How can the presence of C12 make anything ireducibly complex?
From Behe's own definitiion of IC
found here quote:
Michael Behe's Original Definition:
A single system composed of several well-matched, interacting parts that contribute to the basic function of the system, wherein the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning. (Darwin's Black Box, 39)
it can clearly be seen that for a system to be ireducibly complex, the removal of
any one of its subsystems will cause the system to stp functioning.
You can't have a system that is ireducably complex
with respect to something. For such a thing to be possible would make everything everwhere, ireducably complex by definition since everything relies on something.
Ireducable complexity is
by Behe's own definition with respect to
everything.
Besides, as has already been pointed out, C12 is itself
not ireducably complex. You can make it in a reactor quite easily. In fact it is a byproduct of the irradiation of Be9 by a rather complex pathway. (I can probably give you the full path if you like.)
In theory you could replace all the C12 with C13 and the system would carry right on.
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