Lincoln and Darwin were born on the same day 200 years and two days ago. Oregon became a State 150 years ago today.
Lincoln was never one of my favourite presidents. I loved his abolitionist stand. I hate his federalist tendencies which cost this nation 100's of thousands of lives. I caught a blurb on talk radio nearly a year ago. The host was comparing Bush to Lincoln. He was stating, I think correctly that the two have many similarities. But the points he made were reasons I didn't like Bush.
In 150 years I think history will look at Bush as a successful saviour of Democracy in the Middle East. It will state that his foresighted nation building foreign policy created a stable Iraq, which in turn created a platform for change in the region.
That is what I think history will say... and my position that the ends don't justify the means and life is worth more than these men allowed, will still stand somewhere in the minority report. Lying to a nation to get one's way... rewriting the constitution to "protect" constitutional values...sending men to war to save or create a nation that you envision isn't right. Let people make their own choices...
So yes, Obama, let Iran make its own choices. Who are we to say that they can't have nuclear weapons. who appointed us god?
The Darwin thing is an entirely different question. Many years ago, speaking at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan on the topic of evolution and creationism, I argued that whatever happened "in the beginning" happened prehistorically and prehistoric meant precisely that "before history." We can't know. The scientific method can only postulate back. It can't repeat history that is unknown, and any creation myth can not be validated or disproved.
I went on to articulate the creation myths along the spectum from naturalistic evolution to 7 day creationism. I pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of each position as I understood it both theologically and philosphically. I repeated that creation was not a scientific question. It can't be.
I explained that though I wasn't willing to stake much of any bet on it, I landed as a seven day creationist because of the philosophical problems with macro evolution being consistent with a loving triune God.
The next week the school paper published a letter to the editor that I kept for a long time, titled, "Speaker knew nothing." He didn't appreciate me referring to naturalistic evolution as a "creation myth".
Since then Phillip Johnson and a host of others have argued the points much better than I could ever dream. Though the scientists don't know it... post modernity will prove to be the end of naturalistic evolution. Good trinitarian theology should be the end of thoughtful deistic evolution, and I don't know what else we are left with except a loving God who chose to create a world that mirrored back to him perfect relationship...
My state deserves her own post tomorrow. happy 150th, Oregon... You are my state and I love you dearly. Should you choose to secede, this pacifist would pick up a hated gun to defend you, even if I disagreed with the reason you were seceding. You are more important to me than the USA. I am an Oregonian before I am an American.
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