Cure for cancer? It turns out science isn't evil.

"The priests used to say that faith can move mountains, and nobody believed them. Today the scientists say that they can level mountains, and nobody doubts them." ~ Joseph Campbell

I swung by Lauren's blog the other day and saw an article announcing that we've cured the first cancer cell. Here's the thing though, we did it using technology that most religious people want banned - cloning. The thing is, while exit polls show that most religious people kicked and screamed over cloning before voting it down, I'll wager that virtually every one of them that contracts cancer will use this and every new life-saving technology weened from it - and that we'll never hear any mention about how mankind is playing god. Kinda funny how that works out.

You may recall recently that Ben Stein (star of EXPELLED, read my review of it here) made a comment about science that science geeks like myself found a little disheartening:

"…Love of God and compassion and empathy leads you to a very glorious place, and science leads you to killing people."

Is this discovery that so many believe to be diametric to god's will really leading us to killing people? Not at all. In fact, science like this has given us quite literally every single means of extending human life that we have. Medicine, clean water, abundant food - the list of how science makes our lives longer and more enjoyable is so long as to defy concise description.

The sad thing is that many of the people who will leap at the chance to use this newfound cure, as well as every other blessing of science, will still somehow agree with Stein that science is somehow evil. Can it be argued that anything but the unreason encouraged by religion is responsible for this insanity? Ever since its inception, religious certainty has slowed the progress of our race by encouraging us that make believe gets precedence over what makes sense. Every time, reality eventually wins and we move forward, yet the battles still must be fought.

Imagine what we could accomplish without regard for imaginary things like souls being a part of the equation?

"We would be 1,500 years ahead if it hadn't been for the church dragging science back by its coattails and burning our best minds at the stake." - Catherine Fahringer

-- JT