Thursday, October 20, 2011

No Cage Match for Craig and Dawkins

Sometimes the courage of one's convictions is not enough...


Premier Christian Radio is sponsoring The Reasonable Faith Tour with William Lane Craig.  Craig will speaking and debating at seven venues in the UK this month, the 17th through the 26th of October, 2011.  The organizers made much of inviting Richard Dawkins to debate their man.  Dawkins declined for several reasons, some of them stated, others which may be inferred.  Premier has made much of Dawkins refusal to defend his version of the atheist view, even purchasing some tongue in cheek bus adverts, which will recall some atheist bus ads of years past.

Dawkins supporters have rallied round their idol in support of his nominally principled stand.

Fans of William Lane Craig (WLC) are happy to believe that Dawkin's refusal to debate their idol speaks to the weakness of the atheist position.

Truth be told, it's probably best for Dawkins that they did not meet in rhetorical combat.  Face to face, in a structured debate, locked in to a narrowly defined topic, WLC would mop the floor with Dawkins. Dawkins ought to be brave enough to admit he’s refused to meet WLC in the arena for fear of being beaten on style.  Dawkin’s might have reminded his base that he’s a scientist, not a performer.  Better to admit that WLC is a skilled debater and that the format of the debate would not allow Dawkins to attack WLC’s nasty views on genocide, misogyny, and divine command theory.

All that said, a written debate between these two figureheads, refereed by strict editors, and delivered in book format, would sell like hotcakes to both camps.

Dr. Rachie Reports

Dr. Rachael Dunlop is doing honourable battle with the forces of darkness...


Dr. Dunlop is a well-known voice of reason in the public health debate in Australia, which is experiencing an epidemic of whooping cough courtesy of anti-vax idiocy.   In 9 Vaccination Myths Busted By Science she lays out the latest science in opposition to the unreason espoused by those who wish to reverse two centuries of medical progress.  Herd immunity is the responsibility of every able member of the herd.  The death of the very weak and the very young is the alternative.  No more children need die of communicable diseases, if only the anti-vaxers would catch a case of reality.

This Is Going To Be Fun

Just as soon as it rise to the top of my reading queue...


This evening I had a few spare minutes and a Barnes & Noble gift card burning a hole in my pocket so Robert N. Bellah's Religion in Human Evolution: From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age followed me home.I know, I know, there are many other books already on my 2011 reading list, so this may become a 2012 read, but maybe not...