Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed

[Hrothwulf]

Honestly, my only real problem with Darwinian evolution is explaining how the two sexes came about. But aside from that, it seems pretty gravy.

 

But yeah, Ben Stein is an idiot. He's just the most famous anti-evolutionist they could find. Even Micheal Behe believes in evolution, he just doesn't think it could've happened by natural processes.

 

I wonder if this film is going to have any new arguments, or is just going to recycle the whole "but the universe is so PRETTY! plus, if you don't believe in intelligent design then you're admitting you have no morals and you are a Nazi because we've tricked ourselves into thinking that evolutionism created Nazism!!"

[HuaiDan]

Honestly, my only real problem with Darwinian evolution is explaining how the two sexes came about. But aside from that, it seems pretty gravy.

 

 

 

Sex is as old as life itself. Having two sexes, and hence the ability to change one's DNA every generation instead of waiting for a random mutation, was an ENORMOUS advantage. If you look at sex as just that, the ability of two individual organisms of the same species to share DNA and pass the results on to the next generation, then it's really not so hard to imagine how this trait would arise. Having two separate sexes instead of a population of hermaphrodites probably arose as a function of specialization.

[Legion]

I thought accounting for the emergence of sex was a ongoing project. I am not sure that sex is as old as life itself.

[Ouroboros]

It's frogs that can change sex, isn't that right?

 

Probably it started with that kind of animals.

[Crazycatlady]

Even prokaryotes have two separate sexes/mating types.

[studiorat]

I got an e-mail from the "expelled" bunch telling me that it'll be at a screen near me on the 18th. Here's a copy>paste of the e-mail:

 

********************************************************************************

************

Dear Friend of Expelled,

They’ve become enraged over it…

They’ve told movie theaters to reject it…

They’ve hurled false accusations against it…

They’ve bashed it in the press…

 

BUT THEY COULD NOT SHUT IT DOWN…

 

The most controversial film of 2008

Ben Stein's “EXPELLEDâ€

Opens on 1,000 movie screens this Friday, April 18!

 

Be there! We need your support!

 

Check HERE to see where EXPELLED is playing near you.

 

The EXPELLED controversy has catapulted to #1 most popular blog on the Internet (3/24/08) and #6 on Yahoo’s “Top Searches†(4/8/08), and driven 2,000,000 people to the movie website wondering,

 

“What is Ben Stein saying that has people so fired up?"

 

Ben Stein is being called both “an idiot†and “a geniusâ€

Atheists are enraged by the movie, “crashing†EXPELLED screenings

Liberal movie critics are slamming EXPELLED, while leaders are raving

Organizations are urging theaters to reject the movie, while others are holding movie marathons for all Expelled showings at their theaters…

Ben Stein’s EXPELLED has struck a cultural NERVE as it exposes a modern day witch hunt in which scientists, educators and students are being persecuted because they dare to question Darwinism and argue that life may be the result of "intelligent design".

 

As Ben takes on the world's leading atheists, and their global agenda, the hilarious but sobering results make us realize, “It’s time to get involved!â€

 

CLICK HERE to take a GROUP to see EXPELLED

 

Stand with Ben Stein and support academic freedom by seeing EXPELLED.

 

IN THEATERS FRIDAY, APRIL 18!

 

Please forward this email to friends and contacts!

 

Sincerely,

 

Paul Lauer

CEO, Motive Entertainment

 

 

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:

 

"I recommend EXPELLED enthusiastically!"

- James C. Dobson, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board, Focus on the Family

 

"Four stars!" - Ted Baehr, Editor, MovieGuide

 

“A powerful and riveting film… every open-minded person will love it.â€

- Rev. Donald E. Wildmon, Founder & Chairman of American Family Association

 

"EXPELLED is an enormously important project."

- Michael Medved, national radio host

 

"We highly recommend EXPELLED to anybody."

- Ken Smitherman, President, Association of Christian Schools International

 

"SEE THIS FILM, bring your friends and bring your church."

- Lee Strobel, Author, Case for a Creator

 

“See EXPELLED and you’ll understand why they want to censor those who question their dogmas.†- Dr. Richard Land, Southern Baptist Convention

 

“Those who are suppressing belief in God and trying to make materialism the law of the land should beware. Ben Stein is on a mission to stop the suppression, and millions of Americans are behind him."

- Pat Robertson, Host, 700 Club

 

"In EXPELLED, Ben Stein shows us what happens when academic freedom takes a day off. We should all be listening."

- Carl Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus

 

"EXPELLED is both an eye-opening documentary and riotous entertainment." - Joseph Farah, CEO, WorldNetDaily.com

 

"This movie may trigger a cultural revolution."

- Dennis Wagner, Executive Director, Access Research Network

 

"EXPELLED could easily be one of the most important movies of the year."

- Denny Rydberg, President, Young Life

 

"EXPELLED is earthshaking. I was absolutely blown away. Everyone in America, even skeptics of Intelligent Design, must see this film."

- J. Matt Barber, Director for Cultural Issues, Concerned Women for America

 

"A cultural earthquake... Everyone I talked to after the screening used words like 'fabulous' and 'incredible'." - Dr. Tom Woodward, Director, C.S. Lewis Society

"A solid case for giving the theory of Intelligent Design a respected place in the classroom alongside Darwin's theory of Evolution."

- Dick Rolfe, Co-Founder and CEO, The Dove Foundation

*******************************************************************************

 

Whadda buncha shit! It seems that they are conveniently forgetting that they duped (i.e. LIED) to some of the folks interviewed for the movie about it's real subject matter. This isn't documentary filmmaking - it's propaganda. As a film maker, it is utterly revolting and a disgrace to the documentary industry. Of course, the only positive reviews are coming from ID folks. "Preaching to the choir" indeed...

 

I think I'll go hand out some "NO RELIGION" cards at the local theater. Anyone care to join me?

[♦ nivek ♦]

Flunk this movie!

Reason

by Ronald Bailey

 

"Despite its topic, [Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed] is entirely

free of scientific content -- no scientific evidence against

biological evolution and none for 'intelligent design' (ID) theory is

given. Which makes sense because biological evolution is amply

supported by evidence from the fossil record, molecular biology, and

morphology. ... Instead of evaluating this evidence, Stein spends most

of the movie asking various proponents of evolutionary theory,

including Richard Dawkins, P.Z. Myers, Michael Ruse, and Daniel

Dennett, for their religious views. Neither the producers nor Stein

understand that offering critiques of a theory with which they

disagree is not the same as proving their own theory." (04/16/08)

 

http://www.reason.com/news/show/125988.html

[Neon Genesis]

Dear Friend of Expelled,

They’ve become enraged over it…

They’ve told movie theaters to reject it…

They’ve hurled false accusations against it…

They’ve bashed it in the press…

 

BUT THEY COULD NOT SHUT IT DOWN…

 

The most controversial film of 2008

Ben Stein's “EXPELLEDâ€

Opens on 1,000 movie screens this Friday, April 18!

 

Be there! We need your support!

 

Check HERE to see where EXPELLED is playing near you.

 

The EXPELLED controversy has catapulted to #1 most popular blog on the Internet (3/24/08) and #6 on Yahoo’s “Top Searches†(4/8/08), and driven 2,000,000 people to the movie website wondering,

What the fuck? This makes no sense. It's the most popular blog on the Internet yet it's being "persecuted" at the same time? Someone tell me that I'm not the only one confused by this contradictory statement.

 

 

"I recommend EXPELLED enthusiastically!"

- James C. Dobson, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board, Focus on the Family

You mean people actually take anything Focus On The Family says seriously?

[Mongo]

We are all in the middle of a "Best of Class" marketing promotion that seems to be doing all the right things.

 

Goebbels would be proud.

 

Karl Rove laid the groundwork for impregnating the religious sheeple with mind viruses which, once conceived, grow and breed intellectual perversions that defy all norms of common sense.

 

Mel Gibson showed the world how to find a large demographic and "Give them what they want". I doubt there were many people who could forsee the success of the film at its outset. As I recall, a wave of popularity slowly grew as believers bleeted praises for the film from one to another.

 

I don't know if the film has the production quality it proports but if the web site is any indication... you can all make plans to hear the ignorant masses squeeling about "Giving ole Slewfoot a black eye."

 

Prepare yourselves for family members, mindlessly repeat fucktardary they heard from the pastor who heard the from a decon who went to the movie but didn't understand the movie because he is too lazy to do a little reading. Nonetheless he'll report that "scientests hate god and they hate christians" and "We all need to pray that god opens the eyes of these evil scientests" and "Every god fearing believer should see this film".

 

Prepare yourselves to be told, "You really should see the movie... it makes it really clear that you're not being told the whole story and I'd hate to see you go to hell because of a lie."

 

Yes folks... this IS how it's done and if you've ever wanted to know how to spread a lie, then I have three words for you...

 

"Watch and learn."

 

Mongo

[MathGeek]

I had no idea Ben Stein was a nut job, I too thought he was smart... Sounds like hes just another nutjob.

He might be clever as a fox. He almost certainly will rake in the cash on this one.

 

I agree with that part. It seems to me that this entire shitstorm has really moved beyond the classroom, courtroom and church sanctuary into the realm of capitalistic exploitation. Stein, whether or not he is a nutjob, is a genius when it comes to making money. His droll, academic schtick is popular and it is basically the boilerplate for the stereotypical teacher we've all come to know and love. I don't know him personally so I can't say whether or not he believes in ID or young-earth creationism, but I know when somebody is pushing a cause for exposure and capital.

 

Ben Stein...meet Al Gore.

[MathGeek]

Quick aside...which science is more accurate? Expelled or An Inconvenient Truth?

[Outback Jack]

For anyone who sees this movie, make sure you take a look at

 

http://www.expelledexposed.com/

 

for some balancing information.

[Apostate called Jimmy]

I can't help but appreciate the irony of creationists attacking "Darwinism" when anyone who's taken a biology class in the past 50 years could tell you the scientific community's understanding of evolutionary theory has long since moved beyond the basic foundation laid down by the field's creator.

 

Which is not to say appropriate credit isn't still given to Darwin, of course, but the science of evolution didn't dogmatically begin and end with him. Even Charles D. got a few things wrong.

 

The thing with creationists (not just specifically christians because I have known muslim and jewish creationists) is that they have to put people who accept evolutionary theory into the same category as themselves in order to level the playing field, so to speak. The field isn't level when one side has a whole bunch of scientific evidence to back it up and the other side has an ancient book of writings. So they try to make it out as though evolution is a "belief"- note how they say "believe in evolution". They call people "evolutionists" as though it is a religion. They make Darwin out to be some kind of religious figure, so they can compare him to their Jesus and then find him lacking "he was only a man." according to their own criteria. Because the bible is supposed to have all the answers, they claim that the study of evolution is lacking because all the answers haven't been found yet. They do this because they can not stand on science's playing field, as they have no real proof for anything they assert.

 

I find the name of the movie ironic. "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed". Because isn't that exactly what creationists have been trying to do, expel intelligence from their churches, their congregants, our schools and our government?

 

 

 

One thing I really hate about the religious, christians in particular, is how they think they have all the answers to life's biggest questions. How did life begin? Why are we here? What happens after we die? Is their life on other planets? etc. And they have all the answers because their 2,000 year old book tells them so. There's no thinking involved, no curiosity, no mystery. And frankly, I find the whole concept of evolution fascinating, and the thought of God creating every single species separate and individually rather boring. Some species are so similar, it makes you think that God was running out of ideas. Like say, when he made the jaguar he just looked at the leopard and thought "I'll just take that, make it little bigger and it's spots a little different with a few other modifications and just call it something else" and viola, you got a jaguar. And the raven and the crow, there's hardly any difference at all! You'd think a divine omnipotent being would have little more imagination.

[Mongo]

One thing I really hate about the religious, christians in particular, is how they think they have all the answers to life's biggest questions. How did life begin? Why are we here? What happens after we die? Is their life on other planets? etc. And they have all the answers because their 2,000 year old book tells them so. There's no thinking involved, no curiosity, no mystery. And frankly, I find the whole concept of evolution fascinating, and the thought of God creating every single species separate and individually rather boring.

 

Great point!

 

It makes me wonder whether creationism isn't part of a scheme to discourage critical thinking which, incidentally, seems to be expelled from our schools and society!

 

After all, once you get rid of the "great questions", there isn't much reason to engage on an intellectual quest.

 

Yes... religion blunts interest in all kinds of mysteries like how the mind works and what is consciousness and turns it into religious babble.

 

Mongo

[R. S. Martin]

One thing I really hate about the religious, christians in particular, is how they think they have all the answers to life's biggest questions. How did life begin? Why are we here? What happens after we die? Is their life on other planets? etc. And they have all the answers because their 2,000 year old book tells them so. There's no thinking involved, no curiosity, no mystery. And frankly, I find the whole concept of evolution fascinating, and the thought of God creating every single species separate and individually rather boring.

 

Great point!

 

It makes me wonder whether creationism isn't part of a scheme to discourage critical thinking which, incidentally, seems to be expelled from our schools and society!

 

After all, once you get rid of the "great questions", there isn't much reason to engage on an intellectual quest.

 

Yes... religion blunts interest in all kinds of mysteries like how the mind works and what is consciousness and turns it into religious babble.

 

Mongo

 

That raises one of the great oxymorons of the argument against education. "They just think they have to know everything" is a snide remark I grew up hearing about anyone who wanted more education than the specified minimum required by the province.

 

Or from the educated religious people, "Atheists won't accept as real anything that cannot be quantified and measured." When this is said to me personally it feels like an attack on my intelligence, an accusation of arrogance, as though the person is saying, "You think you're too good to accept anything as humble as spiritual truths--you need to have everything proven by the almighty scientific method."

 

So that's religious people at both ends of the intellectual spectrum accusing me of wanting to know everything and not being content with not knowing everything.

 

Okay. Let's look a bit deeper.

 

Along comes the question about origins. And God's existence. And what happens when we die.

 

I confess to not having any knowledge about these things. I confess that as a human I have limited knowledge (remember, they said we don't have to know everything), and that due to my limited knowledge I cannot answer questions on those topics.

 

For some strange reason these people who wanted me not to know everything now accuse me of not knowing enough! For some strange reason it is not acceptable for me not to know how the world came into being, whether God exists, or what happens when we die.

 

For some strange reason, these questions that are so remote and irrelevant to everyday life are considered by educated and uneducated religious folks alike to be of central importance, and not knowing the answer is anathema.

 

These are the people who accused me of being arrogant.

[MathGeek]

That raises one of the great oxymorons of the argument against education. "They just think they have to know everything" is a snide remark I grew up hearing about anyone who wanted more education than the specified minimum required by the province.

 

Or from the educated religious people, "Atheists won't accept as real anything that cannot be quantified and measured." When this is said to me personally it feels like an attack on my intelligence, an accusation of arrogance, as though the person is saying, "You think you're too good to accept anything as humble as spiritual truths--you need to have everything proven by the almighty scientific method."

 

So that's religious people at both ends of the intellectual spectrum accusing me of wanting to know everything and not being content with not knowing everything.

 

Okay. Let's look a bit deeper.

 

Along comes the question about origins. And God's existence. And what happens when we die.

 

I confess to not having any knowledge about these things. I confess that as a human I have limited knowledge (remember, they said we don't have to know everything), and that due to my limited knowledge I cannot answer questions on those topics.

 

For some strange reason these people who wanted me not to know everything now accuse me of not knowing enough! For some strange reason it is not acceptable for me not to know how the world came into being, whether God exists, or what happens when we die.

 

For some strange reason, these questions that are so remote and irrelevant to everyday life are considered by educated and uneducated religious folks alike to be of central importance, and not knowing the answer is anathema.

 

These are the people who accused me of being arrogant.

 

I can agree with these thoughts greatly. As an educator myself, I try and encourage critical and exploratory thoughts among my students in my classes. And it doesn't come so much from religion as it does from an apathetic society as a whole. Many of my students, at least when I press them with the harder questions, shut down quickly because they don't yet see the intrinsic value of having to form an answer to them. But, if the majority lower class in a society garners much education and it doesn't garner them much materially besides a beer gut and a shitty nighttime line-up on the idiot box, how does one fight against such sickening attitudes?

 

Religion is a detriment to society, but I think there are many other problems to cause negative feelings and action to occur within society as well.

[Legion]

Well I just got back from seeing it. I am still trying to put my thoughts about it together.

[Ahh!]

This movie is one of the one's my mother seems devoted to trying to shove down my throat. She hasn't been to a church in almost 4 years but something about this crap sparks the crazy in her. Here's a rough transcript of my ride to school today:

 

Mom: Have you see the new Ben Stein movie Expelled is out? It looks good. The Darwinism parts are so going to piss off a lot of elitist liberals!

Me: They piss me off too because they're stupid.

Mom: Isn't it true Darwinism inspired Hitler?

(try to explain it mom mumbles bullshit)

[Legion]

This is a post sent to another forum that I visit by Judith Rosen, daughter of the late theoretical biologist Robert Rosen, on the movie.

 

I can see the battle lines forming, already.... But, it's just all so beside the point. Sigh!

 

From the website <http://www.expelledthemovie.com/video.php>:

"Why some might consider Ben Stein’s new movie to be political dynamite.

The theory of intelligent design (ID), holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause rather than an undirected process such as natural selection. ID is thus a scientific disagreement with the core claim of evolutionary theory that the apparent design of living systems is an illusion."

 

Those "certain features of the universe" can best be explained by a non-reactive paradigm of science that is built around complexity rather than the purely reactive paradigm built around the machine that we have now.

 

Intelligent design is an illusion-- an illusion which is actually caused by the machine-based foundations of science. It's a mirage. That's not to say that a complex universe could not be the result of some "intelligent design".... maybe it is. But the so-called proof being used to buttress the current argument for ID is the same flawed foundation that the pure darwinists are using to argue against it. There is no resolution to this war. It is perfectly clear that this will be what my father called "an infinite regress". What a waste of time, energy, money, blood, spirit.....

 

BLECH!

[SilentLoner]

Parody, anyone?

 

Sexpelled: No Intercourse Allowed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ThQQuHtzHM