Ben Stein's New Movie

Well I went to see "Expelled" last night after Bridegroom Matins. Since I'm not a pro I will do my best to provide an analysis of the film. I'm sure that if any atheists read my blog, it won't be educated according to their standards and I'm just another idiot creationist buying into the hype. That's fine. But at least I saw the movie.

First, the film is saturated with images and pictures surrounding the holocaust and Jewish persecution. As I have read on youtube and other blogs, many people either hated that aspect or thought it was brilliant. Since Ben Stein is Jewish this makes sense to me that this would be the backbone of the film. The opening scenes of Nazi soldiers patrolling the walls on one side and the prisoners on the other would prove to be a pivotal point later on.
Going in I knew what this would be about so I expected it to be maybe just a little bit biased. But as the movie went on and more and more scientists were interviewed, not just the ones who lost their jobs, it became apparent that the research done was more complex and thorough than I imagined.
Of course I have read the criticisms of Richard Dawkins and PZ Myers of the 2nd rate quality of the film and that they were interviewed under "false pretenses." I also heard their stories about how they got in to see the previews. Funny how none of the other scientists interviewed claim this. Maybe because these fellows were finally shown in their true light stacked up to some of these other guys and they can't stand it? Have to resort to the atheist handbook for dealing with dissenters??

I didn't think Ben Stein would actually be allowed to interview Richard Dawkins. But he was. That's what helped solidify the film for me. Instead of using a bunch of hyberbole and Michael Moore techniques, he actually did his homework and didn't try to portray something in a different light. If Michael Moore had made this movie with his stylish slant, the Darwinist crowd would have been ready to send him to the Oscars. But I digress.

To quote PZ Myers: "Religion needs to be treated as a fun thing that people do on the weekends and it doesn't affect them their lives as it has up to this point. Greater science literacy>erosion of religion>positive feedback mechanism>religion fades away>more and more science to replace it>displaces religion>more science>religion will then become an appropriate side dish instead of main course."

Sorry, PZ Myers, I don't want your type of utopia imposed on me. I'll keep my God and my Bible and my religion that I practice DAILY. And you can enjoy that as a side dish or main course, however you prefer. Ok?

Along with PZ Myers and Richard Dawkins, Ben Stein interviewed such notables as:
Paul Nelson, PhD, Biola Univ
Steven C Meyer PhD
Steve Fuller PhD, Sociology Prof Univ of Warwick
Dr. Michael Egner, Neurosurgeon Stony Brook Univ Hosp
Jeffrey Schwartz, MD Research Psychiatrist UCLA School of Medicine
Maclaj Giertych, Phd Population Geneticist European Parliament Poland Rep (This guy was amazing. He says that academic freedoms are more open there than in the U.S!)
David Berlinski, PhD
Philosopher and Mathematician (If you see the movie for no other reason, see it to hear this man. He is absolutely incredible. Of course I haven't heard a peep out of Richard Dawkins or PZ Myers for the comments made by Dr. Berlinski. And we probably won't, that's why you need to see the movie.)

The parallels drawn between atheism and Darwinism are pretty spot on. If you're going to be a true Darwinist, you pretty much have to abandon all your religious beliefs and join up in the Church of Darwin. This will get you the jobs, the promotions, the prestige, the honors, the awards, the tenure....and the respect of your peers.

If I have taken away anything from this film it is that Darwinism and atheism are powerful peer pressure tools in the academic world, and this bleeds down into the rest of the culture. When PZ Myers said religion should become a side dish, he didn't just mean that as some idle thought, he means it as something that should actually be done with society, otherwise we all just remain stupid and they (the Darwinists) sit on their humanistic pedestals. As long as we let religion poison our minds, we don't get to sit on the pedestal. We don't get to enjoy the fruits of humanistic utopia. Well for me, since science still doesn't have all the answers, I have to ask myself this question: Do I abandon my faith and embrace the Church of Darwin, all so that my self esteem can be redeemed and my peers will accept me? Is that really what this boils down to? If so, that is a very very small box to put everything into, isn't it?

And I thought science, exploration, the thirst for knowledge were all about making the box bigger. Boy am I wrong!

Recently I saw a youtube video marking fetuses as "parasites." Some are good, some are bad. Some turn out to be hideous siamese twins and with insufficient organs. Since they are basically parasites, we can rid ourselves of the bad ones and promote the good ones. (Take out the humanity of it and it makes it a lot easier to do that.) I scratched my head. Darwinism>humanism>atheism>no God>eugenics>social engineering>eugenics>euthanasia>abortion>cremation.....no respect for life. I believe that what the film portrays about the killing of humanity in the name of Darwinism and social engineering is dead on.



I don't think that is a Church I want to belong to.

"Science is a gift from God so we can better understand His Creation." ME