Re: paleonet Stupid design

[Frank Holterhoff <frank@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Paul Blake wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "jean-louis VOLAT" <jean-louis.volat@wanadoo.fr>
> To: <paleonet@nhm.ac.uk>
> Sent: Friday, April 08, 2005 10:07 PM
> Subject: paleonet Stupid design
> 
>>As a french, I may have little understanding of the ID theory. How do
>>they cope with the numerous examples of poor design in living organisms ?
>>I remember a movie showing an argument against the existence of a
>>Creator from the position of the human tibia in front of the leg, which
>>makes it a fragile and easy target. In a similar way, the panda's thumb
>>famous from Gould's paper is a very poor way (a deformation of the
>>metacarpian) of gaining a prehensile hand. With their short arms the
>>Tyrex could not only reach their own mouth...
>>We know this comes from the historical contingency of evolution, but how
>>could God be so poor an architect ?
>>
>>JLV
>>
> <ID Mode> Since you are just a limited human, and the ID was much smarter
> than you, you are not qualified to criticise God's [oops....I mean the ID's]
> design.  What you think of as flaws may actually be very important design
> features and you are just too dumb to understand it properly</ID Mode>
> 
> That is the sort of response I have seen from ID Advocates.
> 
> Regards
> Paul Blake

Thanks for summarizing Paul - that is pretty much what I would say (and 
did say, as I'm sure was not lost on you), only I would say it without 
the hostility & ridicule.  For example, I would have said "we" instead 
of "you".

I think it's oversimplification to try to assert that, for example, 
500mm forelimbs were an important and beneficial design aspect of the T. 
rex body plan, giving it a great advantage over its competitors in the 
natural selection game, and you won't hear me make that statement.  The 
point is that the point of view that matters (if such exists) is bigger 
than ours.

As Paul points out in his hypothetical quote, typical IDers, 
Fundamentalists, Creationists, etc. expound with a lot more acrimony 
than scientists, so I guess I can stand it :-)  I'd still rather have 
this discussion with you folks than with them.

F

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