As long as his adherents make excuses for him I do not suspect that Richard Dawkins will run out of reasons—excuses rather—for refusing to debate certain undesirable personages.
Richard Dawkins has, yet again, broken one of his very own new ten commandments (of which there are fifteen) as number eight states, “Never seek to censor or cut yourself off from dissent.”
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This time Richard Dawkins is refusing to debate prominent advocate of intelligent design Dr. Stephen C. Meyer (Ph.D. in the philosophy of science from the University of Cambridge in England).
Stephen Meyer notes:
Richard Dawkins claims that the appearance of design in biology is an illusion and claims to have refuted the case for intelligent design…But Dawkins assiduously avoids addressing the key evidence for intelligent design and won’t debate its leading proponents…Dawkins says that there is no evidence for intelligent design in life, and yet he also acknowledges that neither he nor anyone else has an evolutionary explanation for the origin of the first living cell. We know now even the simplest forms of life are chock-full of digital code, complex information processing systems and other exquisite forms of nanotechnology.
Richard Dawkins has devised a one liner whereby he has absconded from various debate challenges, “I don’t debate creationists.” He conveniently, and fallaciously, broadens this term so that it includes anyone whom he does not want to debate. Thus, even though Stephen Meyer is not a creationist he is labeled as such and becomes one of those people.
Stephen Meyer notes that “Dawkins’ response is disingenuous” because,
Creationists believe the earth is 10,000 years old and use the Bible as the basis for their views on the origins of life. I don’t think the earth is 10,000 years old and my case for intelligent design is based on scientific evidence.
Such accurate assessments are simply irrelevant to Richard Dawkins and his amen chorus of adherents who will excuse his refusal to debate and besmirch Meyer for elucidating the issue.
Richard Dawkins – felling comfortable in his safety zone
Here is some information from Amazon about Stephen Meyer’s new book Signature in the Cell (others are Science and Evidence for Design in the Universe – Proceedings of the Wethersfield Institute and Intelligent Design in Public School Science Curriculum – A Legal Guidebook):
Review”Signature in the Cell is a defining work in the discussion of life’s origins . . . the powerful case Meyer presents cannot be ignored in any honest debate. . . [T]his book is an engaging, eye-opening, and often eye-popping read” (American Spectator ) Product Description
One hundred fifty years ago, Charles Darwin revolutionized biology, but did he refute intelligent design (ID)? In Signature in the Cell, Stephen Meyer argues that he did not.Much confusion surrounds the theory of intelligent design. Frequently misrepresented by the media, politicians, and local school boards, intelligent design can be defended on purely scientific grounds in accordance with the same rigorous methods that apply to every proposed origin-of-life theory.
Signature in the Cell is the first book to make a comprehensive case for intelligent design based upon DNA. Meyer embarks on an odyssey of discovery as he investigates current evolutionary theories and the evidence that ultimately led him to affirm intelligent design. Clearly defining what ID is and is not, Meyer shows that the argument for intelligent design is not based on ignorance or “giving up on science,” but instead upon our growing scientific knowledge of the information stored in the cell.
A leading proponent of intelligent design in the scientific community, Meyer presents a compelling case that will generate heated debate, command attention, and find new adherents from leading scientists around the world.
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