Overnight Open Thread

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 9:27:04 pm PDT

I prefer the wicked rather than the foolish. The wicked sometimes rest.

— Alexandre Dumas

The Creation Museum

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 6:10:21 pm PDT

Before we get to the real point of this post, here’s some background information on the Creation Museum in Kentucky:

The Creation Museum is a 60,000 square foot museum in the United States designed to promote young Earth creationism. The museum presents an account of the origins of the universe, life, mankind, and man’s early history according to a literal reading of the book of Genesis. Its exhibits reject evolution and assert that the Earth and all of its life forms were created 6000 years ago over a six-day period, and that man and dinosaurs once coexisted.

These views disagree with well in excess of 99.9% of the scientists in relevant fields. Also, the museum exhibits are at odds with the vast majority of scientists who accept that the Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old, and that the dinosaurs became extinct 65.5 million years before human beings arose. The museum has generated criticism by the scientific community, several groups of educators, Christian groups opposed to young Earth creationism, and in the general press.

The museum, which is said to have cost $27 million, is privately-funded through donations to the apologetics ministry Answers in Genesis and opened its doors to the public on May 28, 2007. Based on projections, the museum anticipated 250,000 paying visitors in its first year of operation. According to AiG, within its first month attendance surpassed 100,000 visitors by July 21, 2007 and 200,000 visitors on September 20, 2007. Visitor attendance also exceeded first year expectations only 5 months and 5 days after opening, with a total of 250,000 visitors on November 2, 2007.

The museum was originally marketed as the Creation Museum and Family Discovery Center. It opened in late Spring of 2007 as the “Creation Museum.” The museum is located in Petersburg, Kentucky, near the Greater Cincinnati International Airport on 49 acres of land; the Answers in Genesis main offices are attached to the museum. The facility’s stated mission is to “exalt Jesus Christ as Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer,” to “equip Christians to better evangelize the lost,” and to “challenge visitors to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.”

According to the founder of Answers in Genesis, Ken Ham, “One of the main reasons we moved there was because we are within one hour’s flight of 69 per cent of America’s population.” Ham also explains how the idea of the museum originated: “Australia’s not really the place to build such a facility if you’re going to reach the world. Really, America is.” Previously Ham worked for the Institute for Creation Research, which runs a creationist museum in Santee, California, with free admission.

With that introduction, a reader emailed a link to a Flickr photo essay by “astropop,” who visited the Creation Museum with a good camera and a good eye.

Here we see an animatronic cave girl happily coexisting with an animatronic vegetarian allosaur.

Here’s a slideshow of all the pictures. I recommend absorbing the entire message.

Holocaust Denial at YouTube

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 2:35:40 pm PDT

Jihad videos? Yep, YouTube’s got ’em. Crackpot 9/11 Troofers? Yep, YouTube’s got ’em. Lots of ’em.

Holocaust deniers? YouTube - RevisionistsRus’s Videos.

Another Soon-To-Be-Nuanced Statement from Obama

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 2:13:30 pm PDT

John at Power Line notices another in a seemingly endless series of gaffes from the Naive Messiah: The Fine Line Between Pandering and Lying.

Obama continued:

Now, in terms of knowing my commitments, you don’t have to just look at my words, you can look at my deeds. Just this past week, we passed out of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, which is my committee, a bill to call for divestment from Iran, as a way of ratcheting up the pressure to ensure that they don’t obtain a nuclear weapon.

But Obama is not a member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. Obama just made that up so he could count the committee’s action as one of “my deeds.”

UPDATE at 7/23/08 2:32:05 pm:

And here’s the video clip:

Youtube Video

Coexisting

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 11:41:36 am PDT

Video: Al Jazeera Throws Party for Child Killer

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 9:07:22 am PDT

This depraved show alone should prevent Al Jazeera from ever being picked up by US cable channels, as the Arab “news network” throws a birthday party for released terrorist Samir Kuntar—who shot a child’s father in front of her, then bashed the little girl’s brains out with a rifle butt.

It’s almost unbelievable. They’ve let their thirst for blood and lack of decency trump even their political ends this time.

(Courtesy of MEMRI TV.)

Following are excerpts from a birthday party organized by Al-Jazeera TV for released Lebanese terrorist Samir Al-Quntar. Al-Jazeera TV aired this segment on July 19, 2008

Interviewer: Brother Samir, we would like to celebrate your birthday with you. You deserve even more than this. I think that 11,000 prisoners – if they can see this program now – are celebrating your birthday with you. Happy birthday, brother Samir.

Samir Al-Quntar: Thank you.

Interviewer: Go ahead... There is a picture here... If the camera can show this... Let’s cut it... Does the camera show this clearly or not? We have a picture here... This is the sword of the Arabs, Samir. Don’t cut the picture, cut on the side.

Samir Al-Quntar: Here’s Abu Qassam [Marwan Barghouti].

Interviewer: Marwan is here.

Samir Al-Quntar: Abu Qassam is here with Ahmad Sa’dat. That’s our prison warden...

Interviewer: This one?

Samir Al-Quntar: Yes.

Interviewer: What is the warden’s name?

Samir Al-Quntar: His name is... Never mind.

Interviewer: This is when you were released. Here you are with Wafiq Safa.

Samir Al-Quntar: Yes, this is Wafiq Safa. This is the most beautiful picture – with Hassan Nasrallah. This is the most beautiful picture. There cannot be anything more beautiful. Me and the secretary-general – the most beautiful picture of me ever taken.

Discussion: A Veep for McCain?

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 8:46:03 am PDT

Here’s an open thread for a specific topic: who do you think would be the best Vice President for John McCain? I have to admit it’s difficult for me to get excited about any of the names currently being tossed into the ring. Maybe it’s time for a surge of fresh ideas from the lizard army...

Obama's Israel Okey-Doke

Wed, Jul 23, 2008 at 8:16:27 am PDT

Barack Obama is in Israel, telling everybody what he thinks they want to hear—except the journalists he continues to shun: Obama: I’m here to reaffirm special US-Israel relationship.

After a series of meetings with Israeli officials and a visit to Israel’s Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, US presidential contender Senator Barack Obama travelled 30-minutes from Jerusalem to the West Bank town of Ramallah on Wednesday afternoon where he assured Palestinian leaders he’d get involved in the Mideast conflict quickly, a top Palestinian official said.

In his meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Obama confirmed “that he will be a constructive partner in the peace process” and would not “waste a minute” if elected, Chief Palestinian negotiator Saed Erekat said.

Obama left Abbas’s headquarters without speaking to reporters.

Obama photo of the day.