More fuel to the Psychoreligionology fire

[SnakeRat]

The absolute beggining of life happened by accident.

[ QUOTE ]
A Deck of Cards


Ever hear impossibly-large numbers quoted as the odds against a cell or a particular DNA molecule having formed "by accident" to create the first living thing? It's an example of the propensity of creationists to entirely miss the point and set up a specious straw man, ripe for destruction. Ronald Stearns suggests the following to help them see where they are missing the point:
One demonstration that has worked well for me in illustrating the difference between a priori and a posteriori calculations just uses a deck of cards. Give someone a deck of cards, ask him to shuffle it, and then read off the first 26 cards. After your subject does that, jump at him and question his veracity. "You don't really expect me to believe that sequence is what you pulled up, is it? The odds against getting exactly that sequence is 2 x 10 41-to-1 against!" Then, of course, explain that what the odds were before the exercise is irrelevant, because what is important is that SOME sequence occurred, and that the idea is to understand what that sequence actually was, not what the chances were of obtaining that sequence. If your subject has kept the stack of cards intact, then you can show that you have the evidence. It also looks a lot like a set of geological strata, and you can show that it remains valid even if you take the stack and slide it around, twist it, and fold it a bit, [to provide an analogy for how] geologists really can still unlock the story of geological history, with a lot of work.


And a further suggestion from Jay Laudig:
Begin by asking a creationist if he denies his own existence, or the fact that he was produced by the sexual reproduction of his parents. Assuming he says yes (if he says no, creationism is the least of his problems) point out the odds that his parents produced HIM, specifically, are one in 70 trillion (roughly). This is based on the 46 total chromosomes, each a 1 in 2 shot, contributed by his parents. If those odds aren't astronomical enough, go after his grandparents next. (Admittedly the chromosomal probability is a simplification of the entire process...but any further complications would only make an individual LESS likely, so the argument works fairly well.)


[/ QUOTE ]

http://www.skepticreport.com/creatio...onistshate.htm


Be skeptical of evolution all you want, but I am quite sure if you applied the same sincere skepticism to biblical creationism you could not believe one word of it.
The fantasy universe you currently live in would fall like a house of cards.

Why not click the link I provided and check out the numerous, blatant, and signifigant flaws in bible?

[kalooki45]

Hi Snake,

Tell you what--I'll check your link if you check out this:
Apologetics Press--Alleged Discrepancies in the Bible

If you want a couple volumes worth of detail, you can try "Evidence That Demands A Verdict" by Josh McDowell.

As I said earlier, in Genesis the order of creation is the same as the one science postulates. It pre-dates Darwin by many thousands of years, and was written at a time when people not only thought the earth was flat, but a lot thought it was on the back of a giant turtle or some such thing.
And as a matter of fact--I *think it's in Job--the earth is described as a "hanging orb"!

My belief in God is something else again. That's experiential. The hard part is that it's like trying to tell someone who lacks a sense of smell about a rose!

He's there and He loves you [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]
Whether you or I believe in Him doesn't affect His existence..he's not a beggar--He's a king!

He generously offers to share life in Eternity with him...and I think there's a part of YOU that responds to this. People make the mistake of thinking that Christianity is all about giving up everything they like--it's not.
It's about ACQUIRING the riches of heaven, eternal salvation, and knowledge of God himself! It's about admitting that *maybe the Person who runs the universe might be able to give YOU some pointers on YOUR life! Perhaps He knows how to run your life better than YOU do [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Sure God will ask for sacrifices, but first He will give you the Faith to make them--He doesn't require you to "go it alone".
"Behold, I am with you ALWAYS.."

[NotReady]

First, 2X10 to 41 is a tiny number compared to the number that represents the odds of life accidentally being produced by non-life. See my post below on Coppedge. When time is factored in the odds are beyond astronomical.

Second, your example requires no particular result, any random sequence is fine. Life requires a particlar result, as does evolution.