Canadian Creationism

With all the brouhaha over Kentucky’s Creation Museum, let’s not forget that Canada has its own blight on intelligence.

The Big Valley Creation Science Museum opened last Tuesday. But, unlike the Kentucky museum’s opening, no one really cared. It’s almost as if the museum’s owner wished there were protesters:

Owner Harry Nibourg had braced for demonstrators — as was the case when a similar museum opened in the United States — when he opened what he claims is Canada’s first museum dedicated to creationism, or scientific evidence that backs up a literal interpretation of the Bible.

But only a handful of media, visitors and residents milled about as a local politician in the western Canadian province of Alberta cut the ribbon.

So how many people showed up? A couple thousand? A couple hundred?

Try 20.

Harry Nibourg wasn’t sure what to expect when he opened Canada’s first permanent creationist museum to the public yesterday, so he asked volunteers to act as security guards just in case.

But there were no protesters or trouble, only about 20 people eager to see what all the fuss is about these days in Big Valley…

Incidentally, this museum cost $300,000. Most of that money came from Nibourg himself.

As for the politican who cut the ribbon, he was a town council president (a.k.a. reeve):

Earl Marshall, the local reeve, helped cut the museum’s ribbon yesterday, and told reporters he understood how even his presence at the opening could be controversial.

“When I was asked to be here, I was advised that maybe I shouldn’t come, even by Harry himself.”

However, Mr. Marshall said while he’s not a “religious man,” he wanted to support Mr. Nibourg. “I stick up for everybody’s rights … it’s a free nation the last time I looked.”

I understand sticking up for everyone’s rights. But why stick up for ignorance? I doubt the reeve would go to a KKK rally or a Flat-Earth seminar…

(Thanks to Ben for the link!)

[tags]atheist, atheism, Kentucky, Creation Museum, Big Valley Creation Science Museum, Harry Nibourg, Bible, creationism, evolution, Alberta, Earl Marshall[/tags]

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Kelly

Wow, I almost feel bad for the guy…almost. Maybe we should all make a pilgrimage up there to protest! It looks like a little house-$300,000?!?!
Darryl

Does he have a website?
Logos

the US , Turkey, Holland now Canada. The world is going to heck! Why bother to go on?
Richard Wade

For the laughs.
Richard Wade

Nibourg says, “Which faith fits the facts?”

More like which facts fit the faith.
Vincent

I just can’t stop laughing over “earl Marshall Reeve”. How many medieval english titles can we stick this guy with?
Mriana

You know, this is getting a bit pushy. Will they ever stop?
Darryl

Unless the entire planet takes leave of its senses sometime soon it is just a matter of time before these museums themselves will be learning opportunities for future students about how silly religion can make people.
Dysentery

Hi,

I’m from Edmonton, which is about 2 hours northeast of this amusement park. I just wanted to give you some information you may not be aware of that may make you chuckle. This creation “museum” is located about a half hour north of the Royal Tyrell Museum. This museum is a REAL museum and is world renowned for paleontological study. Many universities and paleontologists have operated out of here. It is located in the badlands of Alberta (they even made the area into Dinosaur provincial park!) which is one of the richest finds for fossils in the world. You can tour the museum and also hike the badlands and they even offer fossil hunting tours. I have been to the Tyrell a few times and it is a wonderful educational experience that is firmly rooted in evolution.

The fact that they chose to open this little shack near the Tyrell museum is laughable. It would be like opening a chapel outside of Dawkinsland. How many vistors do you think the chapel would get? The reason there is no fuss or protests about this is because nobody really cares. Nobody is going to visit. Up here people aren’t all that fired up over creationism. Of course I can’t speak for everyone but in my experience most people I’ve talked to around here don’t believe the six day literal genesis. This is oil country and there are a lot of geologists and scientists working here.

ps
I just remembered that very close to the Tyrell museum is the “world’s littlest chapel”. It is about 7 feet high and 10×6 feet. It has pews and everything. They don’t actually hold service there though. I’ll bet you in a year this chapel will get more visitors than the Big Valley creation museum.
Richard Wade

Hi Dysentery, thanks for the information. I have a friend in Kelowna, BC who thinks like us. It’s nice to know that there are still mostly sane people living north of the “Christian Nation.” I’ve heard of the Tyrell Museum and I’d like to see it some day. Don’t think I’ll be able to make it to Big Valley though. Darn.

That’s an odd name for yourself. I had amoebic dysentery once. Caught it in Beverly Hills. Thought I was gonna die.
Mike C

BTW, I thought this article might encourage you guys. Not everyone is jumping on the Creationism bandwagon apparently.
Karen M. Gray

I live in Maryland but I am amused to admit that I was born in Big Valley, AB and still have friends and relatives in the area as well as ancestors in historic cemetaries nearby. I’ve found that the general level of scientific understanding in Canada is as low as in the USA and that most creationists are characterized by their ignorance of science–but not all. I’ll be back briefly this summer (’08) and will visit this “museum” as well as the Royal Tyrell Museum of Paleontology–the best such museum I’ve ever toured. What I’m wondering is how much of what is in this little “museum” represents ignorance of the science, how much reflects a selective blindness to evidence that contradicts someone’s dogma, and how much is due to simple dishonesty. I have a doctorate in philosophy of religion and I’ve lectured on the range of creationist beliefs from those of extremely sophisticated theistic scientists down the spectrum to that of a man I sat beside on a flight recently who believed the earth was 6,000 years old. When I meet creationists, I’m always interested in where on the spectrum they belong. A question is: where does this “museum” position itself? Almost certainly, being the work of one person, it will be ideosyncratic–representing his understanding but contrary to that of others who are elsewhere on the created-cosmos spectrum. I’ve learned, however, not to presume what kind of creationist someone is until I probe their actual beliefs if possible. Incidentally, I call myself a “nontheist” as it usually opens the door to discussion and almost always allows an opportunity to explain nontheistic understandings in ways that “atheist” does not. Our own confidence in our knowledge and understandings can often function as a dogmatism that contributes to dangerous human divisions and alienations. It’s hard to communicate with others whose beliefs are not just different but incompatible–but we can hardly allow ourselves to simply become isolated in our own–inevitably fallible and incomplete–belief systems. Anyway, that’s my perspective FWIW.
tyler b

If you actually toured the Kenucky Creation Museum you would actually see they have real facts and evidence backing up Creationism. I encourage you to really study the other side of these arguments and try not to be narrow-minded. It really is cool how it all fits together and it is NOT in a mythical way. There is more evidence for Creation you can study for yourself….you could read an “Answers” book (edited by Ken Ham) or other book or visit answersingenesis.org. Creationists are NOT anti-science. We enjoy it and use the same evidence and facts you do. Please study up….especially the whole story behind the Christian Bible, like the 7 C’s of God’s eternal plan and the facts of Jesus Christ. it could save you. Now, i dont have good internet access so i may not be able to reply but i can try. Thanks for reading,

-Tyler
Matthew Currie

We’re Canadians. We politely ignore the ridiculous. 🙂
J.S.P

I went there a few years ago, it’s incredibly small; about the size of a living room and kitchen. Their evidence included a “fossilized” teddy bear; which was not actually fossilized, it was placed under a water fall in China and was just coated in minerals. It was essentially a muddy stuffed animal.

They had pictures of cave drawings that resembled dinosaurs, which proves nothing.

There was also a little plaque that claimed that when you review fossils of trilobites it showed that they had remained unchanged for the time they existed; an argument which could be proven false by Google in about 10 seconds.