‘Creation Museum’ Demands Equal Airtime To Refute Scientific Facts In ‘Cosmos’ Series

I blame Bill Nye. Several weeks ago, Nye thought it’d be a fine idea to debate a well known creationist and founder of the Creation Museum, Ken Ham. On debate points and grasp of reality, Nye absolutely won the debate.

But ultimately, Ham was the real winner.

Not only did the debate send the loud but unspoken message that creationism was worthy of equal time with science but, it turns out, the debate was a huge money-maker for Ham’s ridiculous museum — inside which it’s okay to instruct children that the universe is 6,000 years old and that humans rode on the backs of tamed, domesticated dinosaurs. The debate also helped to raise much-needed funds to greenlight “Ark Park,” a theme park based around the fable of Noah’s Ark.

I’m sure Nye had the best of intentions. Perhaps he thought he could convince a few skeptical creationists about the reality of evolution, while reinforcing the validity of it with those of us in the choir who don’t need any convincing. That said, there are some things that are unworthy of equal time. Ken Ham’s ideas are fine in the context of a Sunday morning homily, but they don’t belong in science class. Nye, for all of his good intentions, invited creationism into his classroom.

And now, with Neil deGrasse Tyson’s reboot of the Cosmos miniseries airing every Sunday night on Fox, Ham and his organization believe they deserve equal time on television in order to balance the visibility of the purely scientific documentary series.

It’s possible that this would’ve occurred irrespective of whether Nye had debated Ham, but clearly the success of the debate for Ham and his ministry has emboldened them to do more.

On a program called The Janet Mefferd Show, a spokesman for the Creation Museum as well as Ham’s other outfit, “Answers in Genesis,” complained that his group deserves equal time with Cosmos.

Danny Faulkner told Mefferd, “Consideration of special Creation is definitely not open for discussion, it would seem.” Well, sure it does — in church — not as an equal or even valid counterpoint to facts proven through the scientific method, which are then peer-reviewed and agreed upon by almost unanimous consensus.

The host of the show doesn’t really care about the scientific consensus thing, saying, “Boy, but when you have so many scientists who simply do not accept Darwinian evolution, it seems to me that that might be something to throw in there, you know, the old, ‘some scientists say this, others disagree and think this,’ but that’s not even allowed.”

The percentage of scientists who disagree with evolution? One tenth of one percent — 0.1 percent. Once again we have no choice but to invoke the Lloyd Christmas from Dumb & Dumber: “So you’re telling me there’s a chance! Yeeeaaaah!”… READ MORE

By: Bob Cesca

Bob Cesca is the managing editor at The Daily Banter (www.thedailybanter.com) and a Huffington Post contributor since 2005. He's worked in journalism since 1988 as a print writer/editor, a radio news anchor, a digital media columnist/editor, a book author and blogger. He's the co-host of the Bubble Genius Bob & Chez Show podcast and a Thursday regular on the syndicated Stephanie Miller Show. He's appeared on numerous other radio shows including the John Phillips Show and Geraldo Rivera Show in Los Angeles. Bob has been a commentator/analyst on the BBC (TV and radio), MSNBC, Current TV, CNN and Sky News. Following him on Twitter: @bobcesca_go