tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73425882630862442132024-03-13T10:20:11.304-07:00Iron SoulTraining Mind and BodyIron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.comBlogger127125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-59548426814866238882013-08-08T10:55:00.001-07:002013-08-08T10:55:20.694-07:00Welcome to Lori Hardin<a href="http://lorihardin.com/#.UgPa2X5sdXE.blogger">Welcome</a><br />
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Lori Hardin's new website for her Port Orchard Salon. Still a work in progress, but it should be a great way to help new and existing clients get in touch with this talented stylist. Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-44908874356023225082013-07-30T08:40:00.003-07:002013-08-03T10:23:18.323-07:00Google News Archives<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/lorihardin35/home">Lori Hardin</a>, Port Orchard Washington. In Kitsap county. Look what I found on Google's archives. <a href="http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1026&dat=20070412&id=zSsmAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mfgFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2996,887344">Baby Jamie'</a>s announcement in the Brewster paper.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-59120844023826379252013-05-29T08:01:00.000-07:002013-05-30T12:50:16.346-07:00Lori Hardin triathlete in Port Orchard WashingtionShaping up to be a good tri season this year. Recently finished the Wentachee half marathon, with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/#!/lori.borgeshardin?fref=ts">Lori Hardin</a> and Peter Braun. We drove over from Port Orchard and had a great time in Wenatchee. The atmosphere was very charged and emotional due to being so close to the Boston mararthon bombings. The race went good, and now we are looking at signing up for the <a href="http://chelanman.com/">Chelanman Olympic</a> tri and the <a href="http://www.triturtletri.com/">Tri Turtle</a> tri. We like to support local Kitsap events when we can. Also a possiblity is the <a href="http://www.runforyourlives.com/">Zombie</a> run in August. Exited for all the events and lots of Training with Lori Hardin. Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-53682709750837077262011-07-28T09:39:00.000-07:002011-07-28T09:39:44.950-07:00A Bit of Self DiscoveryThere have been two fairly major events for me in the triathlon scene in the last month. First, was the <a href="http://ironmancda.com/">Coeur d'Alene Ironman</a>, where I was able to watch my cousin finish the most inspiring athletic event I've ever witnessed. The second, was the <a href="http://chelanman.com/">Chelanman</a> where I did my first <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triathlon">Olympic</a> triathlon. <br />
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Experiencing the Ironman was one of the coolest things I've done in my life. From the thrill of the group start where 2800 competitors hit the water at the same time, to the determination on the faces of the last swimmer out of the water before the course closed. And of course the joy and accomplishment on the faces of the racers at the finish when they heard their names called followed by "you are an Ironman". To be there was both inspiring and humbling. <br />
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My own event - the Chelanman was a different sort of learning experience. The day before the race I injured my back. (I later learned via MRI that it was an <a href="http://www.spine-health.com/conditions/herniated-disc/lumbar-herniated-disc">L5-S1 herniation</a> with nerve impingement) I spent about 24 hours debating whether I'd be able to participate at all let alone finish. The lowest moment was when I took my bike of the car to go set up my transition. I hopped on to see how it felt to ride. The pain was bad enough I almost put the bike back on the rack to go home without even picking up my race packet. I decided I would start and abandon the race when the pain was too bad when ever that happened to be. <br />
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On race day I was feeling okay thanks to some pharmaceutical intervention. The swim went great. The bike started out rough, but got more comfortable. I never was fast and didn't have much power in my legs, but overall it was fine. It was the run portion that was the most difficult. I started out very slow and had to walk the first hill on the course. After that I was able to maintain a slow pace that felt pretty normal. It seems my stride didn't look very normal, however. Somewhere around mile 4 of the out and back course I met a guy running with a prosthetic leg. He looked at me trying to run and asked if I needed his leg. (In my opinion the best line of the day) <br />
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In the end I finished, which was more than I expected. And I think I learned something about myself. I've always pictured myself as kind of soft mentally. I've thought that I never had the reserve to push myself hard, to work through discomfort. I was truly surprised that I wanted this bad enough to keep going. It kind of felt good to know I've got a little toughness in me somewhere. <br />
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Now if I can just rehab my back in time to get in one more race this year.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-76217709246942193312011-06-20T09:35:00.000-07:002011-06-20T09:35:22.885-07:00Blog RebootIt has been an appalling amount of time since I've posted anything. The only thing this blog has been good for is collecting spam comments. And it has been over three years since I had anything substantial to write about other than the occasional SDA clash with good science. I sort of grew bored with that whole topic. Not that it has gone away, I just lost my ability to care now that I have the appropriate time and distance from the source of my frustration. <br />
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So, it was a few years ago that I though being a bodybuilder would be a fun thing to try, and I wrote a lot about that experience. The "iron" part of Iron Soul. My effort was good for a below average result, and I never really worked up the passion for another attempt to see if I could improve. The gym rat part of my soul never withered away though. It is just much more fun without the extreme dieting, fake tan and speedos.<br />
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Starting last summer I was inspired by my Superstar Wife to try a new way to torture myself. I faced down fear of swimming and got into the triathlon game. I did two sprint distance events last summer, that I enjoyed a lot. Now I'm trying to take it up an notch. I signed up for the olympic distance at this year's <a href="http://chelanman.com/">ChelanMan</a>. <br />
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Life and weather have not cooperated in my training so far, but I had a good weekend where I swam a mile on Saturday and did a 25 mile - 4 mile bike/run day on Sunday. That has given me confidence that I can complete the distance. Don't know yet if I'll be able to turn in a time that will satisfy me, but so far even the training has been fun. Looking forward to race day July 16.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-62477962405795217402010-08-18T09:40:00.000-07:002011-06-20T08:31:50.191-07:00Dangerous ReasonWhen your worldview is built on a foundation of ignorance, there is no greater threat than critical thinking skills. I think most believers, if they took the time to think honestly about this, know it to be true. They often get so close, but fail to take the final step. They can recognize the danger of reasonable, critical thought, but choose to avoid thinking rather than question their foundation.<br />
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I came across a beautiful example of this in the latest <a href="http://www.wallawalla.edu/fileadmin/user_upload/college_relations/Westwind/Summer_10/westwind_summer_10.pdf">Westwind</a> (<a href="http://www.wallawalla.edu/">Walla Walla Univeristy's </a>alumni journal). In Ginger Ketting-Weller's (vice president for academic administration) interview with Dan Lamberton she asks this question:<br />
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I'm not ready to get into Professor Lamberton's responce. It is a bit better than the question, but still unsatisfying. He at least admits that core tenets such as the virgin birth are unbelievable, but then seemingly retreats behind an amorphous shield of the sense of wonder this produces. <br />
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For me it is the question itself is what is interesting. Intelletually fulfulling belief is not something to be valued. The implied goal of this educational institution is to shelter students - to strengthen indoctrination. This creates a house divided. It is impossible to provide real education and shelter ignorance. Reason is dangerous to cherished delusions.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-45301501096348352442010-06-09T08:45:00.000-07:002010-06-09T08:56:00.259-07:00Reality vs. Dogma: Adventist EducationThanks to Tim for passing the <a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/sda-creationism-gets-wider-notice.html">latest</a><a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/sda-creationism-gets-wider-notice.html"> on this story</a> along to me. As I've become increasingly detached from my Adventist past I've failed to keep up with the controversy about evolution allegedly being taught at La Sierra University. I've also failed to devote much attention to the blog (probably also a result of my increased detachment).<br /><br />Recently, however, there has been a little action involving the La Sierra biology curriculum. First, a <a href="http://www.adventistreview.org/article.php?id=3227">pair of articles</a> in the <a href="http://www.adventistreview.org/article.php?id=3371">Adventist Review</a> briefly covering the pro-evolution accusations and the resulting board action. Actual details are few though the school is careful to stress its young earth creationist position and distance itself from Professor Gary Bradley who bravely says "It's very, very clear that what I'm skeptical of is the absolute necessity of believing that the only way a creator God could do things is by speaking them into existence a few thousand years ago." That is the one bright spot in the entire affair. Things rapidly go downhill with Dr. Ricardo Graham, president of the Pacific Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, and chairman of the Board of Trustees at La Sierra University prioritizing Seventh-Day Adventism over education.<br /><br />From there things get absurd and somewhat entertaining. As of 1 June 2010, the Michigan Conference will no longer provide employee subsidy for students attending La Sierra. Money quote from the memo released: <blockquote>" Resolved: To encourage each Seventh-day Adventist college and university to continue to strengthen the principles of biblical authority and faith. In support of these principles we urge continued development of educational strategies and faculties which would move these institutions to becoming centers of excellence in promoting, cultivating and defending creation science. We define creation science in the context of the recent creation week of seven ordinary, literal, historical, consecutive, contiguous twenty-four hour days of divine creation and rest as described in Genesis ".</blockquote> As I've said before, I feel like I got an excellent education (not in biology) at an Adventist school. And I'm sure that the Michigan Conference is not representative of all US Adventists. But I don't see how an Adventist education can continue to be relevant when dogma is given institutional support in the face of contradictory reality.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-55821024195049579172010-02-26T17:18:00.000-08:002010-02-26T17:26:05.973-08:00Avatar: Story of the Satanic Blue Cat PeopleThis <a href="http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/archives/195724.asp">article</a> was on the top banner of the <a href="http://www.seattlepi.com/">Seattle PI </a>website at lunch time today. <a href="http://www.marshillchurch.org/">Mars Hill </a>pastor Mark Driscoll says Avatar is the most demonic movie he has ever seen. Regardless of what you think of the movie, I love this story getting exposure. I think it make him look ridiculous. Not that this tactic of using pop culture icons as a rallying point is new. As was pointed out I in the comments, it used to be the smurfs that were evil.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-63037568690757262002010-02-22T17:15:00.000-08:002010-02-22T17:20:14.111-08:00Auburn Adventist Academy Sex ScandalA bit of excitement locally over the weekend. Bible teacher at AAA was allegedly fooling around with a 16 year old exchange student. See the <a href="http://www.seattlepi.com/local/415693_sexteacher21.html">Seattle PI</a> article and comments. At least one former student posts there. If two students hold hands they get put on social restriction, but apparently unescorted visits to the teacher's place on the weekend doesn't get any attention from the other faculty. Nothing on the <a href="http://www.auburn.org/about/staff.cfm">Auburn Website,</a> but Scott Spies is no longer on the list of faculty.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-8883682997469470492010-01-16T14:54:00.000-08:002010-01-16T14:58:09.703-08:00Evolution Fallacy SeminarI wasn't able to attend the Seminar that <a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/this-weekend-creation-evolution-seminar.html">mentioned earlier</a> in the week, but they were kind enough to post the <a href="http://www.bsdacc.org/article.php?id=12">audio</a> on the church website very expeditiously. I haven't heard it yet, but I may give it a little listen if I get time.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-9307827992640818562010-01-12T10:25:00.000-08:002010-01-16T16:43:05.295-08:00This Weekend: Creation-Evolution SeminarI just found out last night that the <a href="http://bsdacc.org/calendar_event.php?ID=498&Date=2010-01-16">local SDA Church </a>is having a 2 day Creation-Evolution seminar. It will be a presentation by the pastor John Kurlinski, who considers himself an expert on the subject, with a guest speaker Stan Hudson. The two have collaborated before. For example <a href="http://www.lifetalk.net/admin/newsletters/LTR_Program_Description_Guide.pdf">this program </a>for <a href="http://www.lifetalk.net/">Life Talk Radio </a>charmingly called Sink the Beagle (page 9 of PDF). I have no idea who Stan Hudson is but he claims to have a Ph.D in "science" and maybe the author of this ranty little <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2007/jul/21/stan-hudson-evolutionism-takes-on-fervor-of-a/">Spokesman Review </a>article. Money quote:<br /><br /><blockquote>Evolutionism is a faith-based theory of origins, just like creationism, and as such it is adhered to with religious fervor.</blockquote><br /><br />I doubt I'll be available or inclined to attend any or all of the seminar, so I can't comment on the content. I will say that I don't worship Charles Darwin and the <a href="http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/CA/CA610.html">Theory</a> of <a href="http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/evolphil/metaphysics.html">Evolution</a> is not a <a href="http://www.talkorigins.org/pdf/faq-god.pdf">religion</a>.<br /><br /><br /><blockquote>Evolution is based on the scientific method. There are tests that can determine whether or not the theory is correct as it stands, and these tests can be made. Thousands of such tests have been made, and the current theories have passed them all. Also, scientists are willing to alter the theories as soon as new evidence is discovered. This allows the theories to become more and more accurate as research rogresses.<br /><br />Most religions, on the other hand, are based on revelations, that usually cannot be objectively verified. They talk about the why, not the how. Also, religious beliefs are not subject to change as easily as scientific beliefs. Finally, a religion normally claims an exact accuracy, something which scientists know they may never achieve.<br /><br />Some people build up religious beliefs around scientific principles, but then it is their beliefs which are the religion. This no more makes scientific knowledge a religion than painting a brick makes it a bar of gold. So the answer is no, evolution is no more a religion than any other scientific theory.<br /></blockquote>Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-30228745518225788732009-11-25T20:44:00.000-08:002009-11-25T20:46:38.501-08:00They Never Give UpJust for fun, <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/11/educate_la_sierra_in_the_truth.php">pharyngula</a> poll crashes Educate Truth. That was the <a href="http://www.educatetruth.com/">group</a> I <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/11/educate_la_sierra_in_the_truth.php">wrote</a> about <a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/sda-creationism-gets-wider-notice.html">earlier </a>regarding the biology department at La Sierra University teaching evolution.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-81211297224216945932009-11-25T20:42:00.000-08:002009-11-25T20:48:08.693-08:00Fear of the BeastDespite their claims to have the 'truth', confidence of salvation and hope in the soon return of Jesus, Adventists are still terrified of the Catholic Church and end time events. This is of course a puzzling contradiction. Are you looking forward to the end of the earth or not? I don't really expect it to make sense, nor do I feel like dwelling on it. I was forwarded an <a href="http://www.hopetv.org/uploads/media/Hope_Channel_August_2009_letter_on_Vatican_Encyclical.pdf">email </a>with the latest chapter that is fueling the conspiracy fears. Of course President Obama is involved.<br /><br />Apparently when President Obama met with the Pope at the time of the G-8 summit he mentioned his latest <a href="http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20090629_caritas-in-veritate_en.html">encyclical</a> which is was summarized by <a href="http://www.hopetv.org/home/">Hope TV</a> as follows:<br /><blockquote><br />1. A Global Government. The pope is calling for a "true world political authority" to fix the problems that plague the world. (page 67)<br /><br />2. Church and State. The pope says this new political authority will make its decisions based on spiritual values. (Chapter 5)<br /><br />3. The Papacy at the Head. These spiritual values cannot be derived from just any religion, since not "all religions are equal." (p 55)<br /><br />4. Religion, Politics and the Economy. The church must influence all areas of society since God must have "a place in the public realm, specifically in regard to its cultural, social, economic, and particularly its political dimensions." (56)<br /><br />5. Power to Enforce Law. This "political authority" must have real teeth" and "be vested with the effective power" to enforce its laws around the world. (67)<br /><br />6. Control Buying and Selling. The new world governing power will institute socialistic policies for government to redistribute wealth. (chapter 3)<br /><br />7. Resurgence of Labor Unions. Labor Unions are to be empowered to "play a decisive role" in the new world order. (23)<br /><br />8. The Church's Goal. Pope Benedict says that this encyclical is to help achieve "The goal of the history of the human family" - to build "the universal city of God ." (7)<br /><br />9. Redefining Religious Liberty. While claiming not "to interfere in any way in the politics of States," the pope redefined "liberty" as happening when the world obeys laws shaped by the Roman Church's spiritual values. According to the pope, as the church influences states to enforce its view of "truth" on others, people are set "free." "This mission of truth is something that the Church can never renounce." (9)<br /><br />10. Immortal Souls. The non-biblical belief that man has an immortal soul helps to insure the pope's global agenda. "Man is ... God's creature, whom God chose to endow with an immortal soul." (29)</blockquote>Better start stockpiling your food and guns now. This is clearly a more dire warning of the end times than all the previous 'sure' signs /end snark/.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-15353062178067224902009-11-03T16:58:00.001-08:002009-11-03T17:01:20.482-08:00SDA Creationism: The Origin of Young Earth Creationism in the USA.Last weekend there was a big <a href="http://darwin-chicago.uchicago.edu/">Evolutionary Biology</a> conference at the University of Chicago. Among the speakers was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Numbers">Ron Numbers </a>a former Seventh-Day Adventist. (Summary of his talk on <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/10/ron_numbersanti-evolution_in_a.php">Pharyngula</a>) He mentioned something I had not known before. According to the talk the old earth creationism ideas of day/age and gap theory were the standard positions in the United States outside of Adventism until the 1960's. At the time there was a book written called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Genesis-Flood-John-C-Whitcomb/dp/0875523382">The Genesis Flood</a> which borrowed the SDA idea developed by Ellen White follower <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_McCready_Price">George MacReady Price</a> - the Noah's flood was responsible for the entire geologic column. Since most of Christianity regarded Adventism as a cult, the SDA notion of a young earth wasn't widely accepted until introduced to mainstream Christianity by the non-Adventist who wrote The Genesis Flood.<br /><br />Maybe this is common knowledge and I wasn't aware due to the fact that I was on the inside of the Adventist system. I just had know idea that the SDA church was the lone reservoir of special pseudo-science for so long.<br />_______________________________________________<br /><br />On a related note there was a special <a href="http://bsdacc.org/article.php?id=12">Creation Sabbath sermon</a> here on October, 24. I didn't get to stay and listen, but I was hoping the audio would get posted. Looks like maybe I'll never get to see what I missed.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-37108633327697521042009-10-19T17:31:00.000-07:002009-10-19T17:32:17.550-07:00Yes on R-71Awhile back there was a law passed in Washington State (SB 5688) that would give same-sex partners the same basic civil rights as other married people just not the name 'marriage'. There was really scandalous and disturbing stuff in this law. Things like inheritance rights and visitation rights {eyes rolling}. Obviously it was met with heated opposition by bigots terrified by the fading power of their patriarchy. The law was supposed to have gone into effect in July 2009, but the haters managed to get enough signature - due in part to dubious tactics - to put it back on the ballot for the November election.<br /><br />My <a href="http://wei.secstate.wa.gov/osos/en/Pages/OnlineVotersGuide.aspx#ososTop">voters guide</a> came in the mail last week. I read the arguments for and against R-71. I found it interesting tough not surprising that the only organizations listed as being in opposition are religious.<br /><br />I'm mailing my ballot today marked Yes on R-71.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-59719511677717084312009-09-06T23:23:00.000-07:002009-09-06T23:47:14.234-07:00My Atheism is CompleteSo, for a shot time this weekend I thought there was a chance I had a serious medical condition. I had some indeterminate symptoms that could have indicated something serious or been nothing much at all. Fortunately, it appears to be nothing, but for a few minutes I found myself contemplating my mortality in ways more seriously than I've done before. I've done the normal mortality facing that happens when you are 30 years old. And the things you think about when you have kids, but this was a little more personal.<br /><br />I was pleased to notice that not once did I fear for my soul. I wasn't afraid that maybe I was wrong and I'd end up in hell after all. I didn't worry that maybe I should try to get right with Jesus just in case. I didn't even feel the need to meditate and align my chakras. I didn't waste any calories thinking about any make believe magic stuff. I did think about my family and my hope and dream and goals in life. These are things that I consider important and useful. In fact the only time anything religious came to mind was when Lori told me that I'd better be okay because she didn't want to deal with all the people that would tell her "that is terrible . . . it's so sad he turned away from the Lord".<br /><br />______________________________________________________<br />If anyone is curious, I was having lots of muscle pain and trouble using my hands. The closest it got to a serious condition was when I couldn't get my pants off to go to the bathroom. Had a blood test and the diagnosis was <a href="https://www.google.com/health/ref/Rhabdomyolysis">Rhabdomyolysis</a>. I must have exerted myself too much at the gym this week. The other thing I'm proud of here - besides my lack of religious guilt - was my ability to combine my major themes of atheism and body building into one post.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-87975744705495210462009-09-01T21:05:00.000-07:002009-09-01T21:08:51.458-07:00SDA Creationism gets Wider NoticeI've always believed that I got a quality science education at Walla Walla College, an Seventh-Day Adventist school. That is because I was fortunate to have some excellent professors that honestly thought science. Recently principled faculty members at some other SDA schools have been getting heat from the fundamentalist from their honesty. I stumbled across one of these <a href="http://www.educatetruth.com/">crackpots</a> awhile back.<br /><br />Now, this little internal doctrinal squabble is getting some <a href="http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/09/01/evolution">wider exposure</a>. Since this whole thing was thoroughly covered on <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/09/carlos_cerna_will_someday_dem%20a.php">Pharyngula</a>, I don't need to say more. I'm off to find that fresh topic I hope to write about someday.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-27387750143195656792009-08-27T16:39:00.000-07:002009-08-27T16:43:58.341-07:00Belief #6: Reality is Fatal to Fundamental Adventist BeliefsI feel like I've been stuck on one topic for awhile. I'm not exactly sure why that is. It might be just because I have less time to write on things that are only sort of interesting to me. That the Seventh-Day Adventist church has chosen to highlight creationism this year has definitely provided plenty of material. In the future I'll try to diversify, but this is just too easy.<br /><br />This month's topic in <a href="http://www.adventistworld.org/">The Adventist World's</a> series on fundamental beliefs is <a href="http://www.adventistworld.org/issue.php?issue=2009-1008&page=20">belief number six</a> - creation. The official position is stated as:<br /><blockquote>6. <a href="http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/fundamental/index.html">Creation</a>:<br />God is Creator of all things, and has revealed in Scripture the<br />authentic account of His creative activity. In six days the Lord made<br />"the heaven and the earth" and all living things upon the earth, and<br />rested on the seventh day of that first week. Thus He established the<br />Sabbath as a perpetual memorial of His completed creative work. The<br />first man and woman were made in the image of God as the crowning work<br />of Creation, given dominion over the world, and charged with<br />responsibility to care for it. When the world was finished it was ``very<br />good,'' declaring the glory of God. (Gen. 1; 2; Ex. 20:8-11; Ps. 19:1-6;<br />33:6, 9; 104; Heb. 11:3.)</blockquote><br />Which leaves a slight bit wiggle room, to adapt to scientific reality. You know, the moderate Christian position of symbolic time periods with a special 'ensoulment' of humans at some point in the recent past. However, fundamental Adventism cannot accept a moderate interpretation -<br />even of this easily falsifiable claim. The reason is probably clear to almost everyone, but for some reason only came into sharp focus for me after reading this article. It is this: young earth creationism is like a keystone. If it slips, it starts a cascade of failing fundamental beliefs and dearly held doctrines.<br /><blockquote>"Special creation preserves the integrity of Scripture, safeguards the loving, praiseworthy character of God, establishes the reality of the atonement and redemption, and the soundness of the seventh-day Sabbath. These reasons, and more, show why a special creation worldview matters so deeply to the Adventist message and mission."</blockquote><br />Most important is the seventh day Sabbath, which is the nearly the entire identity of Seventh-Day Adventism. The other beliefs specifically mentioned in the article that are threatened by reality are "authority and inspiration of Scripture", "the biblical teaching of the<br />loving character of the Creator" and the "literal fall" of man.<br /><br />This last is significant because absent a literal fall and a historical Adam who transfers sin to humanity, we no longer require atonement and redemption. No need to for Jesus to die, no need for Christianity. Clearly no religion is going to acknowledge and embrace its own obsolescence.<br /><br />Although creationism is demonstrably false, I'm sort of in favor of the SDA position of holding firm. It seems to be fairly benign in practice. I don't think my science education was irreparably damaged. But, it serves to underline the ridiculousness of the religion and hopefully decrease its influence and relevance in the culture. As <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2009/08/yes_millions_of_years.php">PZ Myers</a> eloquently put it.<br /><br /><blockquote>"When fundamentalists tie their faith absolutely to a claim that is easily refuted, that contradicts the evidence, and that requires them to constantly escalate their denial and delusions in order to sustain their belief, it makes it really easy for atheists to demolish their religion. We don't even need to attack religion in the classroom at all - we just calmly lay out the facts, let the students work out the conclusions, and sometimes...it's epiphany time! They realize their pastor lied to them, or was just really ignorant, and suddenly their respect for Christian authority begins to crumble away. It's not the atheist's fault, though. The lesson should be, "Don't lie to your kids,"</blockquote>Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-78414170953597708222009-07-13T16:26:00.000-07:002009-07-13T16:42:18.323-07:00Even More SDA CreationismI was poking around the internet to see if I could find some info on the new pastor here when I came an interesting <a href="http://www.educatetruth.com/">group</a> working hard to destroy good biology instruction in Adventist Schools. I always thought I got pretty good education in the SDA system, in every area but biology. Hopefully their <a href="http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Sixdaycreation/index.html">little petition</a> (which the new pastor here signed) doesn't get much attention.<br /><br />Not that the general conference needs any help focusing on creationism. Two articles in the latest <a href="http://www.adventistworld.org/index.php">Adventist World</a> are devoted to focusing on literal biblical creationism. In addition to the links I <a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/sdas-creationism-emphasized.html">posted</a> earlier. This <a href="http://www.adventistworld.org/article.php?id=583">one</a> is especially disturbing. It encourages parents to confront teachers and report them to the administration if they disagree with the things they teach. This could be ugly.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-24772324482924537892009-07-06T16:03:00.000-07:002009-07-06T16:05:24.198-07:00Oooo FairiesI'm surprised I'd never heard of<a href="http://www.seattlepi.com/local/6420ap_wa_fairy_congress.html"> this </a>before, but I guess I'd essentially moved out of the area before this got started. I had no idea that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twisp,_Washington">Twisp, WA</a> was where "veil between dimensions is said to be thinnest". Though I guess I do remember that the area was popular with the hippies.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-38253241570683400382009-07-01T15:34:00.000-07:002009-07-01T15:40:46.540-07:00SDAs: Creationism emphasizedIt was my intent to post some links while they were relatively new, but I guess I've been too busy. Now I'm still to busy to write anything to go with them. <br /><br />Nothing surprising just the <a href="http://news.adventist.org/2009/06/paulsen-speaks-on-is.html">usual</a> anti-scientific creationist stuff of the <a href="http://www.new.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=95185865269&h=Wx5U8&u=3tR9_&ref=nf">literalist </a>six day variety. This is of course the<a href="http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/statements/main_stat54.html"> official position</a> of the SDA church. It just seems like we'd be getting to the point where it would be considered wise to sort of stick that sort of thing in the back corner rather than emphasize it.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-46300983451915172402009-06-21T13:42:00.000-07:002009-06-21T14:10:40.538-07:00An Exersice in FrustrationOver the last month we've had a lot of family visiting to help with the new baby. It has been really nice to have so much help, and now that we are on our own again we are doing are best to keep up with everything. When the family finally did leave they 'forgot' and left a book behind even though we kept reminding them not to forget it. <br /><br />Any way I'm trying to be fair and so I've been reading <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Science-Discovers-God-Convincing-Existence/dp/0812704487">Science Discovers God</a> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariel_A._Roth">Ariel Roth</a> in some of my free time. First off, the book has been very predictable. All the usual subjects: Issac Newton was a brilliant scientist and a christian, living things are very complicated, some bad statistics, a few Albert Einstein quote mines and a really horrible understanding of evolution. Really nothing new. I can't decided if I'm going to feel sorry for the author or angry at him. This is a new book (2008) but he is still beating the 'irreducible complexity' of cellular flagella and the eye into the ground. Now <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Darwins-Black-Box-Biochemical-Challenge/dp/0684834936">Darwin's Black Box</a> came out in 1995, and maybe some of these things could have been taken seriously at the time. But in the last 15 years the whole idea has been thoroughly<a href="http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/behe.html"> debunked</a>. That is in addition to the inexplicably bad explanations of how evolution is supposed to work. So, either Dr. Roth is decidedly ignorant and out of date or he is lying to influence those who don't know any better or would rather ignore what they do know. I'm leaning towards the latter explanation. Dr. Roth earned a Ph.D in Zoology. Even if it was over 50 years ago, I'm sure he had to demonstrate an understanding that surpass my slight self-directed learning. Based on that I'm convinced he is a lying scumbag. I'm also sure he is thoroughly deluded, but I do not think that excuses his deceit. Still nothing surprising here.<br /><br />What is a little more interesting is the motivation for 'forgetting' the book here in the first place. I think I understand very well why it was left, and I can't blame those responsible for trying to do what they think is right. However, I also know that those that left us the book have not read it. Said it was 'over their heads' etc. So, since they aren't really sure what they are trying to convince me of and aren't interested in discussing, how do they think this is going to lead me where they want me to go?Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-71294957191794342472009-06-13T09:31:00.000-07:002009-06-13T09:33:15.846-07:00Home on the WebThis is a quick post that follows from a discussion Lori and I had this morning. Yes, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brewster,_Washington">Brewster</a> does have a Wikipedia entry.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-32457148448555165762009-04-30T17:04:00.000-07:002009-04-30T17:14:35.856-07:00Expelled Rant<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expelled" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://scienceblogs.com/tfk/2008/03/more_expelled_reviews.php" target="_blank"></a>It feels a little self indulgent to whine and complain in public, but I don't think I'm the first person with a blog to vent. So here I am crying, "OMG someone wasn't nice to me on the internet."<br /><br />I'm facebook friends with some people I went to school with, but who I don't know that well. For some reason this last week I got several status updates and associated comments appreciating the movie <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expelled">Expelled</a>: No Intelligence Allowed. The timing is kind of strange since the theatrical release was over a year ago and the DVD was released last October. In the interest of full disclosure I admit I haven't seen the movie and I'm not sure I will. I do feel like I have a pretty good idea of the content from reading many blogs and reviews, including opinions from several of the <a href="http://richarddawkins.net/article,2394,Lying-for-Jesus,Richard-Dawkins">people</a> interviewed for the movie and from reputable mainstream sources like <a href="http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=ben-steins-expelled-review-john-rennie">Scientific American</a>, <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2008/12/win_ben_steins_mind.html">Roger Ebert</a> and the <a href="http://movies.nytimes.com/2008/04/18/movies/18expe.html">New York Times</a>. I'm also aware of some of the <a href="http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/03/expelled.php">entertaining events</a> that occurred at a screening. Anyway, back to the story . . . As I <a href="http://ironsoulblog.blogspot.com/2008/11/expelled-still-giving-me-headac%20he.html">normally</a> do when encounter some Expelled love, I posted a link to <a href="http://www.expelledexposed.com/">Expelled Exposed</a>. Nothing more. A person that I don't know but somehow connected in the facebook universe replies with:<br /><div><div><blockquote>Seriously. Every thinking person should watch this film. Here is a pretty good collection of rebuttals to Expelled Exposed:<br /><a href="http://www.evolutionnews.org/2009/02/expelled_exposed_exposed_your.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><span>http://www.evolutionnews.o</span><span></span><span>rg/<wbr>2009/02/expelled_expose</span><span></span>d_<wbr>exposed_your.html</a></blockquote><a href="http://www.evolutionnews.org/2009/02/expelled_exposed_exposed_your.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a></div> </div><br />While it really wasn't anything to get excited about, I resent the baseless assertion that I am not a thinking person. I may not be a thinking person, but that is not evidence by the fact that I don't agree with this stranger's appreciation for dishonest and inflammatory film making. I did not reply, but I did go to the link provided to see the 'refutation' of Expelled Exposed. What do I find? Casey Luskin. Oh well, at least now I know which of the two of us debaters has bothered<br />to learn a little something about science. <br /><br />End of rant. Hopefully both my readers will help my fragile ego and tell me I'm really not an unthinking Darwin worshiping Nazi so I can regain my confidence and carry on the good fight for good science.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7342588263086244213.post-81717708775034984242009-04-25T11:10:00.000-07:002009-04-25T11:38:36.917-07:00TAM 7: Getting CloserI'm getting really excited for <a href="http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/component/content/article/37-static/246-amazng-meeting.html">TAM 7</a>. The <a href="http://www.randi.org/site/">JREF</a> has advertisements on several podcasts I listen too, Penn did a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vgq6RckHndE">Penn Says</a> about it and I just got a flier in the mail. I've got my registration completed and my airline tickets booked. I just need to order a few books to get signed and I'll be all set. <br /><br />I'm having a hard time figuring out what I enjoy the most about TAM. It is really fun to be around so many people who are rational thinking and pro-science. It is such a positive atmosphere. I know a lot of people who aren't aware of the skeptical movement view skepticism as a negative world view. They think all it is, is people sitting around saying 'moon landing hoaxers are morons, 9/11 truthers are idiots, etc.' Skeptics to generally hold those positions, but it is a secondary result of a skeptical outlook. In general skepticism is focused on understanding how the world works based on evidence and the scientific method. This is a positive stance that encourages learning all sorts of exciting things and is free from superstition and irrational guilt and fear.Iron Soulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06753602185907947519noreply@blogger.com1