Why is anyone (pro-Dawkins or anti-Dawkins) surprised by this? I'm sure I'm not alone in understanding that Prof. Dawkins is not anti-religion. He is pro-reason.

Religion, new-agers, dowsers, mystics, astrologers, psychics and mediums can all be lumped together as targets for those of us that favor reason over woo.

OEJ

One thing that should be remembered is that no major US network is going to air anything that makes religion look bad. I guarantee this debate will be structured/edited in such a way as to give short shrift to the atheist view and cast a positive light on the creationist view.

OEJ

Ah, but Islam is a peaceful religion.

Right?

Right?

If you believe that, I have this bridge for sale...

OEJ

Women prefer circumcized men? This is an argument for circumcision of infants?

Very well. Most men prefer women with small vaginas. Perhaps we should surgically reduce the size of infant vaginas?

Ridiculous of course! So is the idea of circumcision. The only difference is that we are culturally indoctrinated to accept it as normal.

OEJ

As a side note to anyone that hasn't read "Stumbling on Happiness," I highly recommend it. It is a great treatment of the human mind and perception. It is not a self-help book, though that is where it is commonly shelved in book stores.

OEJ

The invisible pink unicorn has been in use for years.

http://www.invisiblepinkunicorn.com/

OEJ

What always jumps out at me when I read an account like this is that the most damning crime isn't the molestation. I doubt there is a much greater percentage of child predators in the priesthood than there are in the population in general. The greater crime is the Church's denial and cover-up. The Church allows the predator to continue hurting children by covering up their crimes. The author had it right -- the Church cares more for their image than they do for the children.

John 3:10 "This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God;..."

I take this to mean that pedaphile priests and those that hide their crimes are children of the devil.

Gandhi nailed it when he said, "I like your Christ, but not your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

OEJ

What an inspired reply, PZ!

It almost makes me regret giving Phil all my votes. I just couldn't face a world filled with mutant squid-kittens.

Once again, well done.

OEJ

This is exactly the sort of thing we should NOT be doing. The minute we have to limit our speech or alter artistic expression because someone might be offended, the zeolots win.

Things like this and the incident with the Danish cartoons make me want to go out of my way to offend them.

Rant over.

OEJ

I thought I would give this video a fair shake, but as soon as he started talking about "Russia's atheist regime" as an example where "atheists have blood on their hands", I had to turn it off. It was clear this was going to be nothing more than a rehashing of the old lies and half-truths.

OEJ

Brilliant! Sadly, you couldn't get away with a bit like that on a major US network. Of course, it would be perfect for Penn and Teller's "Bullshit"... Elvis never did no drugs!

Merry Mithmas!

OEJ

thegashman,

"Grandparents are evil."

Grandparents have candy. Nobody with candy can be evil, right? Right?

Here you go ... have another butterscotch and everything will be fine.

OEJ

What I am trying to imagine is how they intend to prove ID by experimentation. You can show microevolution in microorganisms, but how to you go about demonstrating ID? My guess is that any "research" generated will be geared towards tearing down evolutionary theory rather than actually supporting ID.

Zaphod,

"Why do christians believe in their bible at all?"

No great mystery there. Why do children believe in Santa Claus? Because their parents told them. The problem is we have a society that indoctrinates children and perpetuates the belief through adulthood (unlike Santa Claus).

An adult that seriously believes in Santa Claus will be laughed at, but not a Christian, Muslim, or Jew. Sad really, since Santa Claus is a far kinder fantasy and better role model than the god of Abraham.

OEJ

Love it!

The Saint's football schedule and Google Earth, the Vatican, in the background. Love it.

"It was a 'New Age Christian' who had read a book by Richard Milton."

Obviously well read. If the author has tackled Richard Milton's treatise on Darwin, then he's probably ready to move on to other great thinkers like Sylvia Brown.

OEJ

Creeping Jesus,

"Teachers aren't as daft as these idiots think they are."

Most are not, but sadly some are. It only takes a few to plant the seeds and that is exactly what the ID advocates want.

OEJ

I think it's time we did away with separation of church and state in the US. Let's adopt a state religion.

I can't imagine a better way to highlight the folly of religion than to put the government in charge of it.

OEJ

I can't see how this is a good thing. Can anyone say slippery slope? I just see this potentially fostering an attitude of "I am not subject to your secular laws. I only answer to God's law."

To Bob Johnson,

I see your point. While I can accept Judge Judy because it is primarily entertainment, I'm not ready for "Judge Jesus".

Sad. Simply sad. Years after having been soundly refuted, they are still dragging out Behe's flagellum argument.

I'm beginning to understand that ID is a natural process. It doesn't evolve, but like compost, it does get recycled.

I think Mr. Smith just proved Professor Dawkins's point. The topic is still taboo. All he did was mention the possibility of a dialogue. Look at the reaction.

Incidently, I played some of this at work recently. I felt justified since some of my Christian coworkers often bring in tapes of sermons and "spiritual" music. I only played it for about five minutes, not wanting to push my luck too far.

Within that five minutes, I heard whispers of "Be strong. Trust in God." along with "He must be an... 'atheist'.(shiver)" You really have to listen to the CD to appreciate these remarks. Julia Sweeney is more kind to religion than I would be. She makes a monumental effort to find the 'God of her childhood.' Yet, all the whisperers (two individuals) heard was that somebody dared to doubt God.

It was comforting that three of my five coworkers enjoyed the CD, leaving the two whisperers in the minority. Oh, by the way, did I mention I work in a Catholic Hospital in the US?

To anyone that has not yet purchased "Letting Go of God", I highly recommend it. It's clever without being acerbic, thoughtful, and highly entertaining.

OEJ

I imagine that from DC's point of view, it is truly impossible to argue against God. When you define God as pretty much anything you want to (energy, beauty, art, thought, a good bowel movement) it makes it damned hard to nail anything down.

Personally, I think saw God today, but I can't be certain. He looked a lot like an apple sitting on my kitchen table. So, I'm not entirely sure if I had a religious experience or just an afternoon snack.

Do Hal's commetns remind anyone else of the Alan Colmes interview? Remember the caller that would rape and kill his neighbor if he didn't have God to tell him not to?

Makes me shiver.

There is something that is always overlooked when someone aregues for the existence of god. Every religious pundit who argues for the existence of god inevitably is thinking of "their god". Would any Christian be quick to embrace Aquinas or Pascal if they proved the existence of say, Vishnu?

I am one of those mad pirates known as Pastafarians. I will gladly raise a toast with you to celebrate the truth of god's existence. I just happen to believe He chooses to take the form of a Flying Spaghetti Monster. What's that you say? I must be joking? But you agreed me with me that god was real. Certainly we had the same thing in mind, didn't we?

Lastly, I take issue with those that fault Professor Dawkins by saying that the question of god is outside his area of expertise. What is an evolutionary biologist if not an expert on the origins of life?

OEJ

"I wish his book was less of an attack on religion and more of a defence of atheism."

The best defense is a good offense.

The truth will set you free.

Honesty is the best policy.

That should cover the trite sayings for today. Please keep moving along. Nothing to see here folks.

"Yet I have sympathy with those who might be worried by his uncompromising stance." (In reference to 'Letter to a Christian Nation')

I am getting tired of hearing this type of comment towards both Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins. Why should they be compromising? You might as well ask someone to be compromising about the existence of the Tooth Fairy. Religion is not some fragile flower that deserves to be handled with kid gloves. Is God so delicate? Perhaps He is.

The burden of proof is on the religious and so far they have provided none. Even more, they provide evidence against themselves in the contradictory nature of their own religious writings. If the "faithful" want to truly be honest, then they should declare themselves Bokonists and be done with it.

OEJ

Preaching to the choir... wait, can an atheist use that expression? Hell yes... oops, there I go again.

Seriously, as usual Mr. Harris is dead on. Unfortunately, those that most need to hear those words will likely dismiss them.

Nicely done. Stephen Colbert can be a tricky interview if you don't understand that the show is a humorous spoof of conservative news programs. I've seen several guests come off badly because they didn't understand the premise of the show. Mr. Dawkins did a fine job as always.