Intelligent design not very scientific
By Dominick Delgadillo
The Guardsman
A young boy looks up at his mother and asks, “How does a bee fly?” The mother, not knowing the answer replies, “Because God wants it to.”
The previous dialogue is based on true events that occurred at, of all places, the Academy of Sciences, when I was 10 years old. The moment always stuck with me because even as a young altar boy, I deemed her answer laughable.
Religion and science have always been at odds with each other. By that, I mean religion has consistently silenced or killed scientists, and science has striven to usurp the stranglehold religion has on what is ultimately true. The fight drags on, it isn’t a single round K.O. In one corner creationists, and the other, evolutionists. Ding, ding!
Creationists believe the world was thought up by God, created by God, and is currently being ruled over by God. God God God, all things that were or ever will be are thanks to the big guy upstairs.
In the other corner is the theory of evolution, made popular by Charles Darwin’s ‘On the Origins of Species’ published in 1859. It states that once life started on the level of micro-organisms, all living things evolved and survived through adaptation or, over generations through a process called “natural selection.”
Religious fanatics attack evolution by saying it’s just a theory. They believe that since it can’t be proven, it must be wrong.
While scientists could stick to the “speak for yourself” argument, instead they acknowledge the possibility of error while seeking to find answers with shocking things like “evidence” and “tests.” I know, gasp!
When the bell rings, science and religion tear off the gloves and go for each other’s throat. But a third contender, intelligent design, enters the ring like some sort of “Battle Royal” episode.
Intelligent design proponents try square the circular arena by marrying the two ideas (as long as they aren’t the same sex), and they butcher the job.
Scientists think the intelligent design folks are mistaken in calling what they do science because it lacks credibility. Religious groups dislike the design folks because of a scientific stigma.
People pushing for intelligent design claim to be scientists who are not religiously motivated. They believe science doesn’t have an answer for how life was originally created. In lieu of rigorous experiments or calculated testing, they claim there is too much complexity in life to believe it simply developed on it’s own.
Here’s a little recap:
Creationist answer: God did it (p.s. he’s a cool guy).
Scientific answer: Life has had to fight to continue. (Where it began? People are working on that one).
Intelligent design’s answer: the structures for life may change over time, but it’s impossible that it began and thrived this long without some higher power or influence. (They aren’t calling it “God,” they’re just saying it’s something.)
I’m not saying intelligent design is a completely whacked out idea – wait, yes I am. I’ve lived in a family where religion ruled my every move for the first fifteen or so years of my life. Where I had to sneak away under my Power Ranger sheets with my official Boy Scout flashlight to read science stuff.
I’ve gone from reading the Bible for years to reading Darwin’s work. From going to Sunday school and then to science class saying my prayers, only to see atrocities happen all over the world. At a certain point, I had to realize there is no Intelligent Design. In fact, there probably isn’t any design at all.