Forty-six percent of Americans believe that God created humans in their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years, according to a survey released by Gallup on Friday.
That number has remained unchanged for the past 30 years, since 1982, when Gallup first asked the question on creationism versus evolution. Thirty years ago, 44% of the people who responded said they believed that God created humans as we know them today – only a 2-point difference from 2012…
The second most common view is that humans evolved with God’s guidance – a view held by 32% of respondents. The view that humans evolved with no guidance from God was held by 15% of respondents…
The numbers also showed a tendency to follow party lines, with nearly 60% of Republicans identifying as creationists, while 41% of Democrats hold the same beliefs…
According to Gallup’s Frank Newport…”It would be hard to dispute that most scientists who study humans agree that the species evolved over millions of years, and that relatively few scientists believe that humans began in their current form only 10,000 years ago without the benefit of evolution,” writes Newport. “Thus, almost half of Americans today hold a belief … that is at odds with the preponderance of the scientific literature.”
Anyone surprised?
Too many people grew up watching The Flintstones.
When it comes to religious fanatics, don’t confuse them with facts, their minds are made up.
BTW, dinosaurs are not mentioned in the Bible, therefore, they did not exist.
The Bible does mention giants and angels and demons, therefore, they exist, or they did exist.
Actually the word dinosaur is somewhat new. When the King James version was written in 1611 they used the word dragon. And dragons are in the bible.
Also, keep in mind that the bible is not a complete history book….although there are clues. It is a book about salvation and plenty of “non relevant” stuff (if you will) is not in there.
A dragon is a dragon. A dinosaur is a dinosaur.
an idiot is an idiot
Unfortunately and idiot is not a dinosaur.
“Also, keep in mind that the bible is not a complete history book” Heresy you speak, you shall be burned at the stake.
There is a description in there of something that sounds like a large land-based dinosaur. It’s where we get the word behemoth from! In the ocean, there is also mention of leviathan. See the book of Job.
It’s certainly an interesting passage.
Before Sarah was a Mama Grizzly, she was a Mama T-Rex…
I guess that people don’t care.
It’s part of the mind control of religion. Being told they are weak, helpless sinners by their reverent spiritual leaders, people cling to what little hope they can get from elsewhere. Even if it’s an unproven myth that must be accepted whole-cloth and faithfully . This is especially effective in times that appear to be hopeless and they offer the only ‘light’ at the end of the tunnel.
I always knew corrupt politicians counted on the stupidity of the voters and this just proves it.
I thought the election and reelection of W. Bush proved it.
You thought Bush was bad,wait till these idiots elect Romney the corporate raider.
Obviously you have not been incorporated into the groupthink.
You are not a person.
If I were a Mormon,I’d be wearing my magic underwear and praying to my savior on the planet Kolob and voting for Romney come November.
I know I was created by God because I am perfect.
My eyes are perfectly near sighted.
Hmm, OK. So during the era when science was advanced the most (19th and 20th centuries), people held no religious beliefs whatsoever? yeah that’s worth a couple of nyuks.
You want to know what’s held up science education over the past 30 years? TV, video games and the Internet. Or put another way – time wasting DISTRACTIONS. Kids just need their asses kicked a bit, and educators need to spend more time focused on teaching useful things and less on simply keeping kids disciplined – that’s the parent’s job btw and we’re not doing a great job. Religion isn’t the issue.
Public schools can start with banning cell phones and smartphones in school.
Flawed study. They aren’t asking the same thing 30 years apart.
The 1982 question should have been “Did God create man in the
last 9970 years?”! Invalid results.
Got to love the way the title of this post says the population learned NOTHING about science OR evolution.
Eideard, I have a proposition.
I will send you $1.
In return you agree if we are ever in a lake of fire I can stand
on your shoulders for the first 50k years.
I have IBS.
Why only a dollar? Your faith is considered litter in some places.
Oh Lordie Lordie…. This is why aliens don’t visit us.
God advised ‘the others’ that earth is still too primitive and chances are good we’re gonna kill each other over who has the more peaceful religion.
We already have killed each other over who has the most peaceful religion.
We have learned nothing from it.
I suppose killing each other is a lengthy process.
During almost fifteen centuries the legal establishment of Christianity has been upon trial. What has been its fruits?
More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity, in both, superstition, bigotry, and persecution.
The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty.
–James Madson
“The advancement and diffusion of knowledge is the only guardian of true liberty.” – notice LIBERTY there. That is the key for interpretation. He didn’t say “kill religion”, he said educate to keep freedoms (including religion). That is where the society went wrong. Instead of tolerant treatment of religion, truly tolerant treatment – we got “freedom from religion” interpretation. That is in the root of the problem with education. If (and only if) BOTH religion and science are thought in the school system both can prosper independently and without affecting each other. Than we can have scientific view thought fully and without taint with religious aspects. Than we can have students understand religion and its views on creation separate from the science. However, you remove religion from education, it will leak into the unrelated subjects and you’ll have this result. Somewhat paradoxical but James haven’t limited “diffusion of knowledge” to one type of it. “Diffusion of knowledge” about religion is needed too or we are raising inevitable conflict.
As to Jesus of Nazareth, my opinion of whom you particularly desire, I think the system of Morals and his Religion, as he left them to us, the best the World ever saw or is likely to see; but I apprehend it has received various corrupting Changes; and I have, with most of the present Dissenters in England, some doubts as to his divinity.
–Benjamin Franklin
The freedom of thought and conscience are enshrined in the principles of the Constitution.
Therefore, freedom from religion is just as valid as freedom of religion.
“That is in the root of the problem with education. If (and only if) BOTH religion and science are thought [taught?] in the school system both can prosper independently and without affecting each other.”
This didn’t work in the middle ages, what makes you think it will work now?
“Instead of tolerant treatment of religion, truly tolerant treatment – we got “freedom from religion” interpretation.”
What exactly do you mean by “truly tolerant treatment” of religion? And which religion? You cannot be truly tolerant of all religions when virtually all religions say they are they only TRUE religion. And then throw the state (i.e. pandering politicians/blundering bureaucrats) into the mix and you have the worst of both world. Does “truly tolerant” mean don’t denigrate/speak ill of in school (which I believe is the current practice) or does it mean to softly proselytize?
It is as useless to argue with those who have renounced the use and authority of reason as to administer medication to the dead.
If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.
Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” thus building a wall of separation between church and State.
I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.
In every country and every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot, abetting his abuses in return for protection to his own. It is easier to acquire wealth and power by this combination than by deserving them, and to effect this, they have perverted the purest religion ever preached to man into mystery and jargon, unintelligible to all mankind, and therefore the safer for their purposes.
Reason and free inquiry are the only effective agents against error. Give a loose to them, they will support the true religion by bringing every false one to their tribunal, to the test of their investigation. They are the natural enemies of error and error only. Had not the Roman government permitted free inquiry, Christianity could never have been introduced. Had not free inquiry been indulged at the era of the Reformation, the corruption of Christianity could not have been purged away.
The truth is that the greatest enemies to the doctrines of Jesus are those calling themselves the expositors of them, who have perverted them for the structure of a system of fancy absolutely incomprehensible, and without any foundation in his genuine words. And the day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus, by the supreme being as his father in the womb of a virgin will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter. But we may hope that the dawn of reason and freedom of thought in these United States will do away with all this artificial scaffolding, and restore to us the primitive and genuine doctrines of this the most venerated reformer of human errors.
Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, any more than our opinions in physics or geometry.
Botany I rank with the most valuable sciences.
Error of opinion may be tolerated when reason is left free to combat it.
If the freedom of religion, guaranteed to us by law in theory, can ever rise in practice under the overbearing inquisition of public opinion, then and only then will truth prevail over fanaticism.
— Thomas Jefferson
I am not all concerned about issues of scientific ignorance about evolution or any belief in creationism. I can think of *no* policy decisions that disbelief in evolution would have any effect on.
However, there are numerous other areas where lack of scientific knowledge or even awareness have profound policy implications”
A few:
Vaccines
GM foods
Nuclear power
Chemophopbia
Americans are stupid.
I have some sympathy for the creationists and Intelligent Design folks after seeing the climate scientists compare skeptics to people who don’t believe in evolution. I have seen them dodge questions, say it doesn’t matter, use charts upside-down to prove record temperatures, etc, so I wonder if maybe I see the same thing if evolution is looked at critically.
God left oodles of dinosaur bones behind to give us a clue.
I can just see Her rolling her eyes thinking “what a bunch of fucking morons and good idea I placed them in the far suburbs of the Milky Way”
When people make statements based more on their effectiveness than their correctness, thats bull____.
http://courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2012306030005
People are idiots, when they aren’t stupid fuckin’ morons.
I would like that reflected in our elections, beyond the Repubes appealing to the shallow end of the gene pool every four years and then ignoring the low expectation genetic defectives until the next election.
If we want a truly representative gummint, we have to let the common man in there to represent.
Interesting survey. Are we also to conclude that countries such as Turkey, Israel, Lebanon are even dumber, since their religious views are even stronger then American’s? I don’t understand this survey, and it’s draw of conclusions, unless it is saying that ever country which has a strong religion following, are all defunct in learning. Why do people continue to forget the rest of the world, has stronger beliefs in religion then we American’s do?
I’d say nearly half of Americans don’t know jack about the Bible either. I’m inclined to doubt if they could name the continents, the seven seas, 40 of the fifty states, who the vice President is, who the secretary of state is, who the attorney general is, or the 8 planets in any order.
More people know who Snoopy is sleeping with.
Of course in their normal day to day life the things I listed that they are appallingly ignorant about don’t actually cause them many if any problems.
I’d say that your stance on evolution has almost no impact on anything else in your life including the size of your pay check.
It’s fess up time. When was the last time you needed to know what a gerund was?
Just a few minutes ago, actually.
I always knew snoopy was a bitch.
Snoopy is not a bitch… but his mother was.
Eight planets? Didn’t you hear? Pluto is back in! So now, it’s back to the following line up: (1)Mercury, (2)Venus, (3)Earth, (4)Mars, (5)Jupiter, (6)Saturn, (7)Uranus, (8)Neptune, and Pluto. That’s 9.
And not too long ago there was a 10th “Planet X.” But apparently, that turned out to be another asteroid in the Kuiper belt.
Care to guess how many hundreds of years of religious rule tried to suppress these facts that we now take so casually? Care to guess how many “heretics” had to die to prove it?!
(And some say the Bible is a “good book”. Ha! That’s a good one. Seems to me it’s been the primary instrument for evil oppression for hundreds of years.)
BTW, a gerund has nothing to do with biology. Anyone else care to answer?
Nothing has really happened in the last 30 years! 😉
”It would be hard to dispute that most scientists who study humans agree that the species evolved over millions of years…. //// I’d like to know how anyone could be called a scientist if they didn’t “believe” this. This prime anti-religious/god FACT is the heart and soul of most if not all science. Its cause and effect all the way back to the Big Bang affecting physics, biology–everything! Maybe just “math” is immune from the real world?
deowll legitimately notices: Of course in their normal day to day life the things I listed that they are appallingly ignorant about don’t actually cause them many if any problems. //// Thats problematic. When you value stupidity as your core value you get played by those who recognize it…. aka the Republican Party. Idiots thinking god protects the innocent allows these idiots to vote Puke and Teabags into office everywhere.
No–stupidity is a very damaging human condition. Best to cure it with edumacation.
…. and you know, just because “culturally” we don’t go out and riot in the streets at the drop of a insult, doesn’t mean we aren’t as involved in religion as much/more than other cultures. What a disgusting prospect: how to best measure the stupidity of a culture. Hours spent watching tv can’t be the only controlling variable.
Yea, verily.
Gosh, I dunno. Newton seemed to do OK with his wacky beliefs. I’m guessing the rest of us that are dragging the line will do OK as well.
The scary part is that you take personal offense with regard to the beliefs of others. You can either celebrate the freedom we have to believe what we want, or step in line behind your predecessors that executed millions in the name of the Marx. ‘Cause we all know that went over really well.
All of the countries that fought for Communi…..OK, atheis….. Well, N. Korea and Cuba seem to be doing pretty well. I hear Cuba has some pretty good cigars.
The theory of evolution wasn’t around at the time of Newton. There are a few (but only a few) reputable scientists how believe in creationism, but there are many, many (maybe most) who believe in a superior being and evolution.
Evolution is such a basic theory– not only for biology, but but also other fields like geology and astrology, that it is hard to see how a scientist in those disciplines could ignore it. It’s a little like calling yourself Christian, but not believing Jesus was physically resurrected. They are out there, just not real common.
This just shows why the US is going in the toilet. I am so glad that left and moved to a country with a future.
Well said.
As coincidence would have it, on “the other” tv with no sound I’m watching “Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader” and a very nice reasonable intelligent white woman about 25 had to get help on: “If the diameter of a circle is 4 inches, what is the radius?” and then just now: “In what country is the Giant Panda native?” and yet she is close to winning 100K.
How can I get on these game shows and stumble on “Who was Snooki’s roommate in Season One?” — Ha, ha.
Yep, sounds off because I’m trying to concentrate on this most excellent video clip on How the Universe came from Nothing. Not just Ted provides good videos, just google the subject of interest on You Tube–it gets better and better every 2-3 months.
I’m sure I’m not getting half of what is said and misunderstand the other half, but the language is pretty simple and non-technical. Blows my mind right around 30 minutes in as the explanations for how the shape of the universe and its weight can be measured, the role of theory evolving as measurements are made available. Truly a glory to behold.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7ImvlS8PLIo
Well, she dropped out at the 300K question and went home with 100K. “What country is also a continent?” /// Good thing she dropped as her answer was going to be “All of them” AFTER I think she recited all the continentes as I saw her fingers counting up to 7.
Still—100K.
Rats.
For 1 Million Jeff: What makes bobbo green with envy AND pissed off at the same time = = even before he hits a six pack?
I would have quit on that one as well. Was one of the choices none? The website Sporcle lists Australia not as a continent but as a part of Oceania.
bobbo, excellent video. Thanks for posting it. Good jokes. Inevitable conclusion for earth’s future in the cosmos as galaxies’ expansion exceeds the speed of light and they disappear (relativity hurts my brain)… “we will be lonely and ignorant, but dominant… and those of us who live in the United states are used to that.” (I guess that’s funnier to me because I’m Canadian eh.)
Er, I was referring to the video you posted titled “A Universe From Nothing” by Lawrence Krauss.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7ImvlS8PLIo
Yes, that was a good line. And how can anything be faster than light?…. as I understand it this “hyperinflation” is creating the space as it expands and so ….>>>>xxxxx nope, I still don’t get it. My brain just doesn’t work on those issues. Likewise with empty space having weight as the quantum particles come into and out of existence which is what “empty” means because it can be measured? wtf??? Along with–if universes are created when the zero net balance between positive and negative quantum particles gets out of balance, then a universe could come into existence. It would look like our universe if you were inside it–constantly expanding as ours is, but from the outside it would look like a dark hole collapsing? A DOUBLE WTF???
And there those guys are discussing this issues with confidence and humor, Einstein standing on the backs of others to develop General Relativity, while some guy just arm chair bs’ed his way into string theory.
Much more satisfying for some reason than the gibberish that goes for art appreciation or the Queen’s Silver Jubilee.
To each his own.
I forget who said it, but…
“The first step towards oblivion is the belief that it’s a step in the right direction.”
Any time someone starts talking to me about their beliefs I usually ask if they would care to show me their bare ass too. That way, I can hear them better!
Well Anon – what you have to do is more than look at assholes. Tear yourself away from that private avocation and look for……. FACTS…. instead.
From the linked video–Einstein didn’t make up General Relativity. He was working with prior and current theory all as revealed and supported by experimental results and confirmatory predicted observations.
Liberal economic theory is like that. You can approach experimental results by doing historical analysis. Inject a dollar at the bottom of society and see how much wealth is created. Then observe a different society or a different time and inject a dollar at the top and observe again how much wealth is created.
THEN when evaluating how to best serve a society on the notion of injecting a dollar somewhere, you can be liberal and look at the evidence, or you can be conservative and say you want to look at assholes.
Funny how it always works out that way.
I think the ideas of creationism and evolution are entirely compatible.
I’m not “for” creationism, as creationism draws a conclusion.
Meanwhile, the more science discovers the deep details of physics, biology and astronomy it is clear the universe is a damn complicated place. Nothing rules out the idea that a grand clockwork couldn’t have been set in motion by a cosmic scale intelligence.
Humanity has come a long, long way but we are in the infancy state of science and in the very early states of becoming a more advanced civilization. What we know and understand today is rather childish compared to what we will know in the future.
I’m pretty sure Apple created many of you here whether you know it or not. God Steve Jobs, now in Heaven (or Hell, works for me), is surely blessing you for taking up his gadgets. So praise to God Jobs.
hmeyers reverting to his religious jag says:
6/3/2012 at 7:30 pm
I think the ideas of creationism and evolution are entirely compatible. /// Only the religious think that as they are entirely self conscious at what a failure religion is so they try to hitch it to the wagon of science to confuse the issues as long as they can.
I’m not “for” creationism, as creationism draws a conclusion. /// and that makes them compatible how?
Meanwhile, the more science discovers the deep details of physics, biology and astronomy it is clear the universe is a damn complicated place. /// Yea verily, but both a beauty and a marvel to behold.
Nothing rules out the idea that a grand clockwork couldn’t have been set in motion by a cosmic scale intelligence. /// Making an analogy is fine and good. but the analogy is a method of explaining the truth, not the truth itself. Look at the words you use? There was first “nothing” then hot plasma then elemental particles, then matter, then elements, then compounds–its not until you get to compounds that you can build a clock or have an intelligence. Isn’t that beautiful and marvelous?
Humanity has come a long, long way but we are in the infancy state of science and in the very early states of becoming a more advanced civilization. What we know and understand today is rather childish compared to what we will know in the future. /// Yes, and those clinging to set dogma will never rise above the childish. Why do you illustrate this point so personally?
Bobbo, I don’t believe in religions. Nor in the opinions of man — science applied is the one and final arbitrator of truth.
That being said, properly applying science means you can not rule out possibilities on lack of evidence.
So … is it possible this universe is a simulation? I’m not saying this is likely, but science cannot rule this out.
Hence, if science cannot rule out we are not in a simulation there are many other things science cannot rule out.
A large body of evidence supports evolution and the big bang.
But what if the theory of panspermia is true? Life on Earth started very quickly (a few hundred million years after the Earth cooled).
If you try to use science to “absolutely” reject ideas on a basis where one is not applying the scientific method, no amount of posturing says one is doing so by applying science.
The priesthood have, in all ancient nations, nearly monopolized learning…. And, even since the Reformation, when or where has existed a Protestant or dissenting sect who would tolerate A FREE INQUIRY?
The blackest billingsgate, the most ungentlemanly insolence, the most yahooish brutality is patiently endured, countenanced, propagated, and applauded.
But touch a solemn truth in collision with a dogma of a sect, though capable of the clearest proof, and you will soon find you have disturbed a nest, and the hornets will swarm about your legs and hands, and fly into your face and eyes.
–John Adams
Whilst we assert a freedom to embrace, to profess, and to observe the Religion which we believe to be of divine origin, we cannot deny an equal freedom to choose minds who have not yet yielded to the evidence which has convinced us.
— James Madison
A morsel of genuine history is a thing so rare as to be always valuable.
Is uniformity attainable? Millions of innocent men, women, and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined, imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
What has been the effect of coercion? To make one half the world fools, and the other half hypocrites.
— Thomas Jefferson
Hmm, 30 years, huh? Isn’t that when Ronnie Raygun was in charge? Could he have started it? NAH? Ronnie was too smart to let our education system go down for today’s training system.
Liberals are always glorifying themselves because they think the Tuskegee experiments were a bad thing, even in the 90s it made newspaper headlines. Well how about the EPA conducting experiments with toxins on people now?
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/06/04/the-epas-unethical-pm2-5-air-pollution-experiments/
I was thinking about this the other day, and it occurred to me that there isn’t anything in evolution for living forever. Well, I am going to live forever. I just say so. As a result, I’ll go with the holy rollers. If they’re right and they live forever too or come back to life or whatever, I’ll be ready for them at work.
One other thing. If they’re right, will we still be having this discussion 5 billion eons from now? Come on Darwinians…you know what I’m talking about. If you all die and that’s all like you say, I guess not…