quote:
Originally posted by wj:
Penguin, I suspect you have a problem with understanding some simple concepts.
Red's initial was was basically a request for information. Moose's suggested link provides the information requested. He is not providing an argument or even information which could be considered to be contentious. Therefore it is not necessary for him to explain it (this would only reiterate the information available in the linked article) or give his own summary (he might omit some information which Red might need). Can you see the difference between citing a link for information or citing one as support for your argument?
The main problem for creationists presented by the geological cloumn, which was recognised by geologists as early as at least the 19th century, is that fossils were deposited in patterns, not randomly. This, and other data, allowed the geological column to be ordered in a consistent manner, oldest at the bottom etc. And the fossils showed that evolution of living organisms had occurred.
The actual age of the various layers was not important, except that they included evidence that they had formed over long periods of time; it was not critical if the timeframe was millions or billions of years. Radiometric dating has allowed the ages of various strata to be measured with great precision.
Perhaps, as a development of this thread, creationists might like to explain why the pattern of fossils is as they appear (eg. simple life forms only near the bottom, advanced vertebrates first appearing near the top, etc.).
i guess i am being ignorant today. anyway wouldnt those columns be subject to things like mass erosion and radiation. also would it be possible for the bones to sift downward in the ground into another layer? maybe at one point there was an underground river that shifted a few of the fossils around and changed the order, even though there would be evidence of this the underfround river might have been caved in on by dirt from the surface. the less advanced lifeforms might have lived underground and found more food where they were eventually fossilized. also god may have tried to create an earth suitable for man, failed to do so, destroyed all the life besides man and eden, and repeated this several times. maybe god had always intended man to only live in the garden of eden and not be outcast for eating the forbidden apples. he just didnt need to have an animal counterpart for man until man was cast out to live without the fruits of eden. maybe it was easy for humans at first but we kept sinning so he made life more and more difficult for humans as they made it more and more difficult for him to forgive them for all of their sins. just some ideas.
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