Many Christians and other theists seem fond of saying that the universe itself proclaims the existence of an intelligent creator.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” is how Psalm 19:1 puts it.

Sorry – can’t see it. Never could. Seems like a case of Argument by Assertion to me – and maybe of the same sort of projected anthropomorphism that’s responsible for the tendency to see faces in the clouds.

Much more obvious to me are the things I come across in my morning newspaper nearly every day that seem to proclaim the dangers of religion and the non-existence of an intelligent creator.

Here are two examples from my latest copy of the Columbus Dispatch:

—– Madoff Pleads Guilty, Goes Directly To Jail, But Where’s The Money? (Larry Neumeister and Tom Hays/The Associated Press)

NEW YORK: Bernard Madoff’s victims got what they wanted to see, but not what they wanted to hear.

Saying he was “deeply sorry and ashamed,” the disgraced financier pleaded guilty yesterday to perhaps the biggest swindle in Wall Street history and was led off in handcuffs to begin serving a sentence expected to be up to 150 years in prison.

While some bilked investors were delighted by the spectacle, the bigger questions were left unanswered: What happened to all the money, people’s life savings, their college tuition, as much as $65 billion in all? Who helped him pull off the fraud that turned a well-respected investment professional into a symbol of Wall Street greed amid the economic meltdown?…

Madoff’s thousands of victims included individuals, trusts, pension funds, hedge funds and nonprofit organizations. The scheme wiped out people’s fortunes, ruined charities, and apparently pushed at least two investors to commit suicide….

Investors big and small were swindled, from Florida retirees to celebrities such as Steven Spielberg, actor Kevin Bacon and Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax. Many of Madoff’s victims were Jews and Jewish charities, which trusted in Madoff because he is Jewish. Those cheated included Nobel Peace Prize winner and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel.…

Get it? Religion, group identification based on religion, and blind faith/trust inspired by religion helped to turn even very smart people into suckers for a scammer. It’s the type of story I’ve come across over and over again in the 8+ years I’ve been posting here. (See the entry I posted on Oct 5, 2008 and the related links for more details.) Conversely, I’ve yet to come across even one story about how the skepticism and critical thinking skills of atheists have been used to defraud them.

—– New Study Doesn’t Sway Surgeons (Misti Crane/The Columbus Dispatch)

Performing appendectomies through multiple small incisions rather than the traditional “open” method is not worth the added cost in most cases, according to a new analysis.

The large national study doesn’t sit well with many surgeons who have embraced laparoscopic surgeries for a wide range of procedures and think of them as beneficial to patients.

The study didn’t look at pain, cosmetic advantages or how quickly appendectomy patients returned to normal activity. Surgeons critical of the research say the last item is extremely important.

In general, they say, people who have less-invasive appendectomies are back to work a week sooner….

Doctors perform about 250,000 appendectomies in the United States each year.…

That’s more than 600 appendectomies per day, day in and day out, including Christmas and Easter (at a cost of more than $5000 per operation) just in the US alone (which contains less than 5% of the world’s human population).
Imagine the anxiety felt by all these patients and their families.
Imagine the pain and inconvenience.
All because of a small vestigial body part we don’t need!
The next time theists prattle on and on about the perfectly designed universe, please ask them to reconcile that wispy claim with these hard facts.

BONUS THIRD TIDBIT (for those special few who just can’t get enough!):

—– New Worship Center Will Accommodate Growth (Religion Briefs/The Columbus Dispatch; March 13)

Pickerington Church of the Nazarene, 11775 Pickerington Rd., has opened a $1.9 million, 12,000-square-foot worship center that seats up to 650 people….

There’s another $2900-per-seat that Christians are lavishing on themselves rather than feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, or healing the sick.

In sharp contrast to this, all the humanist and atheist groups I’ve been part of have held their regular meetings in public spaces where seating was free.

Just one more example of what’s possible when you start thinking outside the gOd-box and don’t need a secure place to store your hymnals, organs, crosses, choir robes, stained glass, altars, etc.

*Looking over your shoulder in hopes of finding some other eye-opening stories in YOUR newspaper*