Is anyone else sick of ignorant answers to the evolution debate?

Question

I've seen intelligent people give arguments/answers to the evolution debate in here. I've seen instances for both sides. But there are some very common answers that are completely ignorant and absolutely ridiculous. It is starting to drive me crazy every time I see one of these.

Here are some common ones:

"If you believe in the big bang, what started the big bang and where did it come from"

"If we evolved from apes, why are there still apes around today?"

"If we evolved from apes, why don't we ever here about humans being born to ape parents?"

"If you believe in evolution, why have we stopped evolving."

"Evolution violates the 2nd law of thermodynamics"

"All the fossils found have been proven to be false"

Is this driving anyone else crazy, or am I just having a bad day.

Answer 1

Simple remedy: don't bother reading any questions regarding evolution.

Answer 2

Evolution takes years and we haven't stopped evolving. You just haven't noticed it yet. e.g. our teeth are getting smaller, heights are changing.

What do you mean all fossils have found to be proven false? You saying there were manufactured? By whom? How?

Evolution doesn't occur in a lifetime, it takes thousands, if not millions of years. Nobody human is going to be born to ape parents? The shift is not that quick.

Evolution is not part of the big bang debate anyway. Don't confuse the two. Ask a cosmologist about the big bang. Unlike you, I don't just read one book (in your case the bible) and assume I know everthing about evolution or cosmology. I just prefer these theories to the bible.

I agree that answers maybe ignorant but you are not asking the right people, the experts, you are asking laymen. My faith is in science and the scientists who make these discoveries. Without scientists we would not have medicine, MRI, robots, television, computers, etc. Don't dismiss these people out of turn because you happen to disgree with what they think. Scientists and engineers are the reason you wrote this on a computer. If a consensus is reached and agreed upon by the scientific community, more or less, then I'm willing to pay attention and listen to what they have to say. Many cosmologists believe that the string theory could explain the point of singularity. I have yet to believe in yet, though I'm intriqued by the theory, and perhaps one day it will become as widely accepted as Newtons laws of gravity. If you are actively seeking answers than approach a professor or a scientist. Most of the people that use yahoo answers will not know that much about the subject, and those who do are not going to write a 10,000 word essay for you

The above post is very good. You want truthful answers, don't ask us. Our lack of knowledge is not proof that the evolution doesn't exist... be reasonable!!!!!

All your questions were from a website.... a weak defence that christians are trying to make for creation.

Answer 3

Antoine has it right.

The price that we pay for freedom of speech is that not everyone has the same degree of understanding, education or knowledge of the subject area; Yahoo answers shows a microcosm of the country, albeit tilted in the teen direction somewhat, yet all may speak & be heard, regardless of the quality of their thoughts.

What to do, what to do? Sometimes I must confess that I shake my head @ some of these deeply intrenched forms of mideivel belief systems & superstitious nonsense that perniciously reappear here like bermuda grass - practically unkillable with the benign mental herbicides of logic & reason.

My response is 3 fold:

1) Don't sweat it. No one can fix someone else, no matter how broken them may seem. Go to another question - there are always lots. Or take a healthy walk. These are only pixels on a screen, my friend - all the meaning they have comes from what we give them, no where else.

2) Be a good example. Recognize that by responding with tact & consideration you set a tone that many respondants to questions from the list above & other controversial topics seem either unable or unwilling to achieve.

3) Consider humanity. Humans have a very powerful myth-making unconscious under the spell of which many people still sleepwalk. Merely telling doesn't do it. Something stronger than mere words has to come along & knock someone out, at least for a moment, for them to see where they are - even then, they may not want to leave the comfort of family/friends/etc.etc. & return to their comfort zone, unwilling to allow their world to be shaken by such an unwelcome intruder as a NEW TRUTH, whatever the situation.

I hope this isn't too wordy.

Peace in all things,

;-)

Answer 4

I think you're just having a bad day.

Of course, as the school system worsens, and as ever larger shantytown like communities develop around large cities, you get an ever growing ignorant population. This is not something we are used to in the rich world, but it is something people in developing countries have lived with for a long time (though they tend to make more efforts for the schooling of the poor, which at least is not going backwards).

The creationist debate was resolved a long time ago of course.

But again, due to all this ignorant population, anything can be questioned. Moon landings, evolution, nuclear physics, next thing they'll tell you electronics is impossible and is a conspiracy by WASPs.

So if you want to be sad about something, it shouldn't be about evolution. It should be that a rich country can squander over USD 100bn waging a useless war, when a larger and larger chunk of its population is poor and uneducated.

Answer 5

At one point, I shared your frustration. Now I'm trying to learn to deal with poor reasoning capabilities. I'm beginning to get over my amazement at and frustration; I hope you too can find a positive way to deal with your feelings of amazement and frustration!

As you mention, not all the ignorant answers come from creationists: I am frequently amazed at the number of people who cite evolution as *fact*. Anyone who understands the scientific method knows there is no way to prove this theory, however useful and descriptive it may be.

The scary part is that a lot of these people can vote, and their poor reasoning capability extends to other, more current issues. Evolution is mostly in the past, but other complex issues like global warming and nuclear proliferation are still with us.

The other scary aspect is that human evolution has stopped, barring some remarkable event. This means that, if we ever colonize the stars, the same idiots will continue to perpetuate their lack of reasoning throughout the galaxy.

We are making progress; back when I was in high school, a teacher could get in trouble for teaching evolution. Let's hope the progress continues.

Answer 6

You are overly concerned about something over which you have no direct control. This dementia will lead to an introspective psychosis in which you will drive yourself and those about you beyond the normal bounds of sanity.

Ask yourself if you have contributed one single, original, new idea to the controversy. If not, why are you speaking out so loudly on the subject? If you are merely repeating the thoughts of others, are you majoring in a degree in parroting, or duplication? Is is possible that you are being led and influenced by others because of your inability to do significant research on your own?

What possible significance can these questions have when the Earth is slowly dieing as we waste our futile efforts to discuss/argue/debate this issue?

What should be the qualifications for a licensed debater? Should he/she possess a PhD in Science? Must one be the author of more than ten significant texts on the origin of the Universe? Or, can one just simply begin entering text on Yahoo and stand upon the same level as those far more learned?

Answer 7

Most of your examples show a questioning mind, which is a sign that the apes indeed have evolved from just existing and scratching various body parts.I suggest you stop swinging wildly and scratching your head, and settle down under a tree for a nap--just like Newton...

Answer 8

I know what you mean. Most of the culprits, if not all of them are religious fanatics and bible thumpers. They will reach for anything to explain away what makes them feel uncomfortable.

I actually heard a church leader say that fossils and geology dating are the works of Satan to mislead people. Its absolutely ridiculous.

And by the way, we didn't evolve FROM the apes, we evolved WITH them. Wouldn't you agree?

Answer 9

Personally I am just sick of the evolution debate period. The people who post questions like that don't even want to hear the answers anyway, they just want to be validated. Its so pointless and boring.

Answer 10

It makes me want to pull out my hair with frustration.

There are times I'd like to get one of those big inflatable mallets (in bright candy colors!), burst into the nearest Fundamentalist church and just start swinging.

Care to join me...?