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Author Topic:   Vestigial Organs?
Kitsune
Member (Idle past 4300 days)
Posts: 788
From: Leicester, UK
Joined: 09-16-2007


Message 12 of 109 (554500)
04-08-2010 3:41 PM
Reply to: Message 7 by rockondon
04-08-2010 12:52 PM


When people keep their appendix, they often die when it bursts. If I was to adopt the creationist perspective, I would have to believe that God gave us the appendix because He likes to kill people.
A creationist might, in turn, argue that it makes no sense for humans to "keep" the appendix when it so easily gets inflamed and bursts -- surely natural selection should have ensured that it disappeared entirely? (It's rare in my experience for a creationist to know enough about evolution to construct such an argument but it's a hypothetical possibility.) Interestingly, appendicitis is largely a disease of westernised countries. It occurs when waste matter gets lodged internally in the area. People who use the squatting position for elimination seem not to get this problem. Just one of those strange little facts in life, though it could make a big difference to some. Source
My favourite vestigial organs to debate with creationists about are ones that no longer serve a purpose, such as legs on whales and snakes. Watch them try to come up with reasons why those legs exist, it can truly be comical.
Edited by Kitsune, : No reason given.

This message is a reply to:
 Message 7 by rockondon, posted 04-08-2010 12:52 PM rockondon has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 26 by Jumped Up Chimpanzee, posted 04-09-2010 10:39 AM Kitsune has not replied

  
Kitsune
Member (Idle past 4300 days)
Posts: 788
From: Leicester, UK
Joined: 09-16-2007


Message 37 of 109 (554771)
04-10-2010 2:48 AM
Reply to: Message 36 by bluescat48
04-10-2010 1:25 AM


Creationist misinformation
AIG says something similar:
Creationists understand that there has been degeneration and mutation since the Fall. We also expect that there would be a significant loss of information for many genes. The loss of genes for organs that do not significantly impact survival in a negative way could be quite prevalent. Thus, for the creationist, there should be no problem with an organ or structure in man that has lost some functionality. However, another possibility is that we have just not determined or understood the function properly yet.
Seems odd, doesn't it, that the Fall would cause God's perfect creatures to "degenerate" and mutate. Is everything on a path to oblivion, according to them? There seems to be a (typical) assumption here that all mutations are deleterious. Notice also (as has been observed early in this thread) the belief that vestigial organs must have no useful function.
Another interesting source for similar is Conservapedia. Among its claims:
Even assuming it could be established that the ancestor of snakes today had legs, creationists have no problem in principle with loss of features through natural processes. Development of leglessness is not evidence for molecules-to-man evolution, which requires addition of new genetic information. Loss of legs could be achieved through degeneration of the DNA information sequences that specify leg development
Gosh it's a lucky thing that this "degeneration of DNA information sequences" only happened to snakes -- sounds like it could happen to any poor creature! And boy howdy, leglessness does not prove evolution -- a devastating well-supported factually-based argument.
However, this argument ignores the counter argument of the fall, where it is understood that current conditions are not the way God originally designed, and that vestigial structures are, if anything, evidence for devolution, not evolution
Yet another comment about the magical Fall initiating "degeneration," and curiously again, no evidence for this whatsoever.
Edited by Kitsune, : No reason given.
Edited by Kitsune, : No reason given.

This message is a reply to:
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