SpenniesConservapedia vs Sanity
March 2nd 2007 15:10
Time to have another go at religion.
It's like the heathen's confession time.
Anyway, I knew it wouldn't be long before some anal Christian right-wing conservative bible-loving group would attack freedom of information. This week, evangelical Christians in the US (where else) have taken it upon themselves to form an anti-Wikipedia. Namely, Conservapedia.
[link].
Before you hurt yourself laughing too much, read on. Conservapedia is a website founded by a group of US religion activists who claim that they're fed up with being refused in their attempts to edit Wikipedia articles.
[excerpt from article above]
"I've tried editing Wikipedia, and found that the biased editors who dominate it censor or change facts to suit their views," Andy Schlafly, the founder of Conservapedia, told the Guardian. "In one case my factual edits were removed within 60 seconds - so editing Wikipedia is no longer a viable approach."
Hmm, I wonder why Andy. Let's take a look.
Wikipedia's entry on 'Dinosaurs' says:
"Vertebrate animals that dominated terrestrial ecosystems for over 160m years, first appearing approximately 230million years ago."
Conservapedia's entry on 'Dinosaurs' says:
"They are mentioned in numerous places throughout the Good Book. For example, the behemoth in Job and the leviathan in Isaiah are almost certainly references to dinosaurs."
Mmm...can't argue with logic like that. Shit, this stuff must be true. Read on.
Wikipedia's entry on 'US Democratic party' says:
"The party advocates civil liberties, social freedoms, equal rights, equal opportunity, fiscal responsibility, and a free enterprise system tempered by government intervention."
Conservapedia's entry on 'US Democratic party' says:
"The Democrat voting record reveals a true agenda of cowering to terrorism, treasonous
anti-Americanism, and contempt for America's founding principles."
Wow, that's highly objective and free of bias.
Well Andy, no fucking wonder Wikipedia's editors won't let you edit any Wikipedia articles. If it was up to you paleontology wouldn't exist and we'd all be Republicans.
Andy and co. make the claim that Wikipedia is anti-Christian and anti-American. Well, at least they've got that part right. Wikipedia is based on fact and freedom of information. I can't think of anything more anti-Christian and anti-American than those two things. Andy also uses this line in one of his sentences: 'facts against the theory of evolution'. I'm sorry? I don't know where you studied science Andy, if at all, but facts are facts, unmistakeable, concrete and without degree. There is fact and there is non-fact. While there are many facts SUPPORTING the theory of evolution, there are currently no facts disproving it. And no, the IDEA (not fact) that everything appears to have an intricate 'design' doesn't count.
Andy then moves to reveal that Conservapedia was initially deisgned as a home-schooling kit for children. The day that Conservapedia becomes any kind of educational aid, in any school, anywhere in the world, is the day we know that intelligent people have lost out. Conservapedia, like Intelligent Design, is another mask - it's untruth taught as truth, it's opinion taught as fact, it's ideology taught as lifestyle. And what makes this whole thing even sadder is that it's targeting the one group in society who are defenceless. Children have the inherent right to be taught everything they can possibly be taught, and then allowed to make their own choices about what they believe.
Finally, Conservapedia calls itself an 'alternative' to Wikipedia. This, again, doesn't make sense. Wikipedia has no alternative, it cannot possibly have because it's a free information, user-generated, user-edited site. It's an encyclopaedia for fuck's sake, how can it have an alternative? Will we soon see the Christian Alternative Dictionary on our bookstore shelves? Christ I hope not.
It's like the heathen's confession time.
Anyway, I knew it wouldn't be long before some anal Christian right-wing conservative bible-loving group would attack freedom of information. This week, evangelical Christians in the US (where else) have taken it upon themselves to form an anti-Wikipedia. Namely, Conservapedia.
[link].
Before you hurt yourself laughing too much, read on. Conservapedia is a website founded by a group of US religion activists who claim that they're fed up with being refused in their attempts to edit Wikipedia articles.
[excerpt from article above]
"I've tried editing Wikipedia, and found that the biased editors who dominate it censor or change facts to suit their views," Andy Schlafly, the founder of Conservapedia, told the Guardian. "In one case my factual edits were removed within 60 seconds - so editing Wikipedia is no longer a viable approach."
Hmm, I wonder why Andy. Let's take a look.
Wikipedia's entry on 'Dinosaurs' says:
"Vertebrate animals that dominated terrestrial ecosystems for over 160m years, first appearing approximately 230million years ago."
Conservapedia's entry on 'Dinosaurs' says:
"They are mentioned in numerous places throughout the Good Book. For example, the behemoth in Job and the leviathan in Isaiah are almost certainly references to dinosaurs."
Mmm...can't argue with logic like that. Shit, this stuff must be true. Read on.
Wikipedia's entry on 'US Democratic party' says:
"The party advocates civil liberties, social freedoms, equal rights, equal opportunity, fiscal responsibility, and a free enterprise system tempered by government intervention."
Conservapedia's entry on 'US Democratic party' says:
"The Democrat voting record reveals a true agenda of cowering to terrorism, treasonous
anti-Americanism, and contempt for America's founding principles."
Wow, that's highly objective and free of bias.
Well Andy, no fucking wonder Wikipedia's editors won't let you edit any Wikipedia articles. If it was up to you paleontology wouldn't exist and we'd all be Republicans.
Andy and co. make the claim that Wikipedia is anti-Christian and anti-American. Well, at least they've got that part right. Wikipedia is based on fact and freedom of information. I can't think of anything more anti-Christian and anti-American than those two things. Andy also uses this line in one of his sentences: 'facts against the theory of evolution'. I'm sorry? I don't know where you studied science Andy, if at all, but facts are facts, unmistakeable, concrete and without degree. There is fact and there is non-fact. While there are many facts SUPPORTING the theory of evolution, there are currently no facts disproving it. And no, the IDEA (not fact) that everything appears to have an intricate 'design' doesn't count.
Andy then moves to reveal that Conservapedia was initially deisgned as a home-schooling kit for children. The day that Conservapedia becomes any kind of educational aid, in any school, anywhere in the world, is the day we know that intelligent people have lost out. Conservapedia, like Intelligent Design, is another mask - it's untruth taught as truth, it's opinion taught as fact, it's ideology taught as lifestyle. And what makes this whole thing even sadder is that it's targeting the one group in society who are defenceless. Children have the inherent right to be taught everything they can possibly be taught, and then allowed to make their own choices about what they believe.
Finally, Conservapedia calls itself an 'alternative' to Wikipedia. This, again, doesn't make sense. Wikipedia has no alternative, it cannot possibly have because it's a free information, user-generated, user-edited site. It's an encyclopaedia for fuck's sake, how can it have an alternative? Will we soon see the Christian Alternative Dictionary on our bookstore shelves? Christ I hope not.
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Comment by David
I've decided to set up my own website:
Radicapedia.
Everything on it will be false. It will be full of lies and absolute bullshit.
No editing will be allowed whatsoever.
It will contain the following entry:
Conservapedia: A violent PC game popular among US Christians where bibilical figures are all dinosaurs, and you get to sit in the back seat of Fred Flinstone's car with an AK47, and go Drive-By Dinosaur shooting in the Holy Land. (Very popular in Muslim countries).
It'll probably become quite popular with those seeking the truth. *
David ...
Nothing said, what a waste
(Dissident - Pearl Jam) ...
Comment by scholia
As the sort of Christian who made the effort to learn greek to read the classics AND the New Testament and who has no problems with evolution this sort of behaviour by "conservative" christians continuously appalls me!
Thanks SOOO NOT you neocon ninnies for making the rest of us look stupid!
By the way if anyone wants to read a good book about evolution and intelligent design that discusses the flaws in both look up an author called Joan Roughgarden!
Comment by scholia
As the sort of Christian who made the effort to learn greek to read the classics AND the New Testament and who has no problems with evolution this sort of behaviour by "conservative" christians continuously appalls me!
Thanks SOOO NOT you neocon ninnies for making the rest of us look stupid!
By the way if anyone wants to read a good book about evolution and intelligent design that discusses the flaws in both look up an author called Joan Roughgarden!
Comment by Brenton
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