Tim Christenson

Exquisite Devastation of Darwinism

Revisado: 08-27-21

Stephen C Myer's trilogy, Signature in The Cell, Darwin's Doubt, and Return of the God hypothesis aim intellectually brilliant and scientifically exhaustive howitzers at what remains of Neo-Darwinian Theory and all the recent and so very desperate (bizarre) variations. What strikes me is that his humility eclipses his intellectual integrity and magisterial grasp of the subject. There is not a shred of arrogance in anything that he says. It is all respectful and well-meaning. There are no tyraids in this book, no cheap shots, no shred of condescension, no missteps in logic, no stretching or contorting of data to fit the theory. He is a true scientific philosopher that allows the truth to lead him wherever that might be. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to any scientific naturalist who has has been shocked by the Precambrian Age's proliferation of new body plans and how Neo-Darwinism is just not capable of giving it an adequate explanation.

One more thing... Meyer's illustrations make extremely complex processes and concepts so readily understandable and compelling to the lay reader as well as to the PHD post doc.

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Devastating Blow to Evolution

Revisado: 05-26-21

Even atheist Thomas Nagel who wrote Mind and Cosmos: Why the Materialist Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature Is Almost Certainly False knows that macro evolution above the level of speciation and application is on its last legs. When will microbiologists wake up to the fact that Evolution can't explain the irreducible complexity of even the simplest microorganis? Quit hiding behind math programs! Behe's recounting of recent microbiological research demonstrates that random mutation can only damage genes to allow the organism to adapt in the short-term but cripples it in the long term for future adaptation. Devastating to the concept that random mutation, that is, molecules banging together randomly, only attracted by natural chemical attractions, is capable of producing enhanced genomes. Not happening. It may be as Behe closes his final appendix that materialistic evolutionist may be barking up the wrong tree.

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Obscenely Shoddy Reasoning

Revisado: 05-26-21

Harvard Ph.D Aaron James in his book Assholes: A Theory, comments on Dawkin's book, The God Delusion. Much of the quote applies to The Greatest Show on Earth. "Oxford biologist Richard Dawkins is similarly self-assured (as H.L. Mencken is) in his broadside against theism and religious belief... He writes cocksurely that the views of millions of reasonable and intelligent people (even if ultimately mistaken) have no merit whatsoever and feels entitled to give sloppy treatment to arguments for the existence of God that have seriously engaged philosophers for thousands of years."

Of the many appalling assumption the book makes is how easy it is for unguided random mutations to produce a series of complex positive features that enhance a particular genome step by step to the point of advancing them beyond adaptation and speciation which all parties agree has been demonstrated in the lab (Lenski) to starting new families, orders and classes. Every single one of Dawkins examples, dog breeding was my favorite, are only adaptation leading to speciation. He leaves out or is unaware of an astonishing volume of current research in molecular biology that shows that after fifty thousand generations of bacteria Lenski ingeniously supervized they never got beyond the species level. And now since we have new biomolecular tools to see how species adapt we find that most mutations are a Devolution of existing genomes. It is the breakdown of certain genes that allow an animal to adapt to its environment but then because of the breakage their capacity to adapt to future changes in the environment gets weaker. All dog breeding breaks down existing DNA sequences that limit the dog's ability to adapt but emphasizes or abbreviates certain features. Doesn't Dawkins know this?

Also. Oxford biomolecular scientist Douglas Axe's work cited in his book Undeniable demonstrates the inability for proteins to adapt to even small variations in their chemical makeup and shape.

Another really annoying aspect of this book is that Dawkims builds strong men to blow down rather than dealing with the heavy hitters of intelligent design. He picks on young Earth Creationists rather than veteran biomolecular researchers who because of their new tools see even the simplest one-celled organisms as a masterpiece of orchestrated elegant machinery working in conjunction to the point of being able to replicate their own mobile Factory! The observed irreducible complexity of the simplest organism and the inability for the powers of chemical attractiom and randomness to produce anything like a replicating double helix has forced them to recognize that anything that requires knowledge to make can't be made without that knowledge communicated and transferred. Dawkins himself recognizes that the DNA double helix is a coding language. How can a coding language capable of replication ever come from molecules banging together randomly?

If this is the best explanation of evolution available my prediction is that the theory will not last for another 20 years. It will be the laughing stock of Science. It's only going to get worse for evolutionists as research continues to make it look so pathetic. You know it's bad when the only research you can find for evolution is math programs.

I think it's because phds and reputations are at stake. I think of Scientific American and the refusal to publish anything about the Wright brother's success. Peer review has its place but most breakthroughs happened outside the concrete walls peers have constructed to protect their own reputations and works, and grants, however disproved their theories have become.

I noticed that after all the hundreds of pages regaling us with Darwinian genius Dawkins never mentions Darwin's theory of gemules.

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stunning narration of a gut-wrenching book

Revisado: 05-01-21

I can see why Steinbeck won the Pulitzer. Dylan Baker made it so painfully vivid. I'll be looking for other books that he has narrated.

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Gary Sinise is a gifted narrator.

Revisado: 03-25-21

You know the narrator is great when you forget all about the fact that someone is reading the story to you. Gary Sinise's ability to portray different characters makes me want to listen to anything else he has narrated.

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Sean Pratt is astonishing.

Revisado: 02-03-21

A masterful performance of an excruciatingly
difficult book to narrate. Hats off to Mr. Pratt.

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Every U.S. citizen should read this.

Revisado: 09-27-20

I'm glad this book has been resurrected. It's so easy to forget what a totalitarian state does to human beings. And it's also as easy to forget the benefits and pleasures of living in a free nation and the kind of sacrifices required to maintain that freedom. Before the election all U.S. citizens should read The Federalist Papers and this book. Both will clarify our individual civil responsibilities and warn against the insidious and destructive nature of collectivism and unchecked centralized government.

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We have no excuse!

Revisado: 06-20-20

If countries around the world would have paid attention to this book hundreds of thousands of lives would have been saved. A massively exhaustive history of medicine since 1800's, Barry painstakingly walks the reader step-by-step through the challenges of defeating the Insidious spread of influenza. Every single page is horrifyingly relevant to today. This should have been required reading of every single legislator and public official.

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Luke Daniels: incredible narrator.

Revisado: 06-04-20

Listen to the book just for Luke Daniels amazing ability to emulate characters. The new narrator has big shoes to fill

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breathtakingly relevant.

Revisado: 02-06-20

John McDonald narration of Witness is flawless gripping arresting. Every politician should be required to read it

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