Sunday, November 20, 2005

Intelligent Resign

Like many people in France, I have heard about the controversy that currently takes place in the US about creation and what is called "Intelligent Design".

Of course, in the post-Christian society that is France, this kind of debate looks curious at best and more generally incredibly obsolete for the vast majority of people who think that Christian faith is a middle-aged superstition and a crutch for weak persons.

This "intelligent design" debate will not help ridding these prejudices and misconceptions: there is nothing intelligent in wasting energy in talking about subjects that are all but extremely peripheral to the core of the message that Christians should broadcast. There is nothing new in this kind of intellectual diversions: re-read what Paul has written to Titus about this, almost two millenniums ago.

Confronting science and faith is a sterile debate: they are both in different non-competing fields (the "how" and the "why") and both can benefit from each other. Can not faith be re-enforced by the beauty and the majesty of the discoveries made in the heart of the matter or at the borders of the known universe? Can not science benefit from a little consciousness when it comes to potentially dangerous discoveries?

And on the subject of what is taught to kids at school, I really think that there are more serious threats that weight on our children than hearing about the theory of evolution. Living in a fallen world is all about filtering, anyway!

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Wish Kids

Does anyone remember the Whiz Kids? This TV show has been a flop: one season and off it went... But for me it was a true revelation.

I think this show hit France a few years after its US release. At this time I was already hooked on computers, or at least what we used to call "computers" at this time (I am of course talking about the electronic spawn of Sir Sinclair).

Everything seemed possible in the Whiz Kids: pervasive computers were the key of all the plots and the sun was constantly shining above these smart young Californians.

I reckon that I must blame this show for having set my mind on two major wishes: become an expert in taming computers and relocate to California... So far, it is a 50% success (the geographical part of the challenge remains unfulfilled) ; should the show have taken place in Anchorage, I sure might not be eager to reach the 100% target!