[MD] Debate on Science_ReligionToday

[Platt Holden]

Hi Robbie, All

I read the article with a deep sense of sadness tinged with anger. Here 
are a group of supposedly "the best and brightest" preaching the gospel 
according to the church of scientism and claiming they have "a monopoly 
on truth." Richard Dawkins, who wrote "The God Delusion" and a hero 
among atheists, is no less a absolutist than the Rev. Jerry Farwell, 
and twice as arrogant. These people have no clue about art and beauty, 
not to mention Pirsig's assessment that:
 
"The reality science explains is that 'reality' which follows 
mechanisms and programs. That other worthless stuff which doesn't 
follow mechanisms and programs we don't pay any attention to." (lila, 
11)

That "other worthless stuff" is only what we live for!

Best,
Platt
 

> NY Times weekly Tuesday's Science Section today had a by "George
> Johnson" article devoted to the Science/ Religion debate that reminds
> one of discussions that appear in this group periodically. 
> 
>   The article quoted Dr. Steve Weinberg, "the more the universe seems
>   comprehensible, the more it also seems pointless", then he goes
>   further: "Anything that we scientists can do to weaken the hold of
>   religion should be done and may in the end be our greatest
>   contribution to civilization."
> 
>   Dr. Rich Dawkins (Oxford Evolutionary biologist) and conferee at the
>   reported on event is author of the National best seller book "The God
>   Delusion."
> 
>   The article makes the point that when scientists periodically convert
>   from experimentation, problem solving, fact and evidence gathering to
>   the God justification for natural phenomena than their most productive
>   life as a creative cutting edge scientist are usually about over.
> 
>   The article begins with another Steve Weinberg...Nobel Laureate,
>   physics quotation, "The world need to wake up from its long nightmare
>   of religious belief". Moreover, Dawkins believes religious education
>   is "brain-washing" and "Child abuse."
> 
>   One speaker after another lined up to present the general message
>   challenging scientists to be less timid about challenging unverifiable
>   teachings about nature based only on scripture and belief. Science's
>   core being: intellectual honesty, said Sam Harris, a doctoral student
>   in Neuroscience and the author of "The End of Faith: Religion, Terror
>   and the Future of Reason" and "Letter to a Christian Nation."
> 
>   Another profound moment was Nobelist, chemistry by Sir Harold Krot's:
>   call for  the John Templeton Foundation to give its next prize for
>   "progress in spiritual discoveries" to an atheist.  I myself would
>   wish to nominate the 14th Dalia Lama for this prize.
> 
>   Does anything in this post contain information that might conflict
>   with our societies social immune system? If so you might try writing a
>   letter to the Editor of the Time's science page very soon!. An
>   unedited video of the reported on proceedings will be posted on the
>   web at tsntv.org
> 
>   If this subject interests anyone they should examine the source: page
>   D1 of Nov. 21, 2006 of the N. Y. Times...the newspaper.