New Phoenix Lights
The original Phoenix Lights were apparently two events--one a set of planes, and one flares dropped by military pilots.
UPDATE (July 20, 2009): Tim Printy has more detail on the original Phoenix lights than I've seen elsewhere.
Posted by Lippard at 4/22/2008 07:16:00 PM 0 comments
Posted by Lippard at 4/22/2008 06:41:00 PM 0 comments
Labels: creationism, Expelled, Institute for Creation Research, intelligent design, movies, religion
Posted by Lippard at 4/19/2008 09:09:00 PM 0 comments
Labels: 9/11 conspiracy, kooks, politics
Yet despite its topic, the film is entirely free of scientific content--no scientific evidence against biological evolution and none for "intelligent design" (ID) theory is given. Which makes sense because biological evolution is amply supported by evidence from the fossil record, molecular biology, and morphology. For example, the younger the rocks in which fossils are found, the more closely they resemble species alive today, and the older the rocks, the less resemblance there is. In addition, molecular biology confirms that the more distantly related the fossil record suggests species lineages are, the more their genes differ."Expelled" is standard creationist and ID fare, in that regard.
Instead of evaluating this evidence, Stein spends most of the movie asking various proponents of evolutionary theory, including Richard Dawkins, P.Z. Myers, Michael Ruse, and Daniel Dennett, for their religious views. Neither the producers nor Stein understand that offering critiques of a theory with which they disagree is not the same as proving their own theory.
Posted by Lippard at 4/19/2008 10:36:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Ben Stein, Daniel Dennett, Expelled, intelligent design, movies, religion, Richard Dawkins
Posted by Lippard at 4/18/2008 11:58:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Ben Stein, Expelled, movies, parody, Richard Dawkins
(1) be on fewer thanPrediction (1) is already falsified, since it's opening in 1,052 theaters. Prediction (4) may well be wrong due to how weak this weekend is for new films--it's pretty clear that #1 and #2 will be "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" and "The Forbidden Kingdom." Al Pacino's "88 Minutes" is also opening in many theaters and has the draw of its star, but it's getting terrible reviews. C.S. Strowbridge at The-Numbers estimates that "Expelled" will only need a $3 million opening weekend to make the top ten, so my predictions are at least consistent with each other.800 screens, (2) will have an initial weekend box office of less than $2 million, with (3) a per-screen take of less than $2,500, (4) won't break the top ten despite it being a slow opening week, and (5) will make less than $10 million in box office take by the end of 2008 (though it may make more than that through DVD sales).
Posted by Lippard at 4/18/2008 07:42:00 AM 62 comments
Labels: creationism, economics, Expelled, intelligent design, movies
(Hat tip to Blue Collar Scientist.)Dear RTB Chapter members,
With the impending release of "EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed" (April 18), the Reasons to Believe scholar team thought it best to prepare a statement of our position, a guide for answering questions from chapters, networks, and apologists. Keep in mind that the mission of RTB centers on reaching out to science-minded people with two purposes:
1. to bring the Gospel message to those who would not otherwise hear it, and
2. to strengthen the faith of those who fear that science conflicts with the
Christian faith-equipping them for ministry in the process.In order to accomplish these purposes, we must first earn the right to be heard.
After previewing the promotional materials provided by the movie's marketers, we were concerned that the movie took an adversarial approach to the scientific community. A number of RTB scholars and staff attended a prerelease screening in Los Angeles recently and confirmed that EXPELLED definitely does take such an approach. The movie draws an analogy between the Berlin wall and the scientific community's response to intelligent design. By doing so, EXPELLED implicitly argues that the scientific community deems certain questions off-limits, particularly any question about the legitimacy of neo-Darwinian evolution. The movie further argues that academia, the media, and the courts all conspire as "thought police" to oppress any and all dissent from the party line.
Clearly some oppression and discrimination have occurred, but the experience of RTB scholars and many of their contacts refutes the movie's premise that the scientific community systemically and unilaterally fosters these injustices. While individual scientists and institutions have behaved unfairly at times, this charge cannot in all fairness be leveled against the scientific community as a whole.
Regardless, from RTB's perspective, the central question is this: when injustices do occur, how should we respond? Consider the response of Nate Saint to his son's question, as depicted in the movie, End of the Spear. Nate, Jim Eliot, and three other missionaries were preparing to make contact with the notoriously violent Waodani tribe in Ecuador. Stevie asks if they will shoot the Waodani if attacked. Nate replies: "We can't shoot the Waodani, son. They're not ready for heaven. We are."
If science-minded skeptics indeed represent a mission field, then we should not come out shooting. EXPELLED seems to do just that. While an entertaining movie, its main thrust runs counter to RTB's mission of seeking to engage scientists in the scientific arena. Consequently, any endorsement of EXPELLED by RTB hinders our ability to spread the Gospel message to those we hope to reach.
Therefore, we ask all chapter members and volunteers to refrain from endorsing EXPELLED in any official way. This request does not extend to your personal interactions-only to any actions taken in association with or on behalf of Reasons to Believe.
Thank you for your support and understanding.
The RTB Scholar Team
In Reasons To Believe's interaction with professional scientists, scientific institutions, universities, and publishers of scientific journals we have encountered no significant evidence of censorship, blackballing, or disrespect. As we have persisted in publicly presenting our testable creation model in the context of the scientific method, we have witnessed an increasing openness on the part of unbelieving scientists to offer their honest and respectful critique.
Our main concern about EXPELLED is that it paints a distorted picture. It certainly doesn't match our experience. Sadly, it may do more to alienate than to engage the scientific community, and that can only harm our mission.
Posted by Lippard at 4/18/2008 07:39:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: creationism, Expelled, intelligent design, movies, religion
The film is a satirical documentary with an estimated running time of 1 hour and 50 minutes, exploring academic freedom in public schools and government institutions with actor, comedian, economist, Ben Stein as the spokesperson.No mention of intelligent design or evolution. That's a similar tactic to the deception they used to get some of the interviews in the film.
Posted by Lippard at 4/18/2008 07:34:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: copyright, creationism, Expelled, intelligent design, law, movies, religion
Posted by Lippard at 4/17/2008 09:32:00 PM 0 comments
Labels: crime, law, police abuse and corruption, politics
Posted by Lippard at 4/17/2008 11:39:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Ben Stein, creationism, Expelled, movies, music, parody, religion