I ended the quotes with a selection from Hovind's web site, reflecting paranoid ideas common in far-right movements: Microchips may play an important part in the mark of the beast. One example of technology is the UPC, or bar code. I offered a final gem from his video series which he usually sells at his seminars. In Part Four of "Dinosaurs, Creation, Evolution: A Creation Seminar," Hovind shows a slide of a bird hatching from an alligator's egg: "Maybe a reptile laid an egg and a bird hatched out.
In case my audience was still unconvinced of Hovind's scientific incompetence, I included information about his credentials. Hovind says on his "drdino" web site that he graduated from Midwestern Baptist College in Michigan in education and Bible and received his master's and doctoral degrees in education from Patriot University, "a small Christian University in Colorado.
In Part One of his videotape seminar, he boasts a "PhD in education. The objective of the sole science education course offered by the MBC Department.
Hovind's education at MBC would never qualify him to teach in any school with a legitimate science curriculum. Hovind's credentials from Patriot University are even less substantial. The Bulletin indicates how a university could simply relocate to another town: There is no faculty, and credit is offered for "life experience and ministry evaluation".
The courses, workbooks, audiotapes, and videotapes can be completed in 2—4 weeks. Tuition is a voluntary, monthly "freewill offering". I think that may have been the last year Patriot awarded the PhD" personal communication, January 21, Hovind's PhD clearly does not meet even minimally respectable academic standards.
Finally, my letter addressed Hovind's true agenda: attacking public schools for teaching evolution. Hovind clearly favors eliminating public schools: "Should we have a public school system? I believe if the government was out of the education business Public schools lose funding when enrollment drops" Hovind, FAQ's. In Part One of his video series he also instructs public school students to ask an impertinent question during lessons on evolution: "Excuse me, teacher, but were you there?
Hovind's attitude toward teaching evolution was revealed in a remark he made during a debate with Dr Karen Bartelt, a professor of organic chemistry at Eureka College, who debated him in Fall and provided me with an account. According to Bartelt, Hovind asserted that anyone teaching evolution to children will go to hell.
Concerned citizens should be alert for local churches' booking his "seminars," which sometimes attract hundreds. More ominously, he also claims in his video series to visit public schools.
His itinerary is on his web site but sometimes changes, so local newspapers should be watched. In fact, not only should local papers be watched for announcements of his visits, but for their content. Local reporters can be deceived by his promotional propaganda. Prior to his Hammond seminar, the Daily Star portrayed him as a biblical and scientific authority: "The Rev. Lonnie Wascom, Immanuel's pastor, said Hovind's seminars are fact-filled, exciting and informative causing even the most devout evolutionist to sit up and take notice.
Hovind is considered one of the foremost authorities on science and the Bible. He has debated evolutionists across America and is dedicated to proclaiming factual scientific evidence supporting the Biblical record of creation and the history of the world.
The newspaper did not reference the source, probably obtaining it directly from the pastor. Hovind presents to gullible audiences neither real science nor intelligent religious doctrine, but a juvenile attack on evolution, which he does not understand. Exposing Hovind in letters to newspapers can counteract his damage. On the afternoon my letter appeared, I received an e-mail message from an Immanuel member who thanked me, saying he had wondered during the seminar about Hovind's credentials personal communication, October 30, He has since related that there was a "big discussion" at the church subsequent to my expose.
Writing letters can make a difference. Acknowledgments The author thanks Ed Brayton, Skip Evans, and Karen Bartelt for assistance in gathering information for the letter and the article. References Hovind K. Hovind has also devoted a good bit of effort to overturning his conviction and being compensated for all the harm it caused him.
This lawsuit was the most recent and arguably most spectacular attempt given the damages claimed. Paul Hansen's theory that he based the case on is that the jurisdiction of the federal government is extremely narrow. As far as I can tell the idea is that since the Constitution gives the federal government exclusive jurisdiction over what would become the District of Columbia and land where there are forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards and other needful buildings, it has no jurisdiction anywhere else except by contract.
Judge Rodgers et al never established that Hovind was subject to the authority of the federal government, so taking his stuff and locking him up was criminal. I have more on Hansen's theories here. Hansen claims that attorneys know that he is right, but are afraid to say so because they will get disbarred. He told me that when judges and prosecutors realize that he is on to them they will usually fold.
I asked him for a comment on the dismissal and this was his response. The reason why is that the constitution bars them from such in multiple ways.
We have asked the IRS and they refuse to respond, this could branch into a suit like this one all by itself possibly. I am working on a reconsideration-motion now.
It is exculpatory in nature, a felony to conceal, individually. Possibly we will force the court to make a declarative statement on these individual facts. All nexuses with the US are contractual. Peter - In America we have ways of forcing disclosure as to duty, it is impossible for an US administrator to evade apart from arrest if done properly, I'll likely be utilizing such tools soon. The Magistrate's recommendation to grant summary judgement in favor of the defendants was based on four grounds.
First Hansen did not have standing on many of the claims. Second and more significantly, all the claims were barred by the statute of limitations.
Next there is the matter of sovereign immunity covering the United States and most of the individual defendants who were acting in their official capacity. And their were insufficient allegations that Hovind's attorney was acting "under color of law". Under that holding in order to recover damages from an unlawful conviction, you have to show that it was, you know, unlawful. Hovind's conviction was confirmed by on appeal by the 11th Circuit and an attempt to overturn it recently failed.
Judge Wetherll did not find any merit in Hansen's response to the Magistrate's recommendation. They shop for what flavor will suit themselves best, and they do so in the same religious marketplace as everyone else. Some people really do want to serve humanity and make the world a better place, and they label their altruism and kindness as the love of Jesus. Other people ache for divine levels of correctness, or for unconditional love, protection, comfort, and security.
Good people try to do their best in whatever flavor of whatever religion they end up in. Terrible people operate in the same way, unfortunately. And lots and lots of flavors of Christianity appeal to them for the very worst reasons imaginable. Biff was a frustrated, control-hungry narcissist.
In Pentecostalism, he found the perfect way to achieve the kind of unilateral, unquestioned power he ached to wield. As a group , fundagelical men tend to be angry, controlling, and entitled. And fundagelical culture allows them to act like that. In fact, it often rewards them for doing it, if they play their cards right.
And on those rare occasions when accountability and repercussions creep too close to one of them, they have lots of ways of handling that, too. None of this stuff requires a god. And because no gods are involved in Christianity, nothing will change within it until someone forces it to change.
NEXT UP: How evangelicals try to corral and control forbidden emotions like anger — and how and why these attempts fail.
Come join us on Facebook , Tumblr , and Twitter! Also please check out our Graceful Atheist podcast interview! If you like what you see, I gratefully welcome your support. You can also support this blog at no extra cost to yourself by beginning your Amazon shopping trips with my affiliate link. And, of course, please like and share my posts on social media!
I appreciate every single bit of it. Thank you. See also: The Dark Triad. Get newsletters and updates Close. Also, send me the Nonreligious Newsletter and special offers. Also, send me the Nonreligious Newsletter. Toggle navigation. Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.
Captain Cassidy grew up fervently Catholic, converted to the SBC in her teens, and became a Pentecostal shortly afterward. She even volunteered in church choir, Sunday School and married an aspiring preacher! But then--record scratch! That was 25 years ago. Now a comfortable None, she blogs on Roll to Disbelieve about psychology, pop culture, politics, relationships, cats, gaming, and more--and where they all intersect with religion.
She lives with an adored and adoring husband named Mr. Captain and a sweet, squawky orange tabby cat named Princess Bother Pretty Toes. At any given time, she's running out of bookcase space. You can read more about the author here. Previous Post.
0コメント