Talk:Examples of Bias in Wikipedia

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National Enquirer revisited

Okay, there still isn't a source that says that Wikipedia is "The National Enquirer of the Internet." I took a look on Google and didn't see that quote applied to Wikipedia, reputable source or otherwise. Big-A, are you still going to defend use of that phrase on this article? It doesn't help Conservapedia's reputation to have an uncited claim on this article. Thank you, PostoStudanto 14:00, 18 September 2007 (EDT)

The phrase has to come from somewhere, invented by someone. If Wikipedia editors behave as though they're writing articles for the National Enquirer and the other supermarket tabliods, then yes someone is going to call that site "the National Enquirer of the internet". If we see the similarites, then we're going to call it exactly that. Karajou 14:06, 18 September 2007 (EDT)

Right. I've added another citation for the comparison of Wikipedia to the National Enquirer, as examples can be easily found on the internet. In addition, many editors here feel likewise, so there is no disputing the truth of the statement about some making the comparison.--Aschlafly 14:31, 18 September 2007 (EDT)

But no one ever said that it was "The National Enquirer of the Internet." They're just agreeing on something everyone should already know: Wikipedia is not an authoritative source. By the way, check the sources for your six-times-as-liberal example. Apparently the conservative quotient on Wikipedia is infinite. - PostoStudanto 15:26, 18 September 2007 (EDT)

You don't seem to understand what gossip is, and why it is wrong. The comparison of Wikipedia to the National Enquirer is not based on unreliability, though that is certainly a problem. It's based on their exploitation of gossip. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 22:40, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

Wha?

"Credible wikis, including Conservapedia, do not permit editing by anonymous IP addresses." I can't think of any other Wikis that don't permit editing by anonymous IP addresses. I suggest this bullet is removed. GofG _|^|_| Talk 22:41, 19 September 2007 (EDT)

CreationWiki and ResearchID.org do not allow anonymous IP address editing. Here is another Wiki that does not allow anonymous IP editing: http://www.mormonwiki.com/Main_PageConservative 23:05, 19 September 2007 (EDT)

#71

How, exactly, is this an example of bias on Wikipedia? It's a mistake on the part of the newspapers. Oh, and I figured that, given that Archive9 doesn't actually exist, it would be appropriate to remove the link. Masterbratac 20:44, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• Sign your posts. Or they will be removed. Please don't remove objects or links added by Administrators. You make the same mistake as #71, repeating something and blaming others for it being added merely on the strength of opinion, or in that case, the newspapers. (Edit conflict, I see you came back and signed.) --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 20:49, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

I'm not sure I follow. How am I making the same mistake as in #71? I'm not taking something from an unreliable source and reporting it as true, I'm just asking a question. Masterbratac 20:52, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• Wikipedias built-in biases allowed for the article's creation and remaining up. Then (and yes, it was a big mistake for some reporter to be using WP as a source, something not allowed by most major papers)someone else used it, and repeated it. If Wikipedia didn't have a mobocracy the article wouldn't have stayed in place. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 21:03, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

Then shouldn't the point be that the mistake was left intact, not that a newspaper reprinted it? On a slightly unrelated note, why did your last response break my sig on my original question? Masterbratac 21:08, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• Break your sig? --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 21:23, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

It made the linky all non-linky. Masterbratac 21:25, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• What? I didn't unlink anything. I suggest you move on now. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 21:29, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• I still don't have an answer to my questions: shouldn't the point be that the mistake was left intact, not that a newspaper reprinted it? and How am I making the same mistake as in #71? If they're answered, I will be perfectly happy to move on. Masterbratac 21:31, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• Godspeed to you! Thanks for your help. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 21:39, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

• Guess that's a no. I'll be moving on now . . . Masterbratac 21:41, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

move on??...move on??....MoveOn is a codeword for subversive infiltration..... Rob Smith 21:57, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

Number 71 is Wikipedia's error that was copied by a newspaper. Why do liberals have so much trouble with accountability??? Godspeed.--Aschlafly 22:40, 20 September 2007 (EDT)

Bias or Error?

• Out of the list, at least numbers 55, 56, 58, and 72 are examples of error, not bias.

On a somewhat unrelated note, why is the "See also" section even there? It only contains one link, and the linked article doesn't exist.

Masterbratac 20:03, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

Errors are often the result of bias. Your statement that something is an example "of error, not bias" is a non sequitur. It would be like saying that something is an example of "a crime, not sin."

Each of the points you list can be attributed to Wikipedia's liberal bias, which includes gossip, political correctness and lack of rigor. But thanks for your suggestion about deleting the empty link, which I did. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 20:20, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

I'll agree that errors can be the result of bias. Most of the errors on the list are. I can't see how these four are examples of bias, though.

Also, your comparison of "of error, not bias" and "a crime, not sin" is incorrect. Crime, presumably, is necessarily sin. Error, on the other hand, is not necessarily bias. My statement also wasn't really a non sequitur, but I won't go into that.

Masterbratac 20:30, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

• You have that much boredom so you are forced to quibble, Masterbratac? "Errors" uncorrected (on purpose because of idealogical bias) for long periods of time, by the senior people at WP, become facts in the minds of many. It is another form of Deceit. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 20:52, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

• I still don't see how these four are bias. And, yes, I do have that much boredom. Masterbratac 20:56, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

If you deny what a liberal is, and what gossip is, then you're not going to be persuaded that these errors result from the bias. Two of the errors result from the promotion of gossip on Wikipedia; a third error results from [[political correctness], a type of liberal bias; and the fourth error results from denial of accountability, another type of liberal bias. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 22:19, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

Read my comment again. I did not deny what a liberal is, nor did I deny what gossip is. Tell me, which of these errors have which causes? Masterbratac 23:22, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

I wish I had more time to respond now, and I wish I had confidence that further discussion would be productive. I'll try to explain one and see whether you simply adhere to your already-taken position.

The concept of an elementary proof is well-known in mathematics and was widely taught to top mathematics students at least until 25 years ago. Yet Wikipedia refused for months to have an entry about it, and only relented when I pointed out here that MathWorld does have an entry.

Why such resistance? Because many of the recent claims of proofs, such as Wiles' proof of Fermat's Last Theorem, are not elementary proofs and liberals don't want to admit that. Liberals prefer instead to claim that mathematicians today are smarter than the devoutly Christian mathematicians like Bernhard Riemann and Carl Gauss. Not so, and this omission of this entry on Wikipedia was due to liberal bias.

Explained another way, liberals detest accountability, in this case the accountability of the rigorous criteria for an elementary proof. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 23:56, 23 September 2007 (EDT)

. . . I give up. If you're willing to believe something that ridiculous, there's no way I'm going to get a reasonable answer.

I will say this: I believe that mathematicians today are smarter, in that they have access to more advanced techniques. However, in pure mathematical aptitude, I do not believe any modern mathematician can match the likes of Gauss, Riemann, or Euler. Masterbratac 00:05, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Fine, then give up. But note that you never provided an alternative explanation for the omission of elementary proof on Wikipedia, and the prolonged insistence by liberals there to continue to omit that basic concept. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 00:39, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

I see no reason to provide an alternative to something so ridiculous that nobody could possibly believe it. Do you even read the things you write?

Also, since you made the claim, the burden of proof is on you. I don't have to refute your claims; you have to support them. Masterbratac 09:03, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

I'm disappointed: you abandoned reasoned discourse and resorted to name-calling. Liberals on Wikipedia did resist including an entry for elementary proof. I've explained why. You have not, and seem content to hurl insults that only discredit your own denial.--Aschlafly 17:10, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

The only reason Wikipedia lacked such an article is because nobody bothered to create one. Now, if you had created the article, and it had been subsequently deleted, you would have a reasonable point. But you don't. You blame liberals for an omission you could have easily corrected yourself. Masterbratac 17:17, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Masterbratac, you're in denial about liberal bias. Just look at the archives for this page and you'll see people opposing an entry on elementary proof. Look at how Wikipedia delayed and delayed long after alerted to the omission before finally relenting and creating an entry on it. Even now Wikipedia's entry is inadequate, and it omits from its Paul Erdos entry his emphasis on elementary proofs.--Aschlafly 09:28, 26 September 2007 (EDT)

If elementary proofs are such a big deal, shouldn't you just link to a reputable source that explicitly says that they are a big deal? - PostoStudanto 14:11, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

Andy, I did check those archives, and I found a post by JoshuaZ that said that he'd simply create the entry: "The lack of an article on elementary proof is disturbing and I am currently writing a draft." No fighting, no delaying. He saw it, he went to work. It's also the earliest reference to "elementary proof" I could find on the talk pages. The MathWorld stuff and the "fight" (which was not about the proof itself, but rather about its importance - something that easily counts as content discussion both here and on WP) apparently came up almost a month after the article had been created: Here is the discussion.

Put simply, I am unable to find the evidence that Wikipedia or anybody here delayed or opposed the creation of the article. Hence, I do not see the "bias" since anybody could have simply created an article - even you. Also, your "alerting" apparently was you simply posting that item on a page that was only made (in)famous in February, which is hardly "alerting" in my eyes. (If I wrote on some little-known LiveJournal about an error here, I shouldn't expect anybody to notice it.) Otherwise, please point out your attempt to create the article on Wikipedia or a talk page post where you mentioned it. --Jenkins 14:34, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

• Can you explain again what is liberal about the omission of elementary proof?
• Can you name anybody who would not admit that Wiles proof is not elementary?
• Does it say anything about the political and religious orientation of Bernhard Riemann that he used his Zeta function in an non-elementary proof of the prime number theorem?
• Does it say anything about the political and religious orientation of Paul Erdos that he found an elementary proof for the prime number theorem? Order 03:16, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Order becomes the question box here. No, I don't have to explain it again. See my edits above. Yes, many liberals do resist characterization of Wiles proof as not being elementary. Wikipedia's own entry resists it by omitting it. [1] --Aschlafly 17:10, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Good on you that you answer at least a few of my questions. I admit that I can be at times a bit inquisitive. I personally do not care too much what Wikipedia says about Wiles' proof, nor that it omits ZFC. Wikipedia is good for looking up a laymans account of many mathematical concepts and their history, but it isn't exactly an authoritative source.

Your statement was that many mathematicians deny the fact that Wiles proof is non-elementary. I am not sure why a mathematician would deny this fact; ZFC is fairly accepted while known to be problematic since equivalent to the well-ordering theorem. And the rest of Wiles' proof, to the extend that I know about it, doesn't strike me that elementary either. I asked you for the name of an mathematician who denies that Wiles proof is non-elementary?

Unanswered, and maybe for a good reason, is what relation exists between Riemann's non-elementary proof and Erdos elementary proof of the prime number theorem, and their political and religious convictions. Order 20:59, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Wikipedia whitewashes article on man who lost Vietnam war.

While writing our stub for Robert McNamara I noticed that the Wikipedia article about McNamara glosses over his responsibility for losing the war. See [2]. SkipJohnson 15:07, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Yet more pro-evolution bias on Wikipedia.

See [3] and http://www.uncommondescent.com/intelligent-design/wikipedia-suppresses-info-on-haldanes-dilemma/ . SkipJohnson 16:10, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

Thanks for both items above (including McNamara). I'll work these into future additions after more thought and research. Feel free to suggest specific language for a concise point about these to add to the content page.--Aschlafly 17:12, 24 September 2007 (EDT)

For the pro-evolution bias I suggest: "Wikipedia's article on Haldane's Dillemma, a serious problem for evolution downplays the difficulty the problem poses for evolution. Wikipedia refuses to add material explaining or citing work by Walter ReMine which shows how Haldane's Dilemma creates a strong speed limit on evolution. " SkipJohnson 11:17, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Its unfair to say Wikipedia has a pro-evolution bias. Perhaps more of a pro-scientific method bias? You people are allowed to believe whatever you want, but its simply nuts to insert religious belief into a scientific article. Why can't you get that into your heads? Graham 11:24, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Why can't you get into your head that creationism is just as scientific as evolution and that evolution is just as much a religion as creationism? SkipJohnson 11:29, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Because they've deluded themselves into thinking that this is science. --_transResident Transfan^form!

Then suppose you tell us: what exactly is science? And where is it written that science ipso facto excludes non-material explanations for events, and rejects them a priori as untenable?--TerryH^Talk 12:35, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

How is evolution scientific? It follows the scientific method. If new evidence came to light tomorrow debunking it, then that would be the truth. The fact is that creationism cannot be considered scientific;There is no way to test its validity and is not falsifiable. In this context, creationism is not a matter of science - it is a belief structure based on irrational tendancies. Therefore it doesn't belong in a scientific article discussing evolution, unless perhaps noting that some people regard it to be scientific, despite the fact that it is not.

Creationism belongs and deserves its place in a theological/philosophical article, not in a scientific one. Claiming that it does betrays a most fundamental lack of knoweldge in the scientific method or science in general. Graham 12:43, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

How does evolution follow the scientific method? Where are the experiments showing an evolutionary process in action? New evidence comes to light every year debunking one assumption or another that evolution makes, and yet evolutuion grinds on. You claim that creationism is not falsifiable? Well, whether it is or it isn't (I say that it is, but that's another topic), evolution certainly is not falsifiable. And if you say that it is, then tell me: what one single fact would convince you that evolution is no longer a tenable proposition?

As a man having a medical degree, I can and do claim, with no small justice, that I know far more about the scientific method than you do. (And if you think that that is not correct, then let's have your credentials.) Evolution violates that method on multiple counts, chief among them multiple wholesale violations of Occam's razor. Those violations are far too numerous to list here, but for the sake of those who read this debate later, anyone who cares to look for them can find them.

You still have not given a workable definition of the term science. I infer from your remarks, and those of people like Richard Dawkins and Stephen Jay Gould and Eugenie Carol Scott, that by your definition, "science" is that which seeks to explain the origin of the earth, and of life thereon, and all its forms, static and dynamic, through material processes only, and assumes a priori that nothing immaterial exists. In contrast, I say that "science" uses trial and error to find the most likely explanation, be it material or immaterial, for origins or processes. And if we cannot even agree on a definition of science, then we cannot agree on whether

1. Wikipedia or any other body is censoring certain findings, or
2. whether such censorship is appropriate.--TerryH^Talk 13:03, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Oh, Doctor, you should have told me I was talking to the King of England! Get over yourself.

I do not have specific credentials, neither am I particularly aware of the intricacies of the scientific world (I am a Historian, not a scientist) but what I do know beyond any shred of a doubt is creationism is not science, and you cannot possibly tell me that it is. The best any creationist can ever come up with is that 'evolution has flaws'. Well so does democracy, so does every single discovery by the human race. You would do well to find me a flawless 'theory'. Graham 13:14, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

The King of England? What--did Queen Elizabeth II die, and did her death pass unnoticed by the Associated Press or Reuters or even the British Broadcasting Corporation? And even if she had (which I don't concede), what would any member of the Royal House of Windsor have to do with this discussion?

Now let me get this straight: you are not trained as a scientist--your calling is that of an historian instead--and yet you "know" that "creationism is not science." Now as to whether I can tell you that creationism is a science--why, of course I can. (You aren't proposing to place me under arrest for so declaring, are you?) Now whether I can make you understand that creationism is a science, or not, is entirely up to you. Close your mind, or open it, as you wish.

As to "the best we can do"--well, I don't know what creationists you've been talking to or reading. But evolution is worse than flawed--and by evolution I mean the materialistic theory of life origin and development. That theory is a null hypothesis within the meaning of statistics. And others who work with these things every day have already calculated that the probability of life originating out of nothing, and developing as it has with no non-material guidance, is vanishingly small. Accordingly, they reject the null hypothesis and accept the alternative: intervention, by a Non-material Intervenor. And I strongly suspect that you've heard that before; you just don't want to admit it, or face its implications.

And those implications go far beyond whether you or I are right or wrong about the origin of earth and of life hereon. They go directly to whether or not all of us are held accountable for our words and deeds. Accountability, my dear Graham. That's the part you can't face.--TerryH^Talk 14:59, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Since it seems that you need scientific credentials to join the discussion, maybe I can chip in, after all it says scientists in my job title, although it strikes me as weird that we would try to impress others with our degrees, and not with arguments.

That said, TerryH, you do confuse the theory of abiogenisis, with the theory of evolution. Abiogeneisis, life coming into existence from a biotic predecessor, is indeed still largly unsolved. The theory of evolution explains how the genepool of a species changes over time, and how species emerge and disappear, and is fairly well understood.

Second, your reference to the probability of life originating out of nothing, seems to imply that the theory of evolution says that the origin of species is a process guided by a random distribution. The principles of evolution are quite the opposite from a random process, and selection is the reason. It has mathematically been proven that evolution as principle is some quite different from a random walk. Since you are a scientist, look up genetic and evolutionary algorithms.

And if you mean "random" in the meaning "without purpose", sure scientist agree, but "without purpose", doesn't let you do your calculation of improbability.

With respect to abiogenisis, creationism doesn't explain much either. Questions that are unanswered are, where abiogenisis did happen, in a cold or hot environment, on earth, or interstellar, unanswered is which techniques were used to synthesize the first carrier of genetic information, unanswered is what this first carrier of information was, RNA, DNA, proto-RNA, etcetera. All these questions are left unanswered by Creationism, mostly because it is not intended to do so. So, it isn't really a convincing alternative to any of the ideas on abiogenisis that are around. Scientifically speaking. Creationism might give you more comfort. Order 20:01, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Your distinction between abiogenesis and evolution is a distinction without a difference. Without abiogenesis, evolution is, frankly, a silly idea. If life had its origin through creation by an Intelligent Creator, then evolution is unnecessary.

Has anyone ever demonstrated the "appearance" of a new species? I defy you to name even one such example.

But I do not depend upon that. Distinguishing abiogenesis from evolution is a total sham. It is an admission that the totally materialistic view of nature is fundamentally flawed and untenable.

So you see, I do not merely criticize "evolution," or whatever you currently mean by it. I criticize what Charles Darwin himself meant by "evolution," what Stephen Jay Gould meant, and what Richard Dawkins and Eugenie Carol Scott still mean. I criticize materialism, which states that no causes exist for any events beyond matter. Abiogenesis and evolution (your narrow definition thereof) are both part of evolution (the broader definition), or materialism, if you prefer. The purpose is the same: to declare that there is no God.

I also detect that you are trying to accuse creationism of failing to identify the first cause of life. Well! This is a new angle indeed--for I had the distinct impression that the very concept of "first cause" was untenable, and that no one should ever look for a "first cause." You can't have it both ways.

In sum: redefining the term "evolution" is an example of moving the goalpost. I do not accept that. Everyone knows perfectly well that abiogenesis and "change over time" are part and parcel of the same thing.--TerryH^Talk 22:58, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Abiogenis and evolution are two different things. Evolution takes place all the time, in labs, in people, in hospitals, in the wild. All you need is a self-replicating process, where informations is copied, with a certain chance of error, and a link between the information, and the frequency with which it will be copied. Also known as principle of mutation and selection, but there is more to it. Evolution as principle is quite independent from abiogenisis. Sure, without abiogenisis, there wouldn't be biological evolution, but the principles of evolution would still apply to e.g artificial evolution.

Abiogenisis is about how the first living thing came into being, and that is an event of the past. Evolution is at its core a principle. It can be used to explain why the gene-pool changes, but it is more general than that. And Dawkins, Gould, and Darwin were looking what happens if you apply this principle to biology. Even if the first life was created, the principles of evolution would still apply since life is a self-replicating process.

It is interesting that you say that you shouldn't look for the first cause. If creationism should not look for the first cause of life, and the circumstances under which it developed, then it doesn't try to answer the questions that biology asks. Fair enough, but this is not biology, nor a replacement. Order 00:41, 26 September 2007 (EDT)

I resent your twisting of my words. I did not say that one should not look for a first cause. Your allies have said that, in this project and out of it.

On the contrary, I assert that everything had a first cause. And no one has yet shown how life can emerge from non-life. That's because it is not possible.

There are various model for causality, and I am not sure if everything has to have a first cause. But even if, we might just not know what the first cause is. Also, nobody has proven that life cannot emerge from non-life, it just seems that in the last 50 years nobody has proven that it can. Problem is that the creationist story doesn't explain either how life emerged from non-life. It doesn't tell you what was the nature of the first life, in which environment it thrived, etc. Even the failed attempts of the last 50 years to explain abiogenisis made a better attempt to explain this.

Explain what? The creation account simply says that God brought everything into being, fully formed--and working perfectly. Things didn't go sour until Adam and Eve ate an apple.

The burden of proof rests on the atheists in this case, simply because the atheists need to explain how a thing could have happened against astronomical odds.

First, your reference of "astronomical odds" shows that think that evolution is random process. Evolution is not a random walk. But this is just a technical mistake that is commonly made; mostly due to confusion what "random" means.

Secondly, and more important, the burden of proof lie as much with the creationists. If they want explain biology, they better explain it. Simple saying that He just-did-it, makes it a just-so story. It doesn't answer any of the scientific questions, like why different animals have different kind of eyes, why he made so many different kinds of beetles, etcetera. Just because he liked it that way? That is not useful answer. It doesn't explain neither how, where, and why life emerged as we observe it today. Order 01:07, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

How is evolution not a random walk? If it is not random, then it is guided, and if it is not guided, then it is random. I mention that only to show the weakness in your argument. I do not accept the notion that one species, consisting of individuals that can mutually breed, arises out of another.

In any event, statisticians quote odds all the time--to show that a null hypothesis is untenable, and that one must accept as valid the notion that a given difference is relevant and/or that intervention is taking place.--TerryH^Talk 10:01, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

Evolution is not a random walk, because you have selection. You are just confusing the different meaning of the word "random" again. I'll say it again, go check evolutionary and genetic algorithms, and see for yourself that their behavior is proven to be different from a random walk. One difference is e.g. that solution of and genetic algorithm will converge to a local optimum, while a random walk will not. Look up the proofs. Order 10:57, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Has anyone shown conclusively that your genetic algorithms have any basis in fact? Has anyone watched them in action? Have you the slightest scintilla of tangible evidence to support those algorithms? I predict not.--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Sorry, Terry, to bring this point up, but you brought it yourself into the discussion that you are a scientist. As scientist you should know basic tools such as Google scholar, or other online libraries. It would take you exactly 3 seconds to find the literature on "Genetic Algorithms". The book "Genetic Algorithms in Search, Optimization and Machine Learning", by David Goldberg is a classic, and the first hit on Google Scholar. Do your research before you make such bold claims.Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

---

But atheistic evolutionists must assert that life arose from non-life, because if that did not happen, then they cannot explain how life came to be.

In deed atheists have to explain it to complete that part of the the history of life.

The above is a signal admission, by you, that atheism cannot offer a complete history of life without explaining how life arose from non-life without Divine or other intervention. Some atheists have tried to fudge the issue by postulating an earlier generation of beings from another star or galaxy that fired a brace of missiles hither and yon, one of which missiles crashed on earth and gave rise to all life hereon, including us. But that merely shoves the problem back another step--for how did this earlier generation come to be? I now learn that even Francis Crick had to abandon that theory, perhaps after too many people laughed at him for proposing it.--TerryH^Talk 10:01, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

Atheisms really isn't about abiogensis. And I always thought that religion wasn't about abiogenesis either. Atheism doesn't explain why we are able to ride a bicycle either, and neither does religion. And the much of mechanics of bicycling is also still a mystery. Many scientists are atheists, but that doesn't mean that atheism is science is atheism. As a note aside, Panspermia isn't quite dead, just earlier versions of it. But the whole panspermia discussion is kind of irrelevant. Not quite sure if the core of your religion is to explain unknown scientific facts, but its certainly not the core of atheism. The core of atheism is that doesn't belief in the existence of a deity. Full stop. If you want to have a deity to explain gaps in scientific knowledge away, you are (1) arguing for the "god of the gaps", and (2) actually not explaining anything scientific. Order 10:57, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Abiogenesis can only have had to happen in a Godless universe. Therefore, atheism requires abiogenesis in order to be tenable. So what happens? Evolutionists assume abiogenesis a priori. They also assume that all life arose out of one species of virus. That is what the textbooks said or implied when I was in high school and undergraduate college. That is, therefore, what was being taught in high school and college in my day. And that is what is still being taught in high school and college, by every account that I have seen.--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

• Abiogensis can also happen in a universe with a creator. atheistic evolution believes this.
• Atheism didn't came up to explain abiogensis, atheism arose because the the answers that religion gave to all kind of questions were considered disappointing, inconsistent, irrational, or circular. Of course, if you are literate in science it increases the odds that you are no longer satisfied with the religious explanations.

You were taught science is high-school, not atheism. New scientific finding can shows that a textbook is incorrect, because school textbooks do not contain internal infallible truth. And at some point these textbooks should be updated, although it might take some time. Sometimes it also easier to teach something that isn't quite right, like Newtonian mechanics, rather than start with the currently best theory of quantum mechanics. But that said, science textbooks can and should be changed if our knowledge changes, sure. Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

---

You have just admitted, by the way, that without abiogenesis, biological evolution is a concept with no warrant in reality. Now you want to talk of "artificial" evolution. Well, "artificial" implies an Artificer, does it not?--TerryH^Talk 10:09, 26 September 2007 (EDT)

That is why the creationist arguments are flawed. Since even if there is a creator, evolution would still happen. This is how the creator set up life. Whatever the creating cause might be. Arguing in contrast that the principle is impossible is a folly, since on principle it works. This is why theistic evolutionist and also IDers do not reject evolution, but say say that evolution is insufficient to explain everything. And one of the things that is currently unexplained is abiogenesis. Order 19:18, 26 September 2007 (EDT)

Have I got this straight? Even if God exists, He is Unnecessary? Remember that we do not even agree on what the word evolution connotes--because men like you insist on moving the goalpost every time men like us get close.

No, that is not what I said. I said even if he exists, and even if had made the first life, evolution will still happen. Remember, evolution is a principle that applies to certain self-replicating processes, and life is one of those. Life could have been differently, such that a creator would have to manufacture each and any new living being from scratch, but it happens to be the case that life self-replicates. I can't help it. I am not moving the goal post, the problem is that you don't seem to know what evolution entails a principle, and that abiogenisis is a singular event in the past. Order 00:58, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

The aitch-eeh-double-hockey-stick, that's not what you said. In any event, your continued assertion, without proof, that evolution is "a principle," evades the issue of why people tout evolution so loudly, and suppress creation. And to the extent that species change, they change only for the worse, not better. The Second Law of Thermodynamics tells how. The Bible tells why--because sin has come into the world. Therefore, evolution, by the new and watered-down definition you now stand by, is a consequence of sin.

• It is really almost exactly what I said. I said first "Since even if there is a creator, evolution would still happen", and later "even if he exists, (...) evolution will still happen".

• Unless you can show me one definition of the word evolution upon which all scientists, or even all proponents of the concept "evolution," agree, your sentence above is operationally meaningless.

Biological evolution is the change in the genepool from one generation to the other due to a stochastic process that involves mutation and selection. All scientists agree on that. And in computer science an mathematics you assume additionally that you have a self-replicated process, and that the genetic influence is linked to the frequency with which it appears in the next generation. And that definition has been fairly stable since the early 70s as well. Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

And how did the process begin? What started it? In fact, you haven't even made a showing about a self-replicating process.--TerryH^Talk 13:27, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

---

• Anyway. If you want proof that evolution a principle that applies also outside of biology , check out work on evolutionary and genetic algorithms. I mentioned this before.
• The Second Law of Thermodynamics doesn't apply, because life is not a closed system.

• I've heard that canard before. Better minds than either of us have already disproved it.--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Saying that you've heard it before doesn't prove that it not true. The second law really applies to closed systems. Or do you want to argue that life is a closed system? Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

That doesn't matter. You cannot divorce life from the rest of the universe. The universe is not merely closed; it is isolated. Abiogenesis would have been impossible under such a system. Life is too ordered, and too well-informed, for that.--TerryH^Talk 13:27, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

• To observe that the laws of evolution also apply outside of biology isn't watering down; it makes it stronger, because its more general. And sin doesn't appear anywhere in the definitions used to define evolution.

• Of course sin does not appear in any of the (ever-changing) definitions of evolution. Because they who write (and rewrite) the definitions reject the very concept of sin. Or rather, they define sin differently: sin, to them, is anything that stands in their way.--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

No, there were also people, Christians, who do accept notion of sin, who were also writing scientific definitions. Problem is that even they didn't have a use "sin" in their scientific definitions. Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

That's because, having accepted the notion of evolution as Darwin taught it and men like Ernst Haeckel put it forward, they had stood away from their faith. Just because a man calls himself a Christian does not mean that he well and truly is one.--TerryH^Talk 13:27, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

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I confidently predict that you will never, never explain abiogenesis. And I repeat: without it, your atheistic system falls to the ground.--TerryH^Talk 23:59, 26 September 2007 (EDT)

I can confidently predict that I will never explain abiogensis either. I am a computer scientist. And I can also confidently predict that I will never prove that evolution works as a mathematical principle. That has already been done in the last century. No need to do it all over again. Order 00:58, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

I do not accept that claim.--TerryH^Talk 10:01, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

You don't need to accept that claim, you can look up the proof. And it has been proven whether you like it or not. Order 10:57, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

It has not, because as I said above, no one has shown that these "algorithms" work in the wild.--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Since its all mathematics it applies to all self-replicating processes. If you want to show that it doesn't work in the wild, you have to show that there are active processes preventing it from happening. I haven't seen any argument by you that goes into this direction. You always argument that evolution is a random walk, and that is false. Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Excuse me, but you have not even shown anything about a self-replicating process. You have not defined that term, and this is the first that I have heard about any of this. And after learning about the fraud that Ernst Haeckel committed with his fudged embryo drawings, I am not going to accept anything at face value from an evolutionist without hard and fast corroboration. You're going to have to lay out your entire case, and perhaps the best place to do that is in an Essay.--TerryH^Talk 13:27, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

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But I wonder why atheism should fall over if science cannot explain abiogenesis. It is not a cornerstone of atheism. Atheism isn't about biology, even if Dawkins is a biologist. Order 02:28, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

Merely because, without abiogenesis, atheism cannot answer the question, "If there is no God, then where did we come from?"--TerryH^Talk 10:01, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

Atheism isn't about abiogensis, so they probably don't care much. Its up to science to find an explanation if they can. And the explanation that God did it, isn't much of an explanation either. Order 10:57, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

You admit, then, that atheism and materialistic "scientism" are closely allied. Atheism turns to what they call science--but which, again, I call materialistic scientism--to explain that without which atheism would fail. It has been doing that ever since Darwin. Without Darwin, there would have been no Marx--he who called religion "the opiate of the people."--TerryH^Talk 11:48, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

• There is an overlap in people between materialistic science and atheism. Sure, and the the more you know about science, the more likely is you reject religious explanations as insufficient. But hey are still different. As pointed out on this site, there are religious scientists, and I can add that there are atheists that aren't scientists.
• Marx and Darwin were contemporaries, Marx started writing 20 years before Darwin published his Origins. And that you don't like Marx is your problem; Marx was an atheists, but few atheists are Marx.
• And also scientism has to live with the fact that much in not explained, and it freely admits that it doesn't know everything. It is just that in scientism expects that humans will eventually figure everything out. I personally am skeptical about that hope. And as said before neither religion nor atheism came about to explain abiogensis. Jesus didn't came to earth to explain mitochondrial DNA. Order 22:24, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

• At least you admit that scientism confidently expects mankind to solve all the riddles. You have good reason to be skeptical. I'll save you the trouble with hoping: they'll never figure out how anything came about out of nothing, without Intelligent Help. How can the atheists hope to figure out that which could only have come about through the Intervention of Him Whom they deny?--TerryH^Talk 13:27, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

---

My crack at the King of England was implied at your pompous air: As a man having a medical degree, I can and do claim, with no small justice, that I know far more about the scientific method than you do.

Why don't we just get you a crown and get it over with?

Anyway, back to the point. Just because something cannot be readily explained right now (IE, the Big Bang, where did it come from?) doesn't mean there isn't a logical explanation for it. This is similar to the belief that the sun orbits the earth - there was no other logical explanation for it. When evidence emerged that this wasn't so, people were repressed by the forces of superstition (Religion)

The one last thing which science cannot adequately explain and which allows religion its last dying breath is that of the Big Bang. Human beings cannot get our heads around the concept of infinity... Its a natural reaction. You cannot say to me that there isn't a big teapot orbiting Jupiter. Therefore is it wise to say there is in fact a big teapot orbiting Jupiter? Is it wise to make this baseless claim, simply on my perilously unbacked claim that there is, in fact, a teapot orbiting Jupiter? perhaps someday when we advance the notion of space exploration we can then definately prove whether there is a teabag in Jupiter once and for all. But just because we cannot explain there isn't a teabag orbiting Jupiter right now, doesn't mean we should believe that there is a teabag orbiting Jupiter.

P.S- Whats all that rubbish about accountability about? We're just having a discussion. Chill. Graham 15:10, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

First of all, if anyone is being pompous, you are. You continue to bandy the phrase scientific method as if it were inherently superior to religion. And--pardon me, but I thought you knew what you were talking about, until you admitted that you are not even trained as a scientist. I, on the other hand, have been so trained. And in that sense, I know more about the scientific method than you can possibly know.

And second--you bring up the Big Bang as though that were a proved fact, too. Not only is it not proved, but it could not have happened as commonly described. Something did happen, six thousand years or so ago (by clocks and calendars on earth, that is)--but what that something was, did not conform to conventional descriptions of the Big Bang in any way, shape or form. So don't ask me to explain that which did not happen and could not have happened.

Finally, all this is beside the point. I have consistently asked you to provide a definition of the word science that allows you to claim that God either does not and did not exist, or else is Superfluous. You have persisted in, as far as I can tell, assuming the consequent--or rather what you hope is the consequent.

PS: The accountability I speak of is for all your actions, on-line and off-. I am accountable, too. So I recognized that Someone settled that account about two thousand years ago. Of course, part of recognizing anyone for settling your account is realizing that you have an account to settle...--TerryH^Talk 16:03, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

TerryH, Where did I say the Big Bang is a proven fact? I'm simply throwing idea's here... I don't know all the answers but maybe if we throw around enough we questions we might get an answer, together. The point of my argument was that just because we do not have a valid explanation for say, the Big Bang, doesn't mean that it isn't entirely possible. Kind of reminds me of a man called Gallileo all those years ago who said some crazy things...

By the way, I've calmed down. I had a cigarette. If you've any more questions just ask, and chill! Graham 16:22, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

You cited the Big Bang as the evidence that disproved creation. That could be true only if the Big Bang were a proved fact. Since it isn't, it can't disprove creation.

Neither does Galileo's experience invalidate creation. The full treatment of the Galileo affair is out-of-scope here. What is in scope is whether evolution, and all the things that evolution depends upon, are proved facts, or mere conjectures.--TerryH^Talk 22:49, 25 September 2007 (EDT)

Wrap up

Terry, this discussion has to many loose end to be meaningful. Also we are just repeating part of the entire evolution/atheism debate all over again. If we want to do that we should go to the appropriate articles.

My summary of where we stand right now is

• You believe that atheism has to explain everything, otherwise it falters. I disagree, and say that atheism can live alright with gaps in knowledge. Everybody has to live with the fact that there are more things that we don't know than things that we do know. Regardless of faith or the absence thereof.
• You think that the only alternative explanation of unknowns is "God". You disagree with my response that "God" isn't a good answer to the unsolved scientific questions.

I hope we can agree to disagree on this. Or did I forget something? Order 22:42, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

"No Entry For 'Liberal' "

Apparently an example of bias on Wiki is that it has no entry for "liberal" (it redirects to "liberalism"). One would note that the non-existent article on "conservative" redirects to "conservatism". It's common practice on Wikipedia to point directly to a philosophy rather than to its practitioners to avoid clutter. The liberal page, if it existed, would merely read as "one who practices the philosophy of liberalism. (See Liberalism)".

Why is this bias?Archibald 19:27, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

• It would not be a deceit if that is what they did. But they don't, do they? And how can you speak for one million editors and say that is how it would be? Or stay, for that matter. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 19:33, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

I'm also confused. Conservative, communist, fascist, libertarian, feminist, etc... all redirect to their philosophies, so how can it be said that this shows bias on Wikipedia's part? Besides, it looks like Wikipedia has actually changed it now and appears to include various definitions of liberal, including the articles Social Liberalism and Modern American Liberalism. Jelx 15:30, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

The term is "liberal". Wikipedia can try all it wants to redefine it, but Wikipedia is only discrediting itself. And in Wikipedia's silly new terminology, does it admit that liberals support taxpayer-funded abortion and censorship of prayer in the classroom? I doubt it. You can let us know.--Aschlafly 15:40, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Liberal has a lot of different meanings Aschlafly, depending on the time period and country of origin. Wikipedia isn't creating it's own list of words out of thin air. Go visit Wikipedia, type in liberal, and see the terms for yourself. While you're at it, go to the article Modern American Liberalism, which is on the liberal disam. page, and it lists many of the views of the liberals that you are thinking of. The article is here. Jelx 21:03, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

The Wikipedia entry you reference is a lie. It conceals how liberals support taxpayer-funded abortion and censorship of prayer in school, for example.--Aschlafly 21:08, 29 September 2007 (EDT)

Liberals are not united in their beliefs. The Wikipedia article on liberalism mentions that "liberalism generally opposes government regulation of literature, art, academics, gambling, sex, prostitution, abortion, birth control, terminal illness, alcohol, and cannabis and other controlled substances." How clear can you get? They're not being biased. You may wish that the article included more criticism toward liberals, and no doubt liberals would like the article on "Conservatism" to be more negative, but WIkipedia's internal processes smooth out the edges of personal opinion to keep both articles factual.

I know many liberals and while a portion support "taxpayer-funded abortion" and censorship of prayers, many do not (a small minority of my liberal friends would support prayer censorship of any religion). It is unbiased to report that liberal philosophy "generally supports" something. It would be equally unfair to attempt to attempt to portray conservatives as gun nuts or fascists because most are not. As a libertarian conservative, I would hate to be lumped in with the fringe weirdos within my philosophy.Archibald 23:50, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

"Wikipedia allows the use of B.C.E. instead of B.C. and C.E. instead of A.D."

Here is Wikipedia's policy:

"Both the BCE/CE era names and the BC/AD era names are acceptable, but be consistent within an article. Normally you should use plain numbers for years in the Common Era, but when events span the start of the Common Era, use AD or CE for the date at the end of the range (note that AD precedes the date and CE follows it)."

Much of the world has been using the so-called "Common Era" indicator for some time. This is the same reason that Wikipedia occasionally allows British spellings (i.e. colour or fibre) and use of the metric system in articles - hardly evidence of bias. A restriction of the usage of C.E. or B.C.E., on the other hand, would be Western-centric and biased.Archibald 19:27, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

• Archibald, your posting borders on the pedantic! How many articles, using AD or BC actually remain that way? Editors are constantly changing to the secular-progressive CE. --şŷŝôρ-₮K^{Ṣρёаќǃ} 19:35, 27 September 2007 (EDT)

New #1 - WP's CP entry

Maybe add a line or two of how several sysops (Ed Poor, Karajou (editing as an anonymous IP), Mr. Martinez were the ones I spotted on the fly) edited the article and often tried to add their own bias to it, but apparently never, ever touched that claim you mentioned (which has been in the article since March or April, btw.)? (I didn't check each and every edit in the long edit history, but if my claim about the no-touching is wrong, I'll be happy to concede the point as soon as somebody shows me the diff), meaning that they apparently saw nothing wrong with it.

And sourcing aside, how can you say that CP is not supportive of YEC when you support sysops like Conservative and others, who openly push YEC in key articles, making it look like the most likely alternative while merrily bashing "evolutionism" and related old-earth concepts? CP seems to go to great lengths to make all issues connected to an old Earth look like some wild theory with no proof at all. If you wish to prove me wrong, be my guest. This is just my impression after a good while of lurking and posting. --Jenkins 17:46, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

Your first paragraph, even if true, would not be a defense for Wikipedia, so it is irrelevant and I'll ignore it.

Your second paragraph fails to address the essence of Wikipedia's defamation as quoted in point 1: "Conservapedia is a wiki-based web encyclopedia project with the stated purpose of creating an encyclopedia ... supportive of ... Young Earth creationism."

It's not just that Wikipedia's statement is false. It is defamatory as it attempts to smear Conservapedia with a falsehood in front of Wikipedia's liberal audience. You are right that Wikipedia has featured that defamation for many months.--Aschlafly 18:02, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

The editing participation is important because you are portraying something as bias even though your sysops implicitly seemed to endorse it. You know how they say: "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing" - and your "good men" seemed to do nothing. As such, it is not so much me defending WP, but rather me pointing out that your most recent addition seems to be built on sand.

And what is Conservapedia's "stated purpose" then? I was not able to find anything that clearly defines its goals, at least not something that seems to be compatible with what I observe here (and that is pro-YEC and anti-atheism that goes well beyond the point of being "neutral to the facts").

Furthermore, looking at the site certainly does give the impression that CP supports YEC, regardless of what you state. If anything, at least think about that one.

However, I will drop the issue. Giving things a brief look, nobody ever managed to make you remove just one point from the list (again, if there are examples that prove me wrong, I'll be more than happy to admit my mistake). So I'm happy enough with the fact that you replied and the hope that you will maybe think about the perceived image of the site. You can have the last word if you please, I'll be off editing. :) --Jenkins 18:20, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

Bow out if you like, but Wikipedia's smear of Conservapedia is false and defamatory, and you seem unwilling to admit it. You defend Wikipedia's claim that Conservapedia has a certain "stated purpose," but then complain that you can't find any stated purpose at all. Wikipedia and its many lies and smears are not making the world a better place. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 18:29, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

My hopefully last comment in this section to reply to the words you put into my mouth. Never did I defend WP or stated that this is indeed CP's stated purpose. You also flat-out ignore any point I made that is not directly connected to the issue you focus on, which is incredibly sad.

I am willing to agree with you that YEC is not CP's stated purpose. However, you seem to be unable or unwilling to show me CP's stated purpose. Actions speak louder than words, and the actions of your sysops speak much louder than your claims of what CP does or does not support. You can look away if that makes you feel better, but it doesn't change the impression visitors get. --Jenkins 18:37, 30 September 2007 (EDT)

Jenkins, I didn't put any words in your mouth. And I don't have to provide a "stated purpose." Wikipedia lies about Conservapedia, and after a numerous postings here you still won't admit it. I can assure you that intelligent visitors here are quite happy with what they find, which is why we're growing every day. If you prefer Wikipedia's lies, suit yourself. Godspeed.--Aschlafly 20:56, 30 September 2007 (EDT)