Creation gets A Distributor

yI've just noticed that Derren Brown has posted about the BBC Film/Ocean Pictures latest offerring, Creation, a film about Charles Darwin. In his post Brown says the film has yet to get a US distribution deal (because of the religious nature of its citizens), however I have heard on the grapevine that the independant outfit Newmarket Films will be distributing the film for my friends across the pond. Good news indeed.

Here's a preview.

Another Christianity Cartoon

I think this one quite effectively demonstrates that whilst folklore is very interesting, and can be a positive thing, it becomes distinctly weird when people start to believe it is real, and that worshipping it can change your life.

On the nature of evil

I found this post on the nature of evil at Aydin's Snail's Tales blog. A great piece of enlightened thought from the 1870s.

The existence of evil is then a terrible stumbling-block to the Theist. Pain, misery, crime, poverty, confront the advocate of eternal goodness, and challenge with unanswerable potency his declaration of Deity as all-good, all-wise, and all-powerful. Evil is either caused by God, or exists independently; but it cannot be caused by God, as in that case he would not be all-good; nor can it exist independently, as in that case he would not be all-powerful. Evil must either have had a beginning or it must have been eternal; but, according to the Theist, it cannot be eternal, because God alone is eternal. Nor can it have had a beginning, for if it had it must either have originated in God, or outside God; but, according to the Theist, it cannot have: originated in God, for he is all-good, and out of all-goodness evil can not originate; nor can evil have originated outside God, for, according to the Theist, God is infinite, and it is impossible to go outside of or beyond infinity.

To the Atheist this question of evil assumes an entirely different aspect. He declares that each evil is a result, but not a result from God or Devil. He affirms that by conduct founded on knowledge of the laws of existence it is possible to ameliorate and avoid present evil, and, as our knowledge increases, to prevent its future recurrence.

Charles Bradlaugh. 1874. A few words about the devil: and other biographical sketches and essays.

Richard Dawkins

Gathering Crowds
Originally uploaded by edwbaker

I just about managed to spot Richard Dawkins at the opening ceremony of the new Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum, London. If you click on the photo to go the Flickr page you will be able to get a large sized version proving that it is indeed Richard Dawkins.

Trust Me, I'm a Scientist

....and making important decisions based on bad science is not good for you.

Such as a 13-15 year old girl (I guess she was about 14) agreeing to have sex because of the fear of CERN making a black hole. This is not a good way to make decisions.