Ben Stein’s anti-science stance continues. In March he opined that scientists "were the people in Germany telling Hitler that it was a good idea to kill all the Jews." Now he’s giving us the following gem of wisdom:
[T]he last time any of my relatives saw scientists telling them what to do they were telling them to go to the showers to get gassed ... that was horrifying beyond words, and that’s where science -- in my opinion, this is just an opinion -- that’s where science leads you. ...Love of God and compassion and empathy leads you to a very glorious place, and science leads you to killing people.
No comment necessary. This is what counts for a public intellectual in the minds of some in this country. Sad.
[Hat tip to Larry Moran]
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I was arguing just the other day that a head couldn't go that far up an ass, but Ben seems to have proven me wrong. I'll admit it: I was wrong.
So, does that mean that Hitler was just following orders from the scientists?
What's really strange is that this is supposed to show that (certain) scientific theories are false (right?). Even if this obviously false thing were true, it is irrelevant to whether the theories are true or not. Really bizarre.
Try to comprehend Stein's comment in contrast to the passage at the end of Jacob Bronowski's "The Ascent of Man". The video of it, which can now be found on YouTube:
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mIfatdNqBA
.
is chilling and moving beyond belief. When Bronowski says
"... it was done by arrogance,
it was done by dogma,
it was done by ignorance..."
I have to wonder if Stein would even recognize his own argument aimed right back at him.
So, before the emergence of modern science people didn't kill each other. All those stories about being burned at stake or nailed to a cross are fabrications. In the middle ages life was just Glorious.
No, back before science people killed other people but they did it lovingly in order to save them immortal souls.