Thursday, May 24, 2007

Ham on wry

This weekend, Ken Ham's creation Museum opens near Cincinnati. It features a Disneyfied approach to religion and science aimed at not very inquisitive kids. Ham might be sincere in his religious beliefs, but I don't believe his methods of proselytizing are honest. I believe that there are arguments that Ham knows are incorrect but that he continues to use because they are effective.

That is me. If you have a different opinion of Ham, or a comment to make about his museum opening, this weekend is your chance to have your say. Last weekend I wrote a small piece about Ham and asked PZ Myers if anyone was planning a coordinated response to the media circus that will accompany Ham's opening. PZ took the torch and ran with it.

That is what I was hoping for. I'm both too busy to be the torch bearer (Mom is going into cancer therapy again) and too small to be the torch bearer. Despite my light and sarcastic tone, I think that this is a very serious issue. America is a hotbed of misguided creationist support. Someday soon, I’ll write a post explaining why I think that is. Meanwhile, even if I wasn't busy, I would want someone with a high enough profile to attract to this issue the attention it deserves in the major media. That's PZ, not me.

And so, if you have something to say about Ken Ham, creationism, or his museum, send a link to PZ by Saturday for a one time Creation Museum carnival. If you have a cartoon, send a link to Left 'Toon Lane by Friday. They are having a cartoon contest, with winning entries sent to PZ for the carnival. See, without a word being published, that's already more attention than I could have brought to the issue.

Here are my previous thoughts on Ham's approach to the origins of species.

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