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I agree that he definitely threw tact out the window and because of that fact he lost credibility, probably with believers and non believers alike. The thing is that you're misusing the word theory here, gravity is a theory, do you not believe in gravity? Of course you do, because you can see the effects of gravity, just like you can see the effects of evolution, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. Evolution has been affirmed and reaffirmed through years of observation and experiments and the emergence of new fields like genetics has only reinforced the tenets of evolution which is why when people say "well it's only a theory" I bring up the comparison to gravity because just like if you threw out gravity you'd have to throw out hundreds of years of science in related fields, the same holds true of evolution. Genetics and biology textbooks would have to be completely rewritten if the "theory" of evolution was discarded for something like intelligent design, which raises more questions than it answers.

Saying "I don't know, therefore God did it," is obviously a simplification but I think it captures the essence of the arguments in favor of intelligent design, it's basically just the old "God of the Gaps" argument repackaged for a new generation, which is the reason I say it has no place in a science classroom. You can believe whatever you want, but you cannot label it science because when you boil it all down it has nothing to do with science, and everything to do with faith and science is not based on faith.

<blockquote data-quote="Muadib" data-source="post: 148213" data-attributes="member: 5463">I agree that he definitely threw tact out the window and because of that fact he lost credibility, probably with believers and non believers alike.&nbsp; The thing is that you&#039;re misusing the word theory here, gravity is a theory, do you not believe in gravity?&nbsp; Of course you do, because you can see the effects of gravity, just like you can see the effects of evolution, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not.&nbsp; Evolution has been affirmed and reaffirmed through years of observation and experiments and the emergence of new fields like genetics has only reinforced the tenets of evolution which is why when people say &quot;well it&#039;s only a theory&quot; I bring up the comparison to gravity because just like if you threw out gravity you&#039;d have to throw out hundreds of years of science in related fields, the same holds true of evolution.&nbsp; Genetics and biology textbooks would have to be completely rewritten if the &quot;theory&quot; of evolution was discarded for something like intelligent design, which raises more questions than it answers. &nbsp;Saying &quot;I don&#039;t know, therefore God did it,&quot; is obviously a simplification but I think it captures the essence of the arguments in favor of intelligent design, it&#039;s basically just the old &quot;God of the Gaps&quot; argument repackaged for a new generation, which is the reason I say it has no place in a science classroom.&nbsp; You can believe whatever you want, but you cannot label it science because when you boil it all down it has nothing to do with science, and everything to do with faith and science is not based on faith.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Muadib, post: 148213, member: 5463"] I agree that he definitely threw tact out the window and because of that fact he lost credibility, probably with believers and non believers alike. The thing is that you're misusing the word theory here, gravity is a theory, do you not believe in gravity? Of course you do, because you can see the effects of gravity, just like you can see the effects of evolution, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. Evolution has been affirmed and reaffirmed through years of observation and experiments and the emergence of new fields like genetics has only reinforced the tenets of evolution which is why when people say "well it's only a theory" I bring up the comparison to gravity because just like if you threw out gravity you'd have to throw out hundreds of years of science in related fields, the same holds true of evolution. Genetics and biology textbooks would have to be completely rewritten if the "theory" of evolution was discarded for something like intelligent design, which raises more questions than it answers. Saying "I don't know, therefore God did it," is obviously a simplification but I think it captures the essence of the arguments in favor of intelligent design, it's basically just the old "God of the Gaps" argument repackaged for a new generation, which is the reason I say it has no place in a science classroom. You can believe whatever you want, but you cannot label it science because when you boil it all down it has nothing to do with science, and everything to do with faith and science is not based on faith. [/QUOTE]

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