Pharyngula::When a talking dinosaur says it, you have to accept it

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Wednesday, January 26, 2005

When a talking dinosaur says it, you have to accept it

PZ Myers • 31 Comments (last page)

The terse and easily spelled A mentioned this wonderful and oh-so-true webcomic in the comments, and I had to promote it:

It's so obvious, you need a goofy cartoon dinosaur to draw attention to it, I guess.

Trackback url: http://pharyngula.org/index/trackback/1850/2tvwXfBy/

Comments:

#14374: — 01/26 at 03:16 AM
Pastabagel has an interesting comment about the division of science and religion from the perspective of someone who doesn't really care. Well, I thought it was interesting.

#14375: — 01/26 at 04:20 AM
"Science is presented as merely an opposing viewpoint. (Oh, and by the way, PARDON ME WHILE I'M CRUSHING YOUR HOUSE.)"

<sarcasm> Gee, what a nice dinosaur. </sarcasm>

#14379: Orac — 01/26 at 05:44 AM
I love it.

Sadly, it's all too true...

#14394: — 01/26 at 09:08 AM

Oh, and by the way, PARDON ME WHILE I’M CRUSHING YOUR HOUSE... Gee, what a nice dinosaur.

Aw, come on 386sx. Give T-Rex a break.

He's only doing what God put him here to do...

...punish us for our sins!

Once in a while you get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right.

-Jerry Garcia

#14395: Andrew — 01/26 at 09:16 AM
Speaking of being punished for sins, I thought that the pharyngula community might be interested to know that esteemed commenter on these very pages Mr Paul Harris gave my son a set of Noah's Ark-themed play stickers yesterday for his second birthday. He claims it was a mistake, but I'm not so sure. Where's your Pharyngular cred now, Mr H? (oh, and thanks btw - Toby loves them).

#14396: PaulH — 01/26 at 09:25 AM
{Hangs head in shame}

In my defense, I think Noah's ark is a fun story about an improbable number of animals squishing onto a boat. Don't believe a word of it, even allegorically, of course.

Anyway, it was Noah's Ark or lots of hearts saying "kiss me" and "email me", which didn't seem Toby's thing so much.

#14397: — 01/26 at 10:08 AM
But wait, this proves that dinosaurs were alive during the time of log cabins and little blue cars.

#14405: Hank Fox — 01/26 at 11:21 AM
I work for a newspaper. And I see this type of "balance" all too often.

On a happier note, one of our main columnists, a feisty guy who takes on the local police and other government follies in fairly blunt language, recently discovered the local creationists thanks to a series of letters-to-the-editor they were shotgunning at us, and he's had three columns already over the past month saying point-blank what a bunch of nutcases they are. I'll bet the subject will never catch hold here, as long as he's on the job.

FYI, all of you, Darwin's birthday is coming up on Feb. 12. There's a neat site, http://www.darwinday.org/home/index.html , which is coordinating a global celebration of his 200th birthday, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of The Origin of Species, in the year 2009.

It would be a real kick to all get together on that day and sing along to MC Hawking's < http://www.mchawking.com/ > righteous "Fuck the Creationists."

#14406: — 01/26 at 11:44 AM
We could meet in Morris to sing, but I hear there is a rumored nuclear bomb threat there, or a Shriners convention ... or a big snowstorm, I can remember which, but it is something bad.

#14410: — 01/26 at 12:31 PM

We could meet in Morris to sing, but I hear there is a rumored nuclear bomb threat there...

If only we had tortured and murdered more people, maybe we could have thwarted such an attack.

Live and learn, I guess.

Once in a while you get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right.

-Jerry Garcia

#14412: PZ Myers — 01/26 at 12:59 PM
I have a party at my house every year for Darwin's birthday. We get a cake and ice cream and everything -- everyone is welcome to stop by.

Even better, though, this year we're having a big party at my place the Friday before, with all of the campus faculty invited, and anyone in the community who wants to show up, and of course any pharynguloids are also invited. I'm making my Biodiversity Jambalaya (how many phyla can you fit in a pot?) and there will be much general rambunctiousness.

I have the complete MC Hawking discography on iTunes. I suppose I could assemble a playlist with all the songs that mention evolution in them...

PZ Myers
Division of Science and Math
University of Minnesota, Morris

#14415: — 01/26 at 01:58 PM
I wonder how many evolution-themed songs there are. We should write a few.

#14416: — 01/26 at 02:04 PM
But wait, this proves that dinosaurs were alive during the time of log cabins and little blue cars.

Chuckle of the day. Thanks, Desert Donkey.

#14417: — 01/26 at 02:08 PM
For several years I taught a course with the improbable title
"Extraterrestrial Life". Every now and then one of my students would
submit original lyrics (not original tunes) about life, the universe, and
everything. I must have gotten about a dozen evolution themed songs.
Unfortunately, they didn't leave Texas with me.

#14419: PZ Myers — 01/26 at 02:19 PM
I shudder to mention Dr Chordate.

PZ Myers
Division of Science and Math
University of Minnesota, Morris

#14420: coturnix — 01/26 at 02:40 PM
When I get home I'll dig through my library - I know I have an old book of biological poetry somewhere. Perhaps I should post the most overtly evolutionary poems....

And yes, Dr.Chordate is the best!!!!

#14421: coturnix — 01/26 at 02:44 PM
It sounds like this, but I'll have to check at home:

http://www.alibris.com/search/search.cfm?qwork=4596802&ptit=Nature smiles in verse%2C a collection of bi%2Dillogical poems&pauth=Weimer%2C Bernal Robinson&pisbn=&pbest=5%2E95&pbestnew=1000000%2E00&pqty=7&pqtynew=0&matches=7&qsort=r

#14422: Chris Clarke — 01/26 at 02:59 PM
Hey PZ, have you ever tossed any cnidarians in that jambalaya pot?

"I do not think we should antagonize the religious when it is not warranted, though I think we should be willing to do so whenever it is.”
-- Glen Davidson

#14423: PZ Myers — 01/26 at 03:08 PM
No...I'd think that they'd just dissolve and add little but a faintly salty taste. I've never eaten a cnidarian, at least not intentionally...have you?

PZ Myers
Division of Science and Math
University of Minnesota, Morris

#14425: — 01/26 at 03:12 PM
When a talking dinosaur says it, you have to accept it

I totally agree. Rrawrr.

Rrawr!

#14426: — 01/26 at 03:30 PM
In Chinese grocery stores, you can get dried jellyfish as a snack. It's good -- it's nicely chewy, and mostly tastes of sugar and salt, but has a faint flavor all its own.

#14427: Chris Clarke — 01/26 at 03:55 PM
I married into a Cantonese-American family about 15 years ago, and have thus eaten jellyfish more times than I can count. Vasha's right: it's good stuff. But that sugar/salt is a marinade of some sort: jellyfish's innate flavor is extremely subtle. Texture is something like a noodle: chewy enough to provide resistance to the teeth, but only once. Eating jellyfish sounds way more strange than it is in reality, and in my experience the little cnidarians are usually served as a nest holding something far more ooky and expensive. Duck tongues, to mention one recent example at an in-laws' dinner.

Now echinoderms... THOSE are challenging. I like sea urchin roe, and can force myself to eat sea cucumber while smiling weakly. But as y'all know by now, I'm weird.

"I do not think we should antagonize the religious when it is not warranted, though I think we should be willing to do so whenever it is.”
-- Glen Davidson

#14428: PZ Myers — 01/26 at 04:13 PM
Really? I've had fresh sea cucumber, scooped up straight out of the ocean and cooked right there on the deck, and it was marvelous stuff.

PZ Myers
Division of Science and Math
University of Minnesota, Morris

#14429: coturnix — 01/26 at 04:16 PM
At one point we were contemplating opening a restaurant named "Origin of Species" and have as many species as possible on the menu, cnidarians included. Of course, the bulk would have been various kinds of fish, poultry, gamebirds and mammals, several molluscs, a few crustaceans and perhaps a few insects... You can probably understand why we gave up on this idea....