Re: [asa] Explanatory filter

Hi Randy,

Interesting question. Problem is I can't personally isolate the
problem (it's not, I think, as obvious as one initially perceives).

One thought that occurs is the recognition that ANY video is an instance
of intelligent design and thus one need not debate the matter with
respects to any particular video.

My thought here is that any video requires a rather complex set of
recording, transfer, and playback devices - none of which could exist
without intelligent agency - and it seems to follow that ANY video
displays contingency, complexity, and specification as per the
Explanatory Filter's requirements for identifying design.

It seems to me that when the argument is framed in such terms then any
ambiguity in this particular instance evaporates. If one absents
intelligent design altogether, we wouldn't have a video to discuss in
the first place.

Against this background it seems to me that the question of whether this
particular video was edited is a secondary question, for it seems to
assume that had the bat fallen as we might expect, then the video shows
no evidence of intelligent agency. This seems to me an acceptable
assumption only if one wishes to propose that there just happen to be
things such as cameras which just happen to record baseball games, which
recordings just happen to capture the events most of interest, and etc.

Consequently, it seems to me that the issue in this particular instance
is not whether intelligent agency is present (it clearly is) but
another, altogether less complex question - viz; what is the probability
of a baseball bat coming to rest on its end vs. the probability of human
editing.

I'm sure there's more to be said on the matter.

Blessings,
Murray Hogg
Pastor, East Camberwell Baptist Church, Victoria, Australia
Post-Grad Student (MTh), Australian College of Theology

Randy Isaac wrote:
> How would we apply the explanatory filter to this video? Can we
> determine by probabilities whether it was edited? Or designed?
>
> http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1775904
>
> Randy

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