There were signs of distress, early on. First, there was the loss of longtime Disco Tute “fellow” William Dembski, who is best-known for proposing the scientific sounding but actually useless concept of “specified complexity.”
Then, barely a month later, the venerable outfit — whose description of itself as a “think tank” is an insult to both tanks and thinking — announced the resignation of Casey Luskin, another very long-serving promoter of the Discovery Institute … who was best (and only) known for being a long-serving promoter of the Discovery Institute.
Those blows, coupled with the stunning failure of every one of the lofty (and sort of hilarious) goals laid out almost 20 years ago in the Disco Tute’s subversive and patronizing Wedge strategy, seem to have instigated a final and irrevocable break with reality, leaving the organization’s remaining constituents on a barren cliff, teetering above a free fall into full-on insanity.
All that was needed was a gentle push, and it apparently came in the form of the United Methodist Church’s refusal to allow the Disco Tute members to peddle their nonsense at its annual private conference.
ChristianToday had a good write-up out yesterday about the kerfuffle, and even main-line evangelical outlets such as that were concluding that the UMC’s decision was perfectly reasonable and justifiable. (World Magazine was sympathetic to the ID crowd, of course, but their idea of quality science journalism begins and ends with Chick tracts.)
None of that has slowed down the Discovery Institute, which has been churning out a chaotic manifesto about the UMC’s “BAN” over the past four days. Either the Disco Tute has finally lost it completely (which would mean the continuation of a disturbing trend among anti-evolutionists), or they’re just throwing a temper tantrum. Although, my 2-year-old saw them and was all like, “Seriously, guys? Get over it.” And she threw a tantrum yesterday because I wouldn’t let her wear four pairs of pants at the same time.
Anyway, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see as to what’s really going on up there in Seattle. In the meantime, let’s give the Methodists a well-deserved attaboy for taking a bold stand against any groups that try to muddle the gospel message by denying scientific truth in favor of a reductionist and ultimately nonsensical reading of God’s word.
Also, we have a new meme. Check it out:
Tyler Francke is founder of God of Evolution and author of Reoriented. He can be reached at tyler@godofevolution.com.