Posted by Amanda on January 02, 1997 at 03:21:23:
In Reply to: Re: bugs and men posted by Tyler on December 30, 1996 at 08:12:11:
:
: Amanda,
: You misread what I had said. The people that I talk about are biblical literalists... and yes, I absolutely agree with you and Steve that these people are perhaps the most dangerous of all fundamentalist categories. But I'd add that the atheists that I spoke of are equally dogmatic in their assertion that there is no God. You do not write as such a person does; sounds as though you would alter your view in the face of contrary evidence. Extremists on the poles of this issue cannot and will not! The in-laws that I referred to I would identify as "corrosive Christians" because everytime they start their drivel about the absolute truth that they, and they alone possess, it is done in a confrontational way and are spitting Biblical text about as though it were acid, and this sort of rhetoric is not quite as rare as one might think. Being a Physics and Mathematics educator, I'm well aware of what these people are trying to do with Science education in this country. Half-truths, twisted logic, mis-quotes, inane arguments and inappropriate conclusions are the way-of-the-day. THEY ARE INHIBITORS TO SENSIBLE, RATIONAL AND EVIDENCE-VERIFIED PROGRESS, as history has demonstrated repeatedly (Copernicus, Galileo, Darwin, Gould, Franklin, meteorologists and geologists from history, etc). If you want to see it in action, look no further than Ralph Reed and the Christian Coalition.
: Thanks again for the feedback!
I feel a bit naive. I must admit I've yet to meet atheist of the sort you describe but now that I think of it, I'm not surprised the likes exist. I suppose there are both extremes and a little bit of everything in between. Jason mentioned an article that was written by the editor of Skeptic about such types and I'm anxious to read it. I agree with you about education and the suppression of rational thought but I haven't come across anything on Gould yet where he may have had dealings with such - do you know of any examples? I'll check out Ralph Reed as well. Thanks for filling me in!