Wednesday 26 March 2008

Hide the children: creationist Ken Ham is coming to Blighty

Ken Ham, founder of Answers in Genesis and the Creation Museum in Kentucky, will be delivering several talks in the UK over the next month. You know what to do, my freethinking friends:
28-30 March Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales (Firm Foundations Creation Conference, a "residential conference" *shudder*)

31 March Liverpool

1 April Grimsby

2 April Bedford

3 April Leicester

4-5 April London (Creation Conference)

9-10 May Belfast (this is an important one, methinks, because it seems likely to attract proponents of the notorious Giant's Causeway Creation Committee)
I am going to try and attend the London conference. It is a ticketed event and so I have emailed the organisers (yes, using my real name) and will post an update here as soon as I know any more.

Hat tip to Marc.

Update: Tickets to the London event cost £5 for Friday, £10 for Saturday and £15 for both days. So, is it worth a fiver to confront Ken Ham in person? Hmmm.

Here is a part of the PDF I received in response to my ticket enquiry:

10 comments:

Joe Dunckley said...

Damn. I'd love to join you, but I just today booked the 4th off work to go on a jolly to Bristol.

I listened to a Ham lecture a few weeks ago, but have yet to post the review. It was interesting to hear his style. Contantly flipping back and forth between truth claims about the science, and ad hominen/appeals to consequence about what belief in evolution does. I wonder if the flock even noticed him doing it.

I did actually find myself agreeing with one of Ham's arguments: that if we tell people that it doesn't matter whether the first book of the bible is true or not, they will soon stop caring about the truth of the bible altogether. Of course, the difference is that Ham though that would be a bad thing...

Marc said...

the bedford talk is free. I'd rather pay the £10 for the train fare than give ham (or whoever is behind it) any money.

Jane said...

I think it's probably better not to go, wouldn't it be great if the halls he preaches to were empty while the streets outside thronged with people staying away from such mendacious nonsense.

drdrA said...

Oh don't go. Better to donate some time to teaching all the children you're hiding the basic tenets of biology!

I love your blog, by the way!

Lacy said...

ooh, I think you should go, absolutely. I like a varied viewpoint and a good argument. After all, we WERE on the speech team. I'm glad that Joe left his comment too except I disagree (politely). As a christian and a scientist I think the bible as a moral compass is imperative. Lace

Karen James said...

Well, I've decided not to go to the London one; I just can't bring myself to let Ken Ham have any of my money. I'd love to use the Belfast event as an excuse to get myself to Northern Ireland and visit the Giant's Causeway for some hiking (and creationist dueling). I'm still thinking about that one...

Regarding the Bible as a moral compass, I respectfully disagree with my good friend Lacy on this one. I think that our morality is part instinct, part social conditioning. The social conditioning can happen with or without the use of the Bible (or any other holy book) as a tool. This is demonstrated by the successful moral indoctrination of hundreds of millions children in non-religious (or differently religious) families throughout the world every year. In other words, "good morals" can be instilled successfully without the Bible (and can also fail to be instilled with the Bible), which is why I think the Bible itself is inert with respect to the development of morality in a person.

Anonymous said...

It's really easy to tell that Ken Ham is a young-earth creationist. He looks like he hasn't evolved in a couple million years. He is a douche bag liar.

Anonymous said...

Wow, for a group of people so sure of your science, you sure seem to be very afraid of this man. Although I do not agree with Mr. Ham, I would certainly be open to hearing his presentation. You people act as though you are Puritans being asked to watch porno. If you are SO open minded and so absolutely sure of your positions, what are you afraid of?

Karen James said...

Dear Anonymous,

1. If you had attended more carefully to this comment thread, you would have noticed that most of us were actually quite happy to go see Ham, but didn't not because we were "afraid" but because either a) he was charging an admission fee and we couldn't be bothered or b) it was in Northern Ireland.

2. You asked, "If you are SO open minded and so absolutely sure of your positions, what are you afraid of?" Well, I can't speak for the others, but for myself, as a scientist, being open minded means being UNSURE of one's position. It's the creationists who are "so absolutely sure of their position" and that's the problem. In science we do experiments, make predictions and test them, that sort of thing. The whole endeavour of science is predicated on open mindedness.

Karen

P.S. What do you mean by "you people"? That's an awfully loaded phrase, especially coming from someone signing him/herself as "anonymous".

Anonymous said...

Its funny how often evoulutionists wage battle against christians openly like this online. If this were a high school, you would all be the bullies. Just let us believe in what we do, were not going to change, and we wont succumb to your free-spirited, not sure whats going on way if life. We are sure of what we believe, you are not. Besides, you all change more than Mr Freakin Rogers, and were the ones who have no clue? You can throw the word science around all day, but it will never prove your view.