Sunday, August 02, 2009

The most dangerous book ever!

So I was visiting one of my favorite websites the other day. I won't name the website because the guy who runs it posts a lot of smart and entertaining material there and I really don't feel like disparaging him by name. Anyway, as I was digging through the archives, I came across a list of what he thinks are the books that most messed up the world. I was cheering through most of the list as he named such despicable works as Mein Kampf by Adolph Hitler, The Pivot of Civilization by Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion (author unknown) , and The Manifesto of the Communist Party by Engalls and Marx. Wow, I was thinking, this guy gets it.

And then I saw the book he thinks has messed up the world more than any other book (including the ones I mentioned).

Darwin's Black Box by Michael Behe.

For those of you who aren't aware, Michael Behe is a scientist (a biochemist, I think) who believes in Intelligent Design. Broadly stated, intelligent design is the theory that one of the three pillars of Darwinian evolution, random mutation, cannot account for changes in macro-evolution (that is, one species changing to another) so an intelligent designer (God) must be involved in the process. The reason the author of the website lists this as the most dangerous book ever written is because (and I'm paraphrasing) it fuels attacks on science by religious fundamentalists who have a literal interpretation of the Bible.

Are you serious? Darwin's Black Box fuels attacks on science!?! Dude, the belief that the world is only 6000 years (a belief Michael Behe does not share), while silly, is completely harmless and doesn't affect science one whit. Only a morally confused dimbulb would list Behe's book as the most dangerous book ever. Marx and Engalls gave us communism whose followers murdered over 100 million people in the 20th century. Hitler's Nazism resulted in the Holocaust and WWII and 50 million dead. Sanger's organization Planned Parenthood has had a hand in millions of abortions. And The Protocols of the Elders of Zion has fed Jew hatred for decades.

And Darwin's Black Box is more dangerous? I want to vomit.

I don't care if you don't buy into Intelligent design. I don't care if you believe in Darwinian Evolution. I don't care if you have the harmless belief that the world is only 6000 years old! It doesn't matter! Science isn't damaged and people won't be murdered in the millions because of it. Frankly, if you believe Darwin's Black Box is the most dangerous book ever written or, Hell, dangerous at all, you're a fool.

Buy some damn wisdom, please.