Re: open letter by Pigliucci

Keith B Miller (kbmill@ksu.ksu.edu)
Sat, 14 Feb 1998 14:56:42 -0600

>The open letter by Massimo Pigliucci, a counterattack, a reaction to
>the change in the NABT statement on evolution, is very very revealing.
>I know that many ASA members redacted a letter to the NABT suggesting
>changes in the language as did Dr. Platinga and others. What is
>interesting to me is that Dr. Pigliucci's target is not ASA or Dr.
>Platinga, but Dr. P.E. Johnson, the currently "moving" target. Without
>taking merit away for ASA and others that intervened in this matter,
>it is obvious that the attack of Johnson et al. on Naturalistic
>Philosophy is the one most "worthy" of blame (and shame) for the
>change in the NABT's position, at least in Mr. Pigliucci's eyes. I
>know that Dr. Johnson et al.'s work is seen with disfavor by most of
>the participants of this list, but who can deny that they are getting
>the heat for standing against materialism?

In his letter, Pigliucci essentially agrees with Johnson and says his
evaluation of evolutionary science is correct! That is the very reason
that many of us are displeased with the approach taken by johnson and
others. Johnson accepts (or atleast appears to accept) the scientific
philosophy and theological assumptions of the atheists. If the position of
Pigliucci is untenable, then so is that of Johnson. They both hold
"Darwinian evolution" (by which Johnson seems to mean a gapless common
descent) and creation to be irreconcilable worldviews.

Keith

Keith B. Miller
Department of Geology
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
kbmill@ksu.ksu.edu
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~kbmill/