(no subject)

[dreamer_easy]

What a silly thing to say: commenting on Homo floriensis, aka the recently discovered fossil "hobbits", anthropologist Desmond Morris reckons that "the existence of Mini-Man should destroy religion". (He's talking about a hypothetical tribe of living "hobbits", but the point's the same with just the fossils.)

Morris has somehow slid from Creationism a few paragraphs previously to all religion; as I noted here recently, most religions accept evolution, so this is just sloppy nonsense. (Numerous comments have been left by Christians who have no trouble reconciling the two.) Moreover, the discovery of other close human relatives such as Neanderthals hasn't given the Creationists the slightest pause, let alone "destroyed religion". Living, thinking, speaking "hobbits" would certainly challenge a number of core religious beliefs, as Morris points out; but Christianity and other religions were not "destroyed" by the enormous impact of science over the last 150 years-ish. And whatever the evidence, Fundamentalists will interpret it as damage and route around it.

Comments

[strangedave.livejournal.com]

It will, however, hopefully make the efforts of creationists to maintain their delusion even funnier. Though its pretty funny already (such as when trying to justify Noahs Ark -- at least 8,000 species taken care of by 8 people for a month).
eg http://www.pandasthumb.org/archives/2005/10/more_zany_young.html

But yes, the whole 'religion and evolution are anti-matter' stuff is nuts, and plays into the hands of the fundies.

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

It's the flipside of the Creationists' "you can accept evolution xor God", which has made many young people atheists.

[alawston.livejournal.com]

Maybe Morris is just indulging in some wishful thinking...

[purplepooka.livejournal.com]

I find it funnier when articles like this say: "Are they merely advanced apes, or are they miniature humans?"

What's the difference supposed to be?

[kateorman.livejournal.com]

If they tried to sell us something, I think we could definitely embrace them as kin.

[pbristow.livejournal.com]

[ROFL] =:o}

[antikythera.livejournal.com]

If H. floriensis had been around during the last six thousand years, maybe some of the creationists would get het up over it. But they're older than that, so it's still outside the age of the creationists' universe and therefore doesn't count for any more than a dinosaur bone.

Anyways, creationists reject offhand anything that doesn't fit with their worldview. Why would one more hominid ancestor, regardless of age, location, or size, be treated any differently?

[capriuni.livejournal.com]

And rather than "Destroy all religion" this would seem to validate all the pre-Christian religions that included a place for "The Little People." Tolkien didn't invent the hobbits out of whole cloth, after all. In other words, the Pagans were right all along! ;-P