re: #116 Charles Johnson

The end result of the Bill Nye-Ken Ham debate is going to be a lot of donations to Ken Ham from gullible creationists. #creationdebate

There will no doubt be a surge in donations, but I don’t think that should be a problem for science advocates. For one thing, much of it is likely to come at the expense of other creationists and bat-guano fundies, with little or no increase in overall funding of superstition based antiscience. Most of these people are probably already close to the limit on disposable income, and they would have to shift their expenditures around to have spare change for Ham. They could probably dip into their ammunition budgets for more, but that would not be a bad thing either.
Secondly, it gives Ham the alpha male position in the creo troop, and enhances his status among far gone religious right types in general. He is such a buffoon and easy target that this is probably a good thing. Like any form of show business, creationism and evangelical activism are highly competitive. A new star cannot rise without another being eclipsed. David Barton is probably the top star now. He is also a YEC, though that is not the focus of his activism. Ham is actually no crazier than Barton but Barton has managed to build an intricate network of political and media connections. Ham has nothing comparable. The power of this network would inevitably decline if Ham were promoted at the expense of Barton and other better connected fundies.