Peanut Butter Proves Evolution Can Never Happen?

zizoudane10 · 03-17-13, 01:27 PM

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Peanut_butter_argument

The peanut butter argument (also known as reductio ad arachidem hypogaeam) in favor of intelligent design states that, as life does not evolve spontaneously in sealed jars of peanut butter, it is absurd to assume it evolved spontaneously on the primordial Earth. For some reason creationists feel that this bit of vague tomfoolery, along with a teleological argument involving bananas,[1] is worthy of the name "the atheist's nightmare" — though the possibility that any atheist has ever lost any sleep over it seems remote. Really, the only way this argument could cause nightmares is in how traumatically bad an argument it is.

Read, learn, understand.

Mr. Win · 03-17-13, 01:33 PM

He says we “perform” that “experiment” every time we open a new jar of peanut butter, but we know that life can be smaller than the eye can see. The “new life” could certainly be there, it’s just not visible. On this same note, if there happened to be new life and we ingested it, then that “new life” would also have to put up a fight against our digestive system. If it makes it past our entire GI tract without being destroyed or absorbed into our bodies, then it would be eliminated as fecal matter. Again, the same people who aren’t taking a microscope to every bit of the peanut butter certainly won’t take a microscope to their every stool.
In short, there could be new life, science just tells us that the process doesn’t work that way, and casual observation is not proof of the negative.

Kermit · 03-17-13, 01:45 PM

Evolution makes a lot more sense than some guy building a gigantic boat and gathering up animals from all over the world and having them agree to not only travel on the boat, but also to not eat each other despite being on each other's menu.

Bostongambler · 03-17-13, 04:25 PM

Nothing makes sense to me.

LordVodka · 03-17-13, 05:55 PM

Holy crap! is that a clip from the Onion? I was expecting that argument to be a joke but they really use that?

TheCentaur · 03-17-13, 09:50 PM

The irony is this has nothing to do with evolution, they are talking about the origin of life. Unreal

TheMoneyShot · 03-17-13, 11:40 PM

I thought they were going to open up a jar of jelly next.

Scrappy Do · 03-17-13, 11:43 PM

Originally posted by TheMoneyShot

I thought they were going to open up a jar of jelly next.

You know when ya got that crazy one.. slicker than a rainy night in texas. pb would slow it down :0

Uprise · 03-17-13, 11:57 PM

EVOLUTION NOT BEING TRUE +2500 ODDS WHOS WITH ME LOCK OF THE CENTURY?

Jimmy Proffett · 03-18-13, 12:09 AM

I encountered new life one time. You have to open a jar of Jif though. Skippy just doesn't get the job done.