I remember seeing Ben Stein for the first time in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Who could forget the monotone deadpan teacher repeating "anyone... anyone... Bueller... Bueller".
And then there was "Win Ben Stein's Money", a campy television quiz show that demonstrated Ben's ability to stand toe-to-toe with the best of them. I sure would have liked to have seen him go up against Ken Jennings.
As a columnist for the Wall Street Journal and a speechwriter for President Nixon, Ben Stein has had a colorful life to be sure.
Now, he takes on the fanatical Darwinists in the movie, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed.
Unlike Michael Moore's so-called documentaries that are more fiction than fact, Ben Stein and the creators of Expelled have put together a film that exposes those who would seek to silence the voice of science in order to propogate their own religion.
Through a series of interviews with both Darwinists and proponents of Intelligent Design (ID), the film demonstrates that today's political correctness and blind following of evolution as fact is squashing the very scientific objectivity that it purports to follow.
We meet college professors and professional journalists who were summarily dismissed from their positions for even suggesting that Intelligent Design MAY be a theory worth considering.
We also meet dogmatic evolutionists whose prejudice for people of faith and pure hatred for God radiate from their very being. I found them to be quite sad. Not the least of these was author/pseudo-scientist Richard Dawkins, known for his best-seller The God Delusion.
When questioned by Stein about the first forms of life, the best Dawkins could do was to suggest that perhaps life on this planet was "seeded" by life from another place. Which, of course, begs the question of where the OTHER life came from.
Dawkins could not answer and was visibly uncomfortable.
The lengths people will go to deny God's existence is mind-boggling. Yet, I am not surprised.
Critics of the movie attack it for the campy old movies that are woven throughout, comparing Nazi Germany to today's suppression of the Intelligent Design discussion. Ben Stein has always been known for being fun and this film is no exception. And yet, there rings some truth to the comparisons made.
The audience in the theater applauded when this movie ended, and for the first time ever, I wanted to thank the management of the theater for running this film.
It's far more worthy of an Academy award then any of Moore's nonsense, but I guarantee you won't see it as this is certainly a movie that the left, atheists and evolutionists will want to silence. Sound familiar?
I fully expect some to come to this blog and rant. But the question remains... Where DID life come from?
Go see Expelled. Seeing that Hollywood produces nothing but crap these days, It is refreshing to go to the theater and actually be challenged to think.
It's Del.icio.us!
Furl It!
April 20, 2008 12:30 AM
Thanks so much for the honest review. We've been talking about the marketing campaign for Expelled in our blog (unpaid and no connection to the film makers) and I'm glad to see it's looking like a good start.
Cheers to you.
Ken
April 20, 2008 08:16 AM
Thank you!
I've been a Ben Stein fan for years and he's always made great sense (in a humorous way) whenever he philosophizes.
I look forward to the movie.
April 20, 2008 08:21 AM
Ben Stein is great! He offers a unique perspective that we do not often see and hear in the mainstream media. His books, observations and commentaries are intelligent, factual and humorous. I look forward to seeing Ben Stein's new movie!
April 20, 2008 05:08 PM
If you're really interested in reading the truth about the Richard Dawkins "life from another planet" quote, you should read what Richard Dawkins himself says about it.
Click here...
April 20, 2008 11:22 PM
No man knows definatively where life came from...not Ben Stien...not the evolutionists...not the bible...not anyone.
April 21, 2008 12:33 PM
I respect your opinion, sir. But "intelligent design" completely and utterly fails the testability requirement to be considered a science. For this reason (among many others), it should not be taught in public school science classes.
Let's just call ID what it is: a pseudoscience.
April 21, 2008 05:25 PM
Hi Joel,
(your "remember personal info" option is not working)
Nice review. It makes me wonder if you think we should allow Holocaust deniers access to free speech, too. There are a lot who would agree that I have tremendous respect for the freedom of speech but I also understand that the founding fathers of our country did not mean that all speech should be allowed under conditions where it could cause serious harm. The quintessential example is yelling "fire!" in a movie house.
The challenge we are facing is that technology is outpacing consciousness. When someone uploads something to YouTube, or "mails to their list", countless 1000s to millions are accessed in, relatively speaking, the blink of an eye. Parents, local elders, etc, have no defense against new and virulent strains of hatred or misinformation campaigns because current technology outpaces their ability to do so.
So there really is no more freedom of speech in the traditional sense. The one who gets to speak - most loudly and first - is the one who has mastered the technology first.
Just like it's said that "history goes to the victors", you can only imagine what the world would be like had Nazi Germany or Japan mastered nuclear weaponry first. So, while it's a very delicate line to walk, I am not carte blanche, under current times with current technologies, totally ok with just anything being said anywhere and at any time.
By the way, I'm just curious... did you write a blog when Imus got fired for saying Nappy Headed Hos on the radio? Or when Michael Richards was excoriated for saying "N***er" in a nightclub? Something just to say, "I think what these guys said was mean-spirited and obnoxioius but do they have the right to say it? Heck yes."
Another question is, "Are these intelligent design people suggesting ID may be worth considering during school hours and in violation of school curriculum and policy? Or are they being fired for mentioning it in a coffee shop or a local news interview?" Big difference...
Remember what I said about "technology outpacing consciousness" - freedom of speech implies a certain responsibility. Think of the ramifications otherwise - total chaos.
Sam
April 21, 2008 05:43 PM
THANK YOU JOEL!!!!!!!
When I first saw your mail I thought this might be a negative as I have not been following you long enough to know otherwise. My four children ages 16,18,23,25 and I, went to see the movie on Friday afternoon, 4/18, and my sons who do a Friday eve bible study, took their whole study group to watch it that evening and I was invited by another friend to go see it again tonight. Having said all that I have to add that I did not need to be convinced by Ben Stein because we have been in agreement with what the movie is about for a long time. It is interesting and frustrating at the same time that mainstream media will not make the connection between Hitler and evolution which I have been aware of for years, its not new info they just don't want to let people see the real outcome of evolution when it is carried out to its true end. Thanks again Joel!!!!
April 22, 2008 04:45 AM
The existence of life is an infinite cycle. If there WAS a beginning, you would need to ask "Who created the creator/creators?" Many people just wouldn't be able to get their heads around that simple fact.
I believe that both creationism and evolution are both flawed because they deny a certain level of existence between one another despite the fact that they obviously exist.
Anyway, I hope this movie doesn't support the existence of God because that would just end up being propoganda for one side.
As for the reactions to the movie, I'm sure that everyone will have their own opinion. But that's the wonderful diversity of life, isn't it?
April 22, 2008 04:48 PM
By the way, Joel, I've just watched some Dawkins videos... most notably his discussion with Lawrence Krauss. It led me to the following:
Open Letter to a victim of Ben Stein's lying propaganda
Would you care to share any thoughts on this?
Thanks,
Sam
April 23, 2008 12:25 PM
Rock on, Joel. I've taken a great interest in the "science" behind evolution in recent years.
I appreciate your willingness to take a risk by writing this blog. :O)
April 24, 2008 11:40 AM
I've been studying the science behind evolution and the old universe views for years. If anyone takes the time to do their own research they will see just how little evidence their is for either. Most of, what science call evidence, is based on many assumptions that can not be proven. There's plenty of evidence based on real science that can just as easily show that the earth is much much younger than what most scientist claim. Take the time and do a little research into the actual science. Read both sides and come to your own conclusion instead of just taking what science teaches at face value. For years scientist believed the earth was flat. The Bible has always said that it's round.
May 3, 2008 01:04 PM
I saw the movie and felt it brought up some very valid points. I was a faculty member at a research university for 30 years, and while my expertise wasn't in this area of study (it was in healthcare), I can say with firsthand experience that what is published is definitely skewed. I was very disappointed to learn that, given that one of the fundamental premises of science is open questioning.
I find it most interesting that there are some things that are "off limits" for questioning and debate. Even when some academics allow it and support the publishing of pros/cons of a given question, they are at risk of not being tenured, losing their job in SPITE of tenure, and being blackballed professionally.
I have concluded that biases in science, including Darwinism vs. ID, will continue to pervade in this material world, REGARDLESS of the evidence. Remember how long it took for the tobacco industry to be found guilty of covering up the negative results of nicotine...and how many whistleblowers were silenced in the meantime?
I appreciate Joel bringing this up, so as to encourage people to do their own research and not take for granted the opinions of others, even highly touted "scientists." As for the debate regarding Darwinism vs. ID, I feel ID is more substantiated than Darwinism, especially given what advances in technology have revealed over the years regarding genetics, molecular biology, etc.
May 14, 2008 01:48 PM
@Revanto-
You say that life is an infinite cycle. Allow me to pose a question to you.
If I promised to give you a million dollars after an infinite amount of time had passed, would you ever get the million dollars?
It's not hard to understand that no, you would never get the million dollars, because at no point in the future could we say "OK, it's been an infinite amount of time, give me the million dollars."
Thus, it is impossible for an infinite amount of time to have occurred before this moment right now. Therefore, time is finite. There HAD to be a beginning.
-Me