Insert a Trite Metaphor for a Corral #59

Posted on February 26, 2007 in Roundup

Fair and balanced is not so apt a description for the new Conservapedia. Politically correct suits it more because its “facts” are politically determined. Some go so far as to call it a parody. Others sigh at its tired-old-anti-gay bias.

There’s bound to be controversy when Conservapedia-blinded students reach college and discover that they can’t cite it because it is an encyclopedia. What will happen when those good Christians youngsters that have lived protected lives enter a public college to find that the information given them from Conservapedia will not be allowed to be cited. Will Christian Persecution (which apparently doesn’t have a page yet) be a rallying cry?

What can you say when the Conservapedia entry for algebra fails to make any mention of the Arabic origin of the word or the discipline?

Liz provides a good review of how the minds behind Conservapedia work. Her reactions range from laughing at some of its entries (e.g. in one place Conservapedia claims that Christianity is the only religion with the concept of faith and then goes on to cite Islam as having a parallel tradition) to horror. It does not, for example, talk about the Holocaust at any great length nor does it want to say more about the Nazis other than show the red white and black flag of the broken cross.

Liz and Kathryn Cramer have also compiled an amusing list of examples of Wikipedia’s so-called liberal bias:

• Wikipedia allows the use of B.C.E. instead of B.C. and C.E. instead of A.D. The dates are based on the birth of [[Jesus]], so why pretend otherwise? Conservapedia is Christian-friendly and exposes the CE deception.
• The entry for the [[Renaissance]] in Wikipedia refuses to give enough credit to Christianity.
• Wikipedia often uses foreign spelling of words, even though most English speaking users are American. [snip] Conservapedia favors American spellings of words.
• Wikipedia has many entries on mathematical concepts, but lacks any entry on the basic concept of an [[elementary proof]]. Elementary proofs require a rigor lacking in many mathematical claims promoted on Wikipedia.
• Gossip is pervasive on Wikipedia. Many entries read like the National Enquirer. [snip]. Conservapedia avoids gossip and vulgarity, just as a true encyclopedia does.
• Edits to include facts against the theory of [[evolution]] are almost immediately censored. On Conservapedia, contributions that meet simple rules are respected to the maximum extent possible.
• The Wikipedia entry for the [[Piltdown Man]] omits many key facts, such as how it was taught in schools for an entire generation and how the dating methodology used by evolutionists is fraudulent.
• Wikipedia’s entry for the [[National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act]] (NCVIA) reads like an advertisement for vaccine manufacturers, including unsupported and implausible claims about vaccination.

If we were to “teach the controversy” as conservatives would undoubtably wish, then we would admit a great deal of faux information that is unattributed, unverified, and patently false. Should this not surprise us when the founder, Andrew Schlafly, is the son of Phyllis Schlafly, [[Phyllis Schlafly|a notorious right-wing apologist]] and pit bull? I like this citation from Andy bio: Mr. Schlafly ftequently files conservative briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court and appellate courts, and has also won a federal jury trial. But lost the appeal?

The [[culture wars]] continue. In the meantime, rest assured that I shall continue to link to [[Wikipedia]] as my primary source for unbiased information.

• It all ends in a muddle: The International Court of Justice rules that Serbia is not directly responsible for the Bosnian genocides but didn’t do enough to stop them. In the ruling, the president of the court, Judge Rosalyn Higgins, said: “The court finds that the acts of genocide at Srebrenica cannot be attributed to the respondent’s (Serbia) state organs.” However the court added that the leaders of Serbia failed to comply with its international obligation to prevent the killings and punish hose responsible. The court also rejected Bosnia’s claim for reparations. “Financial compensation is not the appropriate form of reparation,” the ruling said. And so we finish with a great big Huh? In a related story, the government of Cambodia has decided to leave remains of Killing Fields victims on display as a reminder of the genocide.
• Titanic Find or Hoax?: Director James Cameron claims that the tomb of Jesus has been discovered and that Our Lord had a son named Judah. Stay tuned for expert rebuttals and militant fundamentalist furor. And a boon for local residents: “It will mean our house prices will go up because Christians will want to live here,” one woman said. Personally, I suspect that scientific inquiry will refute the assertions. Genuine skeptics, I predict, will turn out to be the frantic believers’ best friends.
• Divide Over the Border: [[Jim Gilchrist]] who tried to be my congressman is filing a restraining order in an attempt to regain control of the [[The_Minuteman_Project_Inc.|Minutemen]] (pronounced my-noot-men). The rift, Gilchrist said, “could very well bring an end to the entire Minuteman Project. There are groups around the country with the name, but we are the most well known and the most powerful.” Gilchrist said he did nothing wrong. His opponents, he said, are motivated by “a greed for power and a false perception of an endless stream of money.” Is [[Fascism]] ever about anything else?
• New Hope: Mice suffering from [[Down’s Syndrome]] get smarter on drugs. After receiving once-daily doses of pentylenetetrazole, or PTZ, for 17 days, the mice could recognize objects and navigate mazes as well as normal mice did, researchers said. The improvements lasted up to two months after the drug was discontinued, according to the report in the journal Nature Neuroscience.
• Website: Arresting Images at The Smoking Gun.
• Family Ties: Is Al Sharpton related to Strom Thurmond? Pity Sharpton if he is.
• Tricks of the Trade: How do paleotologists determine the sex of a fossil?
• Culture Article: Record labels lose out as bands become brands in fierce market
• Academy Ah-wards: You know the so-called big details, but for me the major triumph was Pan’s Labyrinth receiving three Oscars. The magically realistic tale of a little girl coping with the brutality of Spanish Fascism should serve as a model for future forays into the fantasy field. Escape. It’s about escaping cruelty and violence, Stupid.

If you find any articles worthy of mention in these roundups, send the URL to gazissax at best dot com. And feel free to comment!