@C.A.F. – You touch on an interesting point, namely that it is possible to believe in religion and evolution, yet to believe in creationism, you by definition must believe in a higher power. That’s an important point because, as evidenced by the lawyer’s argument above, creationists and intelligent design advocates paint evolution as anti-religion, and it isn’t. It’s science, and science and faith don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Who’s to say that it wasn’t a divine influence that created the inherently intricate system of evolution?

So do Ben Stein and Kirk Cameron think that the scripts for Ferris Bueller and Growing Pains were created miraculously by an intelligent designer? Ferris maybe, but Growing Pains? Like it wasn’t bad enough when they added little Chrissy, they had to go and add a homeless teen played by Leonardo DiCaprio, too? Where was the divine inspiration there?

So you probably think by now that I’m anti-creationism. Not at all. I believe it entirely, but I know it’s not true. How the hell is that possible? One is science, one is religion. I take the writings of my religion for their purpose to use in the future, not to argue history of the past. Like Adam and Eve. Sexist as hell by the way, but the point is not that they were the first hairless monkeys with opposable thumbs (past), but that we’re all flawed and will sin and must struggle to resist temptation (lesson for the future).

Someone who takes this as verbatim fact gets the fundamentalism award, and is unfortunately thrust into the same category as the Muslim who believes there are actually a bunch of virgins waiting for them in heaven.

But back to Yoko. I never liked Imagine, mostly because of the whole line about “imagine no religion.” Sadly John was focused by the 10% who make 99% of the noise. Sigh. The fundamentalists. The Ben Steins, the Kirk Camerons, the suicide bombers, the polygamists pedaphiles and everybody in between. He was saying imagine if religion hadn’t guided these people astray. It’s not religion. These people would have found a reason and a justification for their insanity with or without religion. Even when religion does bad it’s usually a troubled mind finding a selective interpretation to what they’re reading. You could certainly find some horrible quotes to blame the text and not the reader, but that’s just why you don’t read these things alone in a dark room. You don’t blame a religion when someone blasphemes it (or just doesn’t understand it, which we’re all guilty of). You don’t do that any more than you blame the Christmas Carol for sounded like crap when my mom, sister, and Aunt all get together to sing it.

So I’m very anti-Imagine lyrics, although I like the actual melody a lot, and I’m strongly anti-creationism yet religiously I subscribe to it. But what do I know, I like the Monkees better than the Beatles. Both misspelled versions of God’s little creatures. On the eighth day man created Youtube, and I’m gonna go listen to Daydream Believer.

By the way, I did come across an interesting debate on the matter at http://www.actionbioscience.org/evolution/nhmag.html Check it out… it does present both sides of the argument.