The 1920s. It was a sad, sad time in America. All the biologists got together and, inspired by Darwinian writings, embarked on a campaign to sterilize those they perceived as unfit, the campaign known to us as Eugenics. From Eugenics grew other evils, such as Planned Parenthood, Modern Evolutionary Biology, and The Nazis. Continue reading John West can Play the Violin But Not the Fiddle
Daily Archives: November 30, 2007
Lipid Rafts and Everything…
The Bible as Ethnography ~ 04 ~ Agricultural Transitions
In Genesis 4, we see specific reference to herdsmen and farmers as distinct groups, represented by Abel and Cain, respectively. God indicates a preference for the results of herding over planting, and the sibling troubles that ensue result in the world becoming a difficult place to farm, and humans becoming more nomadic, as herders. This is interesting, because it seems like a dramatic shift from reference to irrigation agriculture to herding. Given the usual role of origin stories, we may be seeing a layering of blame in this case. If this is the origin story of cattle keeping nomadic pastoral people, one has to explain the distinction from farming, and if possible, develop a disdain for the practice of farming, typical at least in Africa of herding cultures.
Continue reading The Bible as Ethnography ~ 04 ~ Agricultural Transitions
Devil vs Darwin
Headline: Poll finds more Americans believe in devil than Darwin
Ancient Jade Exchange in Southeast Asia
Hot off the presses from PNAS, we have a paper on ancient jade exchange in Southeast Asia. From the abstract:
We have used electron probe microanalysis to examine Southeast Asian nephrite (jade) artifacts, many archeologically excavated, dating from 3000 B.C. through the first millennium A.D. The research has revealed the existence of one of the most extensive sea-based trade networks of a single geological material in the prehistoric world. Green nephrite from a source in eastern Taiwan was used to make two very specific forms of ear pendant that were distributed, between 500 B.C. and 500 A.D., through the Philippines, East Malaysia, southern Vietnam, and peninsular Thailand, forming a 3,000-km-diameter halo around the southern and eastern coastlines of the South China Sea. Other Taiwan nephrite artifacts, especially beads and bracelets, were distributed earlier during Neolithic times throughout Taiwan and from Taiwan into the Philippines.
Is religion a form of child abuse? Part II
PZ Myers at Pharyngula examines this question in an entirely different case. This is the case of 14 year old Jehovah Witness Dennis Linberg. Dennis died on Wednesday night at a Seattle area hospital because he refused to accept a life saving transfusion on religious grounds.
This is, indeed, a parent’s worse nightmare. Your child finds religion, in this case from some crazy religious aunt, and that religion leads the child to his death.
[ADDED: Go see this commentary by Orac]
Continue reading Is religion a form of child abuse? Part II
Is religion a form of child abuse?
This is the tag line for an article in yesterday’s Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Where punishment drifts into abuse is the issue in the case of a father who hit his son 36 times.
In this case, the “drifting” occurred because…
When Shawn Fraser’s discipline failed to rein in his 12-year-old son, he turned to his religion…