The new (and oddly fitting) face of creationism
Remember "Cy," the creepy yet mesmerizing cyclopean kitten in the news a few months back that lived a mere day with its rare and dramatic disorder?
Well, as if fate and the genetic lottery weren't cruel enough to this feeble feline in life, her mortal remains have been bought up by a group of creationists to exhibit as an agenda-advancing curiosity in their museum and traveling freak show.
In a move that has to be some kind of logical desecration, the "Lost World Museum" purchased Cy’s earthly container for an undisclosed sum to support the notion that "positive" mutations don’t exist; therefore evolution is wrong; therefore creationism is correct.
Genesis, they purport, is a more believable explanation for mutants like Cy than random genetics, what with the "6,000 years of degradation and sin" backing it up and tainting God's pristine gene pool. (Never mind why a just and rational God would create creatures with the potential to suffer horrible malformations that lead to miserable lives and rapid deaths but not the potential to enjoy beneficial variation in the first place, or why worshiping such a God would bring comfort or logical coherence to life.)
Still, in true American spirit, what better way to spread the good word than by charging thrill-seekers to come gawk at grotesque corpses in jars? They're also selling "informational postcards" for a mere $5 (plus $2 shipping) featuring two never-before-published photos of Cy while she was alive, which they advise you to pre-order immediately for yourself, plus your friends and family – as if fundamentalist Christianity doesn't already command ample material for giving children nightmares.
And a swift ruler-whacking to you, Associated Press, for using the phrase "theory of creationism" in your lead – there is no such thing, because scientific theories are by definition testable and falsifiable.
But whatever name it goes by, I think we need some kind of legislation protecting against ideological necrophilia by religious fanatics. As tempted as I am to write my representatives with that suggestion, that might land me a spot on some master list I would prefer to avoid.
Well, as if fate and the genetic lottery weren't cruel enough to this feeble feline in life, her mortal remains have been bought up by a group of creationists to exhibit as an agenda-advancing curiosity in their museum and traveling freak show.
In a move that has to be some kind of logical desecration, the "Lost World Museum" purchased Cy’s earthly container for an undisclosed sum to support the notion that "positive" mutations don’t exist; therefore evolution is wrong; therefore creationism is correct.
Genesis, they purport, is a more believable explanation for mutants like Cy than random genetics, what with the "6,000 years of degradation and sin" backing it up and tainting God's pristine gene pool. (Never mind why a just and rational God would create creatures with the potential to suffer horrible malformations that lead to miserable lives and rapid deaths but not the potential to enjoy beneficial variation in the first place, or why worshiping such a God would bring comfort or logical coherence to life.)
Still, in true American spirit, what better way to spread the good word than by charging thrill-seekers to come gawk at grotesque corpses in jars? They're also selling "informational postcards" for a mere $5 (plus $2 shipping) featuring two never-before-published photos of Cy while she was alive, which they advise you to pre-order immediately for yourself, plus your friends and family – as if fundamentalist Christianity doesn't already command ample material for giving children nightmares.
And a swift ruler-whacking to you, Associated Press, for using the phrase "theory of creationism" in your lead – there is no such thing, because scientific theories are by definition testable and falsifiable.
But whatever name it goes by, I think we need some kind of legislation protecting against ideological necrophilia by religious fanatics. As tempted as I am to write my representatives with that suggestion, that might land me a spot on some master list I would prefer to avoid.
posted by Holly at 6:19 PM
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