. The CNN Belief Blog's report on the video has generated around 10,000 comments and thousands of Facebook shares since Monday. There were some broad themes in the comments, reflecting a debate that is largely unique to the United States. While Christianity is booming in Africa, Asia and Latin America, creationism is not, Penn State University religious studies professor Philip Jenkins writes in his book "The New Faces of Christianity: Believing the Bible in the Global South." Here are five schools of reaction that have emerged in comments: 1. Those using this controversy to bash religion Atheists love the Internet, as we've chronicled on the Belief Blog. While they may be a small portion of the population, they seem to make up about half our commenters. It was their chance to join with Nye and cheer him on:
2. Those who say wait a minute, being a creationist isn’t necessarily being anti-evolution Lots of folks from the theistic evolution camp came out to say that believing God was involved doesn't automatically make you anti-evolution.
3. Those who say that science is stupid and that young Earth creationism rules Young Earth creationists, who believe the Earth is about 6,000 years old, appeared to be out in force in the comments.
4. Those who say Nye should stick to his area of expertise This tweet was the most polite remark we could find on this subject. Other comments and tweets, not so much.
[tweet https://twitter.com/watsup1101/status/240168918109523968%5D 5. Those who say CNN is cooking up controversy where none exists Lots of people suggested we were generating a story instead of covering one.
For the record, plenty of other news outlets covered this story, pointing out that Nye's video was posted on YouTube just before the Republican National Convention opened. Turns out that Nye taped the segment awhile back and had no say in when it would be released. Thanks for chiming in. The comments are open here, and you can always hit us up on Twitter @CNNBelief. soundoff (2,811 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Bill Nye, WHO?
He is the "Science" guys, and since science is blasphemy, you were kept away from it. That is why you did not see his show "Bill Nye the Science Guy" when you were growing up. You probably spent your time listening to fairy tales in your church.
I agree that Bill Nye is looking for publicity by beating a dead Eohippus.
alright....let put this to work.we see houses, buildings, cars, tv, cell phones, airplanes, all the greatest inventions of men.... now prove that to me that came as a chance or some1 created it with great minds... just as any gardeners that plant their own flowers, carefully design, decided where to put it, yes there is a creator a designer. so is it just logical there is some one that has better, greater mind that we are... where is this evolutionist come from, why monkeys hasnt evolve yet, i am waiting...there is always has been monkeys? yet they havent evolves?...really sad, i am waiting, let go monkeys prove to be u can transfrom into mens....
Your logic is flawed, as is your understanding of evolutionary history. Monkeys haven't always been around. Monkey-like creatures have been evolving for millennia, and thousands, nay, millions of years ago, they looked quite different from our contemporary monkeys. What you see now, that you call "monkeys" are a current example of what ancient monkey-like creatures evolved into. Humans are another example.
"Where are the monkeys?" Har har har. That proves you learned about evolution in your church, not a school. Otherwise you would know that theory of evolution never ever said humans evolved out of monkeys. This is a common Christian falsehood. Monkeys are not even lesser apes. When you ignorant people who can not differentiate between apes and monkeys talk about science, you make me laugh. Better learn some real science from scientists, not from your church priests.
Stupid Nation?
Can you prove there was no Inteligent design? No. Believing in Intelligent design also doesn't automaticly say you don't believe in Evolution. It is possible to be flexible enough to believe in both. There's a very good chance the people reacting so harshly toward the Creationists are people who were taught something else.
While Nye appears to be saying being a creationist means you can not be an intellectual I think it might say that being a devout evolutionist does the same thing. It doesn't take long for anyone looking to see where "brilliant" scientist make mistakes all the time because they are so intrenched in "facts" that they miss new "truths" and new free thinkers, on one side or the other come along and break new ground.
Free thinkers, Creationist and Evolutionists alike have made remarkable changes to our world.
It's not a flat world after all.
Meteors might not have wiped out the dinosaurs afterall.
There were more than one mass extinction.
We can go faster than 60 miles an hour and not die?
We can go faster than the speed of sound and not die?
We can leave the earth and not die?
Man can walk on the moon? Really?
But God said? But Science suggests.
Science doesn't change, The words of God all over the world have been written a long time and nothing is being added so.
Mans interpritation and understand changes all the time, because of Free thinkers,
Lets not worry so much about the small things. The most important thing we can teach our children is to think for themselves and to understand what they see.
Not about being Gay or not, Christian or not. Schools should teach thinking and understanding. If 50% of America believe in Creationism than it's irresponsible to not teach kids about it, along with Evolution.
OK, I guess it's OK to push only "approved propaganda" down the ears and eyes of our children. It worked so well for the Nazis.
Think more, eat less Fish and chips
So...if 50% of Americans are stupid enough to believe the world is flat, should we teach that to our children in schools also? Nye is just concerned about the future of our children, and their place in the world, where most other literate nations understand the value and meaning behind science.
I don't think CNN fairly characterized the discussion, at least the parts I was involved in, and I probably left close to 10 posts. There were plenty of people, myself among them, who parted company with creationists, but argued that the universe and our experience of it are better explained overall with God than without. We found it ultimately perplexing and unconvincing that there could be something from nothing and consciousness from insentience in a universe described narrowly by physical laws, though we didn't dispute that such laws operate. Others talked about how the universe could arrive at something so marvelous as a human being my chance and natural selection alone. I was moved by the eloquence of several people who spoke along these lines and related ones. I will add that love and freedom (not random quantum chance, but purposeful human freedom) don't fit easily into the reductivist physical picture, either, and it looks like reductive physicalism hasn't adequately answered its humanist challenges.
Creationism isn't science it is a fairytale and just like most of the stories in the bible. The bible has been manipulated from the beginning, when there were a couple of hebrew camps compiling it and arguing over its content. It has been changed with various translations from one culture to the next, who knows what is true and whats not. In its transformation, it began to take on the form of and ideology to manipulate and therefore control the masses in order to generate support for the church's meal ticket and various projects. Science is now the "book' of the day". Yes, creationism is on its way out just like all the Abrahamic religions...people are just tired of being lied to, manipulated and exploited by untruth, half truths, and ancient prejudicial social customs that exploit and abuse humans.
So I still stumped as to why so many people believe in all the Jesus stories after they learn that NOTHING was written about him until 40 to 60 years after his death! I grew up going to Sunday School and church, but was never given that information! If Jesus was so amazing, performed so many miracles and was the son of God, why was nothing written during his lifetime?? How can anyone believe anything written 40-60 years later and how accurate could stories passed down by 1-2 generations be?? Too many questions with no good answers, and "you have to have faith" just doesn't cut it for most people these days. There is no logic or common sense to the creationist's BS. The world is only 6000 years old? How can any educated people believe this...
I made this comment on his youtube thing, but it got drowned in a see of logical fallacies and name calling from all sides.
In his video, Bill Nye tells parents not to teach their children creationism because [paraphrasing] "We need them; we need engineers..."
Nothing about Creationism, Religion, Political affiliation... Nothing a parent can teach a kid who wants to be an engineer to be an engineer.
Sorry, but Bill's gone off the deep end. It's okay to love life-sciences. Thinking its necessary for everything is a bit... odd.
From nothing, comes nothing. For nothing can come from nothing. But something can not come from nothing because from nothing, comes nothing. What have we learned from the preceding??? That without an Eternal AND Intelligent source, existence is impossible. For if there was ever a point in time when there was nothing (including God), there would STILL be nothing. BECAUSE........From NOTHING comes NOTHING.
So matter and energy can't be eternal, but god can be. Basically, your premise is "if I don't know the answer, then it's god."
"From nothing comes nothing" is actually a statement that does not mirror physics. The laws of quantum mechanics actually predict that "nothing" cannot truly exist. And that particles will constantly be popping up in space that is void of energy. There are quite a few books out there now describing just why that is the case.
I'm not necessarily saying one way or the other but I think absolute statements like this are naive at best.
And, evolution is not something that requires faith. Things that have no physical evidence require faith. Evolution is based on evidence and facts...not guesses, wishes and fear.
There is a time coming rapidly and as far as I am concerned it hs come and gone where people just plain and simply can't deny evoloution. No if ands or buts.
Has there been some ground breaking discovery in the last couple of years that should sway all the creationists to your side?
OK,
F-OFF. I'm done with you. Ignorance is just the lack of information. Dumbness is ignoring the evidence, and you have now entered the rhelm of the dumb.
okyourecool. The discovery of gravity as the tenth dimension has proved that universes are formed out of gravitational pull. i bet you don't even know the first 9 dimensions.
For some reason i feel that humans have been wrong every time up to date so why should i change my mind? Theories are theories and they are often proven wrong
1) Flat Earth hypothesis
2) Phlogiston theory
3) Geocentric theory of the solar system
4) The classical elemental theory
5) Aristotle's dynamic motion
6) Ether as a carrier of light waves and radio waves
7)Newton's corpuscular theory of light
8)Lamarckian Evolution
just to name a few... And most of the men who came up with these theories were the most brilliant of their time. Not saying evolution is not true and but you can't say it is. Let's not be so arrogant to think we know all the answers when we dont
@okyourcool, I suggest that you read Richard Dawkins' "The Greatest Show On Earth". Evolution is by far the best explanation for hundreds of phenomena (including experiments with fast-reproducing organisms like bacteria, insects, guppies etc. whose evolution can be experimentally observed and controlled in a time span of just a couple of years, not millions of centuries) that can either not be explained at all by any version of creationism, or at best only by the sort of "explanation" that says "God can do anything S/He wants, so apparent counterevidence doesn't count".
Dawkins himself is rather aggressive on the anti-religious side, but the science is there. Evolution really is the only reasonable theory to explain what we see in nature (and I mean "theory" in the technical scientific sense: an empirically well-established, predictive and explanatory system of ideas, not "unproven hypothesis" as some people seem to think it means).
okyourecool
Bird DNA contains dinosaur traits specifically but not limited to teeth, tails, and scales. Unfortunately there are not Creationist on the Bible supplement list.
yes i studied Newton's universal law of gravitation in school and yes it is a law so inevitably true. but what does this have to do with evolution and creation?
yes it is the best explanations you humans can derive with your tiny brains as of right now. you have a lot more to learn before you get it right
Please then consider this concerning proteins, that are essential to the structure and function of all living cells. What are the odds of one protein occurring at random ? It has been calculated as 10 113. Mathematicians has said that anything above 10 50 is impossible. For a protein to form requires that 20 specific amino acids to be in a precise order, but there is a catch, for all must be "left-handed" amino acids, no "right-handed" ones allowed.
Then factor in some 2,000 proteins serving as enzymes within a cell. What are the odds of obtaining all of these at random ? One chance in 10 40,000, a possibility that even British scientist Sir Fred Hoyle clearly recognized as impossible, with him once stating that this is "the same as the chance of throwing an uninterrupted sequence of 50,000 sixes with unbiased dice!” (The Intelligent Universe, F. Hoyle, 1983, pages 11-12, 17, 23) Thus, reasonable individuals recognize that the evidence around all of us bespeaks of a Supreme Designer, who is named Jehovah God.(Isa 42:5; Prov 20:12)
Aristotle? A theory? The scientific theory wasn't even around back then you numbskull.
I think it's pretty hard to get around the inactivated retroviral genomes in human and ape genomes. They scream of common ancestory. If you can establish that the insertion is random and that the inserted genome is in the corresponding spot of the genome in both species, then common ancestory necesarily follows.
People might rail about the unknown physics of the first instant of the big bang, or the unknown biochemistry of the origin of life, but I suspect the thing that just doesn't sit right with creationists is the ape origin of man.
Once you get past the question of common ancestory, the rest is gravy.
But we'll see what happens when this concept becomes more widely known.
Creationism is a faith, not a science. When faith is referred to as science, just to sound cool, then it is a problem. Keep a faith as a faith, and it will be tolerated not matter how stupid it may be.
Science is a faith also, and the scientists are the high priests.
And evolution is a theory, meaning that you are putting your faith in it
You people don't even know the definitions of the words you are using. Please tell me you aren't over 12.
Everybody that commented here before me is just plain ignorant. Their priests and preachers told them what a theory is.
OK,
Do I have to keep chasing you down to correct everything you say?
A scientific theory does not require any faith at all and you know it. Plese stop it, for christ sake! You are beginning to anger me.
Science is how you know whether you are getting the right change at the supermarket. Faith is how you don't know whether US Republicans are too rich to be allowed into heaven.
No, a theory is the scientific equivalent of proven. You are confusing it with hypothesis. But let's face it, you have no interest in thinking anything through.
Dummies, look up what the definition of theory is as it pertains to science. Your argument is very weak.
well the last time i checked a theory was a theory and a fact is a fact. please don't get mad i don't want your primal instincts kicking it
Evolution is just a theory well so is gravity
A scientific theory is "a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts that have been repeatedly confirmed through observation and experiment."
You didn't check "last time" or any time, and you don't think. You're just trolling. You make the bible thumpers look rational.
No. Theory does not mean the same thing in layman's terms. A theory is not a hypothesis, which is an unproven, specific question which can be empirically investigated. A theory has been formulated out of the results of several experiments and observations. It has been tested, refined in parts, built up. You don't put faith in it, it doesn't lack evidence, it doesn't color every perception and interpretation.
Jesus, I just wish people who refuse to learn anything about science would at least not participate in discussions that require education. I don't debate Liberian politics because I don't know anything about it. Educate yourself please.
When someone says science is a belief, he has studied in a Christian school where ignorant priests told them so. They have no idea what science is. They think their faith is science.
Seriously, we need a const.itutional amendment affirming that evolution is merely a theory.
We need to make sure these religious fanatics stay far away from any child's education.
Evolution is not a theory. It is a FACT. Do some research. Why not start with Darwin's Origin of Life? Look at the fossil record... Compare and contrast different species in their respective environments... Read all about things like MRSA the antibiotic resistant 'superbug' that evolved to resist antibiotics...
So is this a matter of faith (a belief in something with out evidence) or an educated opinion based on all available evidence? Anyone who does not believe in evolution despite this is unteachable... They probably think humans have never been on the moon...
Its like saying that Abraham Lincoln never had a beard. Despite all the evidence that he did (historical records, photographs, etc) one might still insist that he has FAITH that he never actually had a beard and all the evidence opposing his view was bogus, flawed, or simply made up. Think about how preposterous that sounds...
You have proved your illiteracy considering someone has posted the difference between a theory and a Scientific Theory and you are still no wiser. Please don't breed. If you do, send your children away to college so they can snap out of the brainwashing nonsense that is eroding society and all progress.
Evang science is based on fact not on any sky daddy
Darn that Bill Nye for refusing to believe in imaginary things. The nerve.
People like Bill Nye are going to burn in hell not so much because they believe in evolution but because they are leading others astray.
What about the "collection plate gathering '*ssol*s who take children's natural atheism as born and convert it to the absolute of religion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1BzP1wr234
Hell doesn't exist
Evangelical is a better example of when snuffing out the stupid is so appropriate.
Why wait for the doomsday? Why don't you Christians burn him today, the way you killed many other scientist. Hypatia to start with? Come on, that is what you guys are good at. Wiped out entire populations and destroyed entire civilizations in North and South America, Africa, India, and Australia. Now your crusades goes to Middle East. Who is stopping you? Your butcher god is with you.
Matt. 7:1 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged."
HA HA HA crazy people are funny.
Living up to your name, I see. America is the only place on earth where this is a debate. Blind faith is just that, blind.
Lucky for you "Evangelical" there is no heaven and no hell or surely you belong to hell
Why is that, a.n.? I believe in the Bible and it is clear that those who lead others astray are going to burn in hell.
I would move to Sweden but I don't want to give up my country to these mindless fools.
The Bible "hell" is not a place of eternal torment, for both the Hebrew and Greek words, sheol and hades, that are often translated as "hell" in the King James Bible, means the common grave of mankind, and of which is to be emptied of all who are there during Judgment Day or Jesus "thousand year "reign.(Rev 20:13, 14)
With the King James Bible also rendering the Greek word Gehenna as "hell" (as at Matt 5:22, 29, 30), with Jesus associating fire with it to show that a person is destroyed (Matt 10:28), not tormented, this has thus given rise to the wrong view that "hell" means everlasting torment.
It's unfortunate that creationists are most often labeled as "young earth creationists." There are many in the scientific community that are creationists but believe in evolution as well. I see evolution as a very 'clever' and creative way to bring about an abundance of life. It's really the only option that allows creatures true freedom. A creation that essentially is allowed to create itself is a much greater good that a ready made world. We humans place too many limits on God. If God is who we say He is, He doesn't need us to defend Him.
Young-Earth Creationists are just a little more insane than Old-Earth Creationists.
He's a gay guy. What kind of blasphemy you'd expect from him???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUdHqOCA8hc
I didn't know he was a ho.mos.exual. That explains a lot.
Your a woman. Go sit down and let the men talk this out.
I don't think that he's gay; but this is funny... A few years ago he married a (female) Stanford music professor... and guess who performed the ceremony? Rick Warren!
It is almost impossible to believe that anyone in this day and age can believe in something as insanely stupid as creationism. Even more scary that almost 50 percent of this moron nation believe it. And even more scary that this 50 percent are more than the insanely stupid delusional bible bangers. That percentage is higher than the percentage 30 to 50 years ago. Despite our scientific advancements, this moron nation has become even more stupid. Bill Nye is understating the problem here because he cannot publicly say that this country needs an enlightened secular dictatorship that would snuff out the insanely stupid.
You read my mind!
People don't accept the fact that Man has walked on the Moon.
People don't accept the 9/11 was nothing more than as successful exercise in social engendering by a bunch of Islamic suicide terrorists.
Quite the contrary, it's rather impossible to believe that anyone can even fanthom that something can come from nothing. That matter can create matter in and of itself all by itself and all this starting from a point of NOTHING and without an eternal and intelligent source. That's the greatest leap of faith I've ever heard of. 🙂
Yeah it's so CRAZY to believe in a book that tells you to love your neighbor and treat others how you want to be treated. The bible is virtually a humankind starter guide. It should be renamed THE BOOK OF COMMON SENSE, which you lack
Myvu is an example of when snuffing out the stupid is so appropriate.
@okyourecool The point is that people need to put down their Bibles and stop worrying about imaginary lives after you die. Fix our problems on Earth.
Tolerance is the answer for both sides, but that will never happen.
@Ryan Ward, put down the Word of the Creator and believe you??? surely you jest!!!! 🙂
I had no idea there were actually people who believed so strongly in creation these days! I thought most Christians just sort of halfheartedly accepted Creationism as a very obviously flawed ancient theory that their Bible talks about. It is just silly to bring God into the realm of science! All over the world, every civilization has had a completely different creationism story, yet the vast majority of scientists believe in Evolution, because it is based on hypothesis testing, not tradition and faith.
I love how the people CNN chose for this piece have no idea what evolution even is. That's so cute.
Yes but the do know how to drive eye balls to advertizing....
if the flood really happened then we are all the descendants of noah – so we should be able to trac our mitochondrail DNA back to his wife – she is the maternal ansector of us all – but thats not where the molecular evidence points us – it points us to a female in africa that lived nearly 250000 years ago – "the genetic eve" – oops I guess evidence trumps faith again!!!!
What evidence?
What do you mean, "what evidence?" He just gave it to you
Some points of clarification on 'mitochondrial Eve' evidence:
1) The 250k year estimate is based on a range of accepted mutation rates whose lower range would represent an age of less than 10K years
2) Biological material (like DNA) has a decay-to-nothing rate less than 15k years, giving mitochondrial DNA an upper limit much lower than 250K years
3) The region this ancestrial mother came from can't be pinned down to an exact place within Africa. It's my understanding that mitochondrial Eve was thought to originate in northern Africa, close to what would be considered the Middle East.
Evangelicals Question The Existence Of Adam And Eve
"Polls by Gallup and the Pew Research Center find that four out of 10 Americans believe humanity descend from Adam and Eve, but NPR reports that evangelical scientists are now saying publicly that they can no longer believe the Genesis account and that it is unlikely that we all descended from a single pair of humans. 'That would be against all the genomic evidence that we've assembled over the last 20 years so not likely at all,' says biologist Dennis Venema, a senior fellow at BioLogos Foundation, a Christian group that tries to reconcile faith and science. 'You would have to postulate that there's been this absolutely astronomical mutation rate that has produced all these new variants in an incredibly short period of time. Those types of mutation rates are just not possible. It would mutate us out of existence.' Venema is part of a growing cadre of Christian scholars who say they want their faith to come into the 21st century and say it's time to face facts: There was no historical Adam and Eve, no serpent, no apple, no fall that toppled man from a state of innocence."
And with a coupla more seconds of logical thought, no god.
if the flood really happened then we should find the remains of middle eastern, oriental and other asian peoples all over the world – but we don't – explain that creationists. Faith doesn't lead to truth – how can it lead you to truth when the definition of faith is to belive in somethign with no evidence – thats idiotic!!!
If the flood happened the Greenland Ice sheet would have less that 6000 layers in it, it has in excess of 300000.
No offense but we haven't even located and recovered Amelia Earhart's plane yet.
Christian Scientist,
Well I guess your right. We cant prove that the earth is older than 6000 years because Amelia Earhart's plane is still missing.
Arthur,
Throw away those 300,000 year old ice cores.
Who ever said the earth is only 6000 years old? Certainly not me.
Your “genetic eve” was all the rage for scientists in 1987. But, since science is being updated and revised on a regular basis you may have missed one of the revisions.
“Calibrating the Mitochondrial Clock” by Ann Gibbons. The article discussed the new data which showed that the mutation rates used to obtain mitochondrial Eve’s age no longer could be considered valid, and concluded:
Regardless of the cause, evolutionists are most concerned about the effect of a faster mutation rate. For example, researchers have calculated that “mitochondrial Eve”—the woman whose mtDNA was ancestral to that in all living people—lived 100,000 to 200,000 years ago in Africa. Using the new clock, she would be a mere 6,000 years old (1998: 279:29, emphasis added).
There is absolutely no evidence that I know of that the Bible has been tampered with, revised or updated. A ton of evidence exists that confirms the historical records of the Bible. The creation of the heavens and the earth as told in the Bible is not just a story.
Science, however, is an ever changing, ever evolving discovery .