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Originally Posted by Fred
. . . to “predict†how/why “mother wasps that bias the sex ratio of their offspring toward females when laying eggs into large hosts will have more grand-children in the long run than mother wasps that do not do this,†which initially may sound impressive, is nevertheless ultimately circular, and just not terribly enlightening.
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. . . you didn't even attempt to understand the general point of my example, which was that we can make very clear, testable predictions about many aspects of wild populations under the framework of evolution by natural selection. Additionally, you have once again neglected the point I made about non-circularity of selection vs. circularity of any historical explanation of life. In our discussion about a year ago on this topic, I gave you the benefit of the doubt and assumed you just skimmed over that argument, but now I believe you see it, realize that you cannot argue against it, and instead re-state your opinion on this matter without actually confronting the details.
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Originally Posted by Fred
Regarding the “circular mechanism†of “divine influence,†greater minds than ours have already considered such things, like Einstein’s spirit vastly superior to that of man manifest in the laws of the universe, or Planck’s conscious and intelligent Mind that is the matrix of all matter, or Penrose’s universe that has a purpose and that’s not here somehow by chance.
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I don't care if a bunch of smart guys have indicated their support for deism. Once again, you failed to address my clear argument that ANY deistic explanation of life is inherently circular, and instead opted just to cite other people. By the way, Fred, wasn't it you who told me a few posts ago not to blindly accept what some authorities have written on this matter? And yet here you are, doing exactly that with Einstein, Planck, and Penrose. What's that I smell . . . ? It's Fred's duplicity!!
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Originally Posted by Fred
So anyhoo, I still think that Dawkins got it right, that “natural selection†is a belief that can’t be proved.
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READ A BOOK on the subject and then come back to tell me what you think about it.