All Consuming : themojo

Why I recommend "Defeating Darwinism by Opening Minds"

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Tue, 14 Mar 2006 14:03:12 GMT

by Phillip E. Johnson

note that the book isn’t ‘defeating darwin’ but ‘defeating darwinism.’ johnson’s case is against philosophical naturalism, not against evolution per se. in fact, he makes several comments in the book that seem to suggest that evolution is something he’s friendly to—just not the standard ‘unguided, mindless’ version.

written for laypeople; so the good news is that it’s very readable. the bad news is that there are several claims he makes that, while they may be correct, are definitely controversial and debatable. he just doesn’t take the time or go into the detail necessary to defend some of those claims, which is unfortunate but hopefully intentional.

the bottom line is that philosophical naturalism is an assumption, not an incontrovertible fact. and if you buy philosophical naturalism, the case for a creator-~~regardless of what mechanism is used to bring about creation~~-is closed from the outset.

johnson is arguing that a) this assumption needs to be admitted and unmasked and b) it’s probably not such a good assumption.

decent, but not his best (rated 3 stars)

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 01:37:25 GMT

Mr. Paradise

by Elmore Leonard

leonard does a spectacular job of dialogue, and that was the case here. but the storyline was just so-so. it’s an okay book, but i enjoyed ‘get shorty’ and ‘be cool’ more.

Why I recommend "The Pelican Brief"

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Sun, 19 Feb 2006 23:14:27 GMT

The Pelican Brief

by John Grisham

my favorite grisham novel!

formulaic, but really entertaining (rated 4 stars)

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Sun, 19 Feb 2006 23:13:20 GMT

State of Fear

by Michael Crichton

crichton has a strong propensity for preaching in his books, and many (most?) of his characters end up really one-dimensional. that’s definitely the case in ‘state of fear.’

but i learned a ton (as with all his books). it was very well researched. and above all it was very entertaining, which was precisely what i needed as a welcome break to plato and logic.

a story to make you believe in god?

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Sun, 19 Feb 2006 23:06:38 GMT

Life of Pi

by Yann Martel

that’s the promise with which the book opens. it had the exact opposite effect on me.

to martel’s defense, it is an incredibly well-written book, but it was seriously depressing. i trudged through the last 100 pages or so just so i could say i had finished it.

Why I recommend "Garden State"

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 14:19:49 GMT

Garden State

by Various Artists

favorite movie soundtrack ever. very well put together, and it introduced me to half a dozen bands i’d never listened to before.

best book i've ever read (rated 5 stars)

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 02:36:11 GMT

The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life In God

by Dallas Willard

ever. ever ever. read it three times. changed my life. caused me to see the world in a completely different way.

keep in mind—this is not light reading, but it’s unbelievably rich.

sa::tm

glad i read it, but . . .

nobody@allconsuming.net (themojo) — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 02:34:28 GMT

The Basic Works of Aristotle

by Aristotle

it was horrifically boring. the nichomachean ethics are the biggest bright spot, but 90% of this was mind-numbing.

glad to say i’ve read it, but that’s about it.

sa::tm