Moose,
Just a small, but important, editorial adjustment, to:
But I say it is a fact that the universe, the earth, and the nature of life on earth has changed down through time. That's evolution. Evolution is a fact.
Insert the words, "a part of" between "That's" and "evolution," and "That part of" before "Evolution...."
Evolution is the theory of mechanism, whatever else Gould might think. Darwin was quite specific about this, putting it into the title of his statement: natural selection, as opposed to artificial selection. Some of Darwin's insights, that many things took a long time, involved a "selective" process, descendency, inherited traits---really very valuable for the times. But it was bad science to make such a radical change in the accepted theory of the day, that the God, Jehovah, that most people were then crediting with the origin of biologic diversity, could be left out of the picture entirely. That men, supposedly made in the image of this God, created biologic diversity through artificial selection, only justified the new hypothesis that they were reflecting their Maker's way of working, that God, also, created through artificial selection.
Facts, as Reagan realized, are theories that have become so plausible, so dependable in making confirmable predictions, that we can use them to effectively solve practical problems. As the Nazi's tried to do with evolution. The Mennonites, correcting Darwin's and Hitler's mistakes, are having much greater success with the "artificial selection" version of the theory. Slowly, slowly, just appeal to the great Artificial Selector in the heavens. Then what you see as the "master race" will peacefully emerge, will grow in numbers to populate the world, and see it ruled in peace, love, and prosperity. A vast improvement on the "Great Awakening" non-Darwinian type of believers, who kept, and keep wanting to snap-snap take over and change the world, in six days.
Stephen
Edited by Adminnemooseus, : Off-topic banner.