"Darwinism" leads to Moral Decay

[genie_weenie]

I purchased my morning coffee from Starbucks and saw the word “Darwinism” at the beginning of the usually pithy comment. I knew by the choice of words I was in for some "ID" propaganda.

Here is the entire comment:

Darwinism’s impact on traditional social values has not been as benign as its advocates would like us to believe. Despite the efforts of its modern defenders to distance themselves from its baleful social consequences, Darwinism’s connection with eugenics, abortion and racism is a matter of historical record. And the record is not pretty,

-- Dr. Jonathan Wells
Biologist and author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design.

The standard complaint that godlessness leads to moral laxity. What strikes me as ironic is that by placing Christianity or Religion in every instance of the loaded word “Darwinism” the comment can be rendered true.

Of course, that may simply be the way I see it...

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. you are correct

I think the point should be that it appears to be a part of human nature to use whatever authority (science, religion) is in vogue at the time to justify actions that are morally unjustifiable.

[pocoloco]

2. Social Darwinism Sucks!

Moral decay at the top!

[formerrepuke]

3. What the ID crowd doesn't get is that Darwin didn't invent evolution, he just

recognized and described it. I seriously don't know what 'Darwinism' means.. but suspect that the label originated from the dark (ignorant, anti-science) side.

[Skinner]

4. Wait a second. Perhaps I misunderstand.

You say this was printed on your Starbuck's cup? I find it extremely hard to believe that Starbucks -- or any large corporation -- would deliberately and unnecessarily offend a large chunk of its customers. Do you have a picture of this cup?

[genie_weenie]

7. I have the cup in front of me.

It is The Way I See It #224.

[northzax]

13. I've seen it

they have these pithy 'philosophies' on their cups. it's the "The Way I See it" series. you can read them all:

http://www.starbucks.com/retail/thewayiseeit_default.asp?act=1&last=21

and they obviously aren't that afraid of pissing people off (since they are addicted, after all)

The Way I See It #195 previous | next
Always question the powers that be.
-- Helen Thomas
Hearst columnist and dean of the White House press corps.

that's gotta play well in Southern Virginia, don't you think?

[Skinner]

19. OK, in context I don't really see this as a big deal.

If the cup just said "DARWINISM" at the top and had that quote, then I would be bothered by it. But by having the words "The Way I See It #224" at the top of the cup, it seems pretty clear that it is just intended as a thought-provoking quote, not the words of Starbucks.

Oh, and just in case the point is lost on some people, the cups also say this: "This is the author's opinion, not necessarily that of Starbucks. To read more or respond, go to www.starbucks.com/wayiseeit"

Here's a picture of one: ?click

[bicentennial_baby]

15. I had a Dr Laura one last week

They're all over the place with those things....sigh.

[TechBear_Seattle]

5. And "moral decay" leads to Darwin Awards

So I suppose it all evens out. :hi:

[Turbineguy]

18. I thought

he might have written that piece after catching up on the latest Darwin Awards.

[fasttense]

6. That statement by Wells assumes religion had nothing to do with

eugenics, abortion and racism. The Nazis, one of the biggest proponents of eugenic and racism, incorporated religion into their screeds. The KKK use religion to justify their racism and bigotry. Many religions push the idea that males are better than females thus you get a huge number of abortions of female fetuses because they are not seen as valuable as male fetuses.

It's easy for Wells to say it's all due to evolution when he doesn't admit to the atrocities committed in the name of God.

[C_U_L8R]

8. And just what does Copernicanism lead to ???

" set the earth on it's foundations; it can never be moved." Psalm 104:5

And what about that liberal rascal Newton ???!!! Gravity is just a theory right ???

:sarcasm:

[Atman]

9. Meh. Same could be said of "Republicanism"

It causes inbred greed, and hatred of any "species" that is different.

.

[Bill McBlueState]

10. that's what I thought, too

"by placing Christianity or Religion in every instance of the loaded word “Darwinism” the comment can be rendered true"

Yup.

Here's another thing: Either species B can evolve from species A, or it can't. The fact that some people might draw uncomfortable implications from evolution doesn't make it wrong. So Wells' statement (and probably his whole book) isn't an argument against evolution, as much as some people would like it to be.

[brazos121200]

11. "Darwinism's impact on traditional social values"

is a stock ID phrase. If evolution was the way that humans got to be on this planet, then discovering the truth and expounding the truth should not be put down by someone who disagrees with it. Whatever happened in aeons past has already happened, if everyone on the planet agreed that we got here by intelligent design it would not change the fact.

[HereSince1628]

12. Leo Stauss believed that freedom also led to moral decay

and thought that American Westerns, and their message of justice through gunfights, were modern morality plays that justified the goodness of the American Way.

[brazos121200]

17. His favorite TV shows were "Perry Mason" and "Gunsmoke",

which were to him shows which glorified the virtures of the wise leader who would pursue his own way to accomplish his goal even when his own citizens/clients did not understand his actions. This might go a long way in understanding the methods of the neocons in their pursuit of their military conquests.

[northzax]

14. I prefer #199

[Prophet 451]

16. *sigh*

Every time I try to convince people that not all believers are fuckwads, someone comes out with something like this.

"Darwinism" was a term the creation/ID crowd came up with when they were trying to paint evolution as as much of an excercise of faith as religion. It is true that a perversion of Darwin's theories has been used to attempt justification of racism, eugenics and so on (the tract assumes abortion to be a bad thing while displaying no evidence). Xianity has also been perverted as justification for heinous acts. So has Islam. So has my own faith, Luciferian Satanism (although they're far rarer than the fundies would have you believe, there have been a few serial killers who claimed the faith). In fact, from memory, the only belief system which hasn't been twisted to justify horrendous crimes in Buddhism.

But that's not the point is it? The point is that it's another attempt to turn Darwin's theories (and, by extension, those who built on his work) into a belief system because the assumption is that Darwin's theories led to the rise of secular humanism. It's bollocks, of course. Darwin's work was widely rejected when he first published it and only became the prevelant theory after his death. The United States, which almost has secular humanism as a principle of it's constitution, has already been in existance for over a century by that point.

It makes my head hurt. The more we try and convince people that science and religion do not have to oppose one another, that some of us can accept that Darwin's theories are probably more-or-less accurate (barring further evidence, obviously); the more we try and show that some of us can be both people of faith and well adjusted to living in the modern world, the more lunatic fundies try and draw religion and science into conflict and try to drag us all back to the 14th century.

[GeorgeGist]

20. Do they really believe they can stop evolution?

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: