Comments by Karalyn

Comment #20190 by Karalyn on January 31, 2007 at 10:53 pm

I've watched some of the video submissions, and I really agree that for some, it really is a necessary step to take. To my husband, it was all very amusing and baffling, "why do they even have to SAY it? It's silly." He grew up without religion, with his father going so far as telling him that "religion is stupid." To me, having been raised Catholic, it was easy to renounce the church and disassociate myself with the organized aspect of the religion, but old fears and habits die hard.

So I will take this opportunity to say that I denounce the following: the existence of the Holy Spirit, Jesus, God, virgin births, miracles, ghosts, psychic phenomena, all of the metaphorical blood drinking and flesh eating I was forced to do as a child, Shiva, Mithra, Osiris, Zeus, Jupiter, Dionysus, easter eggs, pirate treasure, Mohammad, Zoroaster, Moses, Jehovah, Yahweh, Adam & Eve, Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, and ALL of the other scary stories I was told as a child to shut me up and make me behave.

Now, wasn't that liberating?

2. 'Friends of God' Documentary

Comment #20188 by Karalyn on January 31, 2007 at 10:31 pm

As a resident of New York City, and working in a university setting, I don't hear much serious talk about creationism in my day-to-day experience. For me, this is as shocking as when I saw a group of people in Times Square with signs saying "God hates fags" and "EVILution," preaching hellfire with their children in tow. Those folks came all the way from Alabama to yell at us godless, perverted New Yorkers.

Yes, it is all very scary, a complete outrage, and a form of child abuse. Would I believe religion over science? Considering that the fundamental principle of religion is to accept "truth" through faith and authority? In science, when a researcher presents a new finding, that finding is then presented at conferences and published in scientific journals. The journals are read by thousands of other experts, and the scientific evidence presented may either be replicated and established, or not replicated and refuted. There is an arduous, trial by fire that scientific evidence must pass before it is even close to being accepted as established fact. I trust this empirical process far more than relying on the testimony of a few elite church figures, just because they claim to have an understanding of what god wants.

In short, I hope that these children will eventually begin examining the evidence for themselves, and that this mind warping drivel does not impede their ability to question... although, sadly, I suspect that for many it will.

3. Interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson

Comment #20184 by Karalyn on January 31, 2007 at 10:05 pm

I'm surprised by the comment about the Beyond Belief conference... I found Tyson's presentations to be informative, and certainly among the most entertaining. In particular, his arguments about 'bad design' were hilarious. In regard to human anatomy, he said something to the effect of "why would an intelligent designer put a recreational area in the middle of a sewage processing facility?" I'm not doing it justice, it was very funny.

To me, he seems affable guy. I confess that I'm not up on recent literature in astrophysics and am not aware of his research contributions. Tyson is an excellent educator, and has helped to make complex material accessible to the general public through his work with the Hayden Planetarium and NOVA Science Now.

Definitely check your local PBS listings for NOVA and NOVA Science Now, which Tyson hosts. There is also a very interesting (though highly dramatized) new biography of Stephen Hawking, and another program I caught about his scientific contributions through conversations with his supporters and critics... these are on this week, for those who are interested!

www.pbs.org