Thread: Gallup Poll: 4 in 10 believe man created by God 10,000 years ago

Four in 10 Americans Believe in Strict Creationism

Well, I'll be a monkey's uncle...

So much money spent on public education, and this is what we get? Sad.

Absolutely astonishing. The programmer for the company I work for is a smart guy in some respects but he believes everything started 6,000 years ago. According to him all scientists are wrong, all astronomers, all archeologists, all anthropologists, historians, chemists, physicists, all of them are dead wrong because they don't follow the literal scriptures. And don't even get him started on plate tectonics!

Originally Posted by matt321

So much money spent on public education, and this is what we get? Sad.

Nothing wrong with the belief in a Supreme Being, they're living a life that they feel is fulfilling. Why not live and let live?

Originally Posted by red96ta

Nothing wrong with the belief in a Supreme Being, they're living a life that they feel is fulfilling. Why not live and let live?

They can do what they want and I don't care.
However, these people are also influencing things like what is taught at schools. And in some schools (like in Texas ?) they are now teaching Creationism as 'science' alongside evolution. As a result, they are spreading their stupidity.

I'm totally with Bruno here.

I've always thought that religion is rather like having a gun. Its fine to have one and its fine to be proud of it, but dont wave it around in public and dont stick it in other peoples faces.

I have no problem with what people believe but once it starts adversely impacting me and mine, thats where I draw the line.

When someone believes in the higher spirit(s), whatever that might be, it is called a religion. I'm ok with that. Whatever they belief, there is no need to prove it is a scientific fact. If it makes them life better, then they should be happy and proud with it.

Now when this belief is taught as science, or imposed to those who believe in different religious beliefs, there is a risk that it might get, eh, badly wrong.
Science and religious beliefs cannot be compared. They both talk about whole different things.

Bible is a nice book, and lot of good moral there.
This 40% sadly shows that in front of a human stupidity and ignorance even higher spirits, whatever it is called, are helpless.

Originally Posted by Bruno

They can do what they want and I don't care.
However, these people are also influencing things like what is taught at schools. And in some schools (like in Texas ?) they are now teaching Creationism as 'science' alongside evolution. As a result, they are spreading their stupidity.

Perhaps you'd like to elaborate on how those who don't believe in Creationism are less stupid?

Originally Posted by Navaja

Perhaps you'd like to elaborate on how those who don't believe in Creationism are less stupid?

We have science. Science has a lot of proof that the earth is older than 10000 years. Science also has convincing evidence that evolution is a real and verifiable mechanism that change species over time, and which can be used to explain the fossil records and other findings.

Therefore there are very good reasons that men and apes alike had a common ancestor which itself evolved from even more primitive species, all the way down cellular life, whereever that came from. I don't even see that as conflicting with a religious belief or with the idea that the biblical creation myth is a suitable parable, written down in a time when noone had any understanding of biology, physics, etc...

What I do think is stupid is believing, against the vast collection of evidence and sound theories, that a supreme deity snapped his fingers, and lo and behold, in a span of 7 days we had the earth, and we appeared in the form that we now have. Science may not be perfect. Aye. And it cannot explain everything. Aye. But on the whole, there are enough reasons to believe that a) humans as they exist now evolved from the cavemen, which evolved from other species, and b) the earth and the universe are older than 10000 years.

Even if we disagree on the previous paragraphs, even the you should agree that teaching creationism in science class is really stupid, since creationism requires the complete abandonment of the entire scientific process and all the evidence on which it is based.

Note that NOWHERE am I saying that the bible is a worthless document, or God doesn't exist, or that I don't believe in god, or anything of that nature. I just say that using the bible as a scientific factbook is silly.

Originally Posted by Bruno

And in some schools (like in Texas ?) they are now teaching Creationism as 'science' alongside evolution. As a result, they are spreading their stupidity.

This is undeniably horrifying. I thought you guys had a small piece of constitutional legislation entitled 'The First Ammendment' preventing this kind of thing.

Some of my very best friends are men of faith. Personally, it appears blindingly obvious that religion is an unnecessary vestige that we have carried over from the infancy of our species. A clumsy attempt at explaining what could not be explained at that time with science. One day we will look back on it as we now view the theory that the earth is flat... with mild amusement and much appreciation of the scientific advances we have made in the last two to three hundred years. Heretic indeed