HOW TO SPOT A CREATIONIST (HINT: HE’S THE ONE RIDING A DINOSAUR ON AN ARK)

ITEM: As Creationists keep losing court battles over attempts to have “intelligent design” (basically the Book Of Genesis dressed up in scientific clothing) taught as science in federally funded schools, they have been working to evolve upgrade their strategy to make ID sound even like science than it really is.

New Scientist’s book editor gets these kind of books on a regular basis, and she is having none of it. So, here’s a helpful list of tips to help you know when a science book has been written by a Creationist trying to pass themselves off as a scientist.

Sample:

Religiously motivated authors also have a bad habit of linking the cultural implications of a theory to the truth-value of that theory. The ID crowd, for instance, loves to draw a line from Darwin to the Holocaust, as they did in the "documentary" film Expelled: No intelligence allowed. Even if such an absurd link were justified, it would have zero relevance to the question of whether or not the theory of evolution is correct.

Which is probably irrelevant to most of you, but it does give me an excuse to post this great Bible coloring book picture:



PRODUCTION NOTE: I’m fairly sure that’s not from an actual Creationist coloring book. I think it’s a mock-up. Anyway, I love the image of Smiling Jesus riding a velociraptor.

Ride boldly ride,

This is dF

EXCUSE ME BUDDY, DO YOU HAVE A MOBILE PHONE IN A SIZE 11, WITH WINGTIPS?

Hey kids! Want a working Maxwell Smart shoe phone?

You can build one. Paul Gardner-Stephen, a researcher at Flinders University in Adelaide, shows you how.



MATERIALS:

1. A Motorola V620 handset (or any handset with a Bluetooth connection and an external antenna, and supports voice-activated dialing)

2. A Bluetooth headset

3. Shoes (preferably with heels)

FUN FACT: Gardner-Stephen designed the shoe-phone partly for fun, but also to promote the idea of installing wireless electronics in shoes for biomedical applications. For example, the shoes could also be used by doctors to remotely monitor patient vital signs. Also, the sensors in yr iPhone that know when yr in portrait or landscape mode could also be used to tell when an elderly patient is walking around or falls down.

CAVEAT EMPTOR: Barbara Feldon not included.



Damn.

Sorry about that chief,

This is dF

PASS THE LORD AND PRAISE THE SALT – NO, WAIT ...

ITEM: So yr a Christian, and yr eggs need a little flavor, but yr salt is too secular (or worse, Jewish)?

The Lord provides.



What is Blessed Christian Salt, you ask? It’s sea salt blessed by an Episcopal priest.

It’s the brainchild of retired barber Joe Godlewski, who says he was inspired by television chefs who repeatedly recommended kosher salt in recipes.

"I said, 'What the heck's the matter with Christian salt?'" Godlewski said.

As you do.

FACT: According to Rabbi Sholem Fishbane, all salt is inherently kosher because it occurs naturally and requires little or no processing. Furthermore, certified kosher foods are not blessed by rabbis but examined by them to ensure that the food and its processing conform with Biblical passages regarding food preparation and consumption.

Luckily, says Godlewski, that’s not the point. "This is about keeping Christianity in front of the public so that it doesn't die. I want to keep Christianity on the table, in the household, however I can do it."

Also suitable for exorcisms. [Insert Bobby Jindal joke here.]

If the salt takes off, Godlewski plans an entire line of Christian-branded foods, including rye bread, bagels and pickles. On the downside (for him), Christian-themed foods generally don’t do well. Personally, I think he should have picked a snazzier name: like Lot’s Wife™ or something.

That’s it, I’m stopping now.

My God is salty,

This is dF

ONE MAN’S PORN IS ANOTHER MAN’S 2:30 FLIGHT TO SAN DIEGO

ITEM [via Def Agent jasonfranks ]: Southwest Airlines angers passengers with an image of Israeli supermodel (and Leo DiCaprio squeeze) Bar Refaeli in a bikini on the side of a Boeing 737.

It’s part of a promotional deal with Sports Illustrated magazine. But passengers are shocked, SHOCKED that Southwest Air would put “softcore porn” on the side of their plane.

Softcore porn, eh? Let’s take a look.



Well ... it does make my nipples hard. Still, some people clearly don’t have enough to worry about.

The punch line, of course, is that Southwest Airlines is the same airline that once threw a Hooters waitress off a flight for dressing like this:



Which I think means she’s now allowed to fly dressed like this.

[Yes, it’s NSFW, and yes, it’s the same woman.]

Progress!

Babe on board,

This is dF