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Conservatives are smart to be skeptical of Darwinism

Michael Shermer rehearses in Scientific American the increasingly common argument that Christian conservatives should embrace Darwinism. A well known opponent of religion, he insists that the "theory of evolution provides a scientific foundation for the core values shared by most Christians and conservatives." He doesn't realize that once Christians accept the "scientific foundations" of their beliefs, the religious origins become meaningless, responds Carson Holloway.

Read the Scientific American article here.

What does the Pope think about evolution?

What is the Pope's position on evolution? Like his predecessor, Benedict XVI regards evolution as "more than just a theory." But his real concern is the transformation of Darwinian science into a moral philosophy. The Pope is right to be worried, says Carson Holloway. Darwinism may tell us a lot about biology, but it can't replace religion as a source of meaning and moral law. Unfortunately, too many evolution enthusiasts think it can.

National Catholic Reporter journalist John L. Allen Jr outlines Pope Benedict XVI's position on evolution here.

Why do we like music? Darwinists can't explain it.

Several Darwinian scientists are exploring the universal power of music, reports the Boston Globe, but their explanations come up short. Music, some argue, evolved as a way for males to attract females. It can never be an approach to transcendent beauty or another noble pursuit. Herein lies the problem with Darwinian thought, says professor Carson Holloway, author of The Right Darwin: Religion, Evolution, and the Future of Democracy.

Read the Boston Globe article here.

Study links raunchy lyrics to sex

Kids who listen to songs about sex are more likely to have sex, warns a new study published by Pediatrics. But all the attention on lyrics is covering a much deeper issue, says Carson Holloway. The author of All Shook Up: Music, Passion, and Politics offers a compelling explanation of what drives the industry to ever more extreme levels of sex and violence. Most critics and admirers of pop and rock remain oblivious to the influential power of the music itself, but Holloway explains why we must start taking music seriously.

Read the article here.

Learn more about All Shook Up.

Dawkin's selfish genes

Everyone knows Richard Dawkins is a good scientist. But he fails miserably as a public intellectual, says Carson Holloway at National Review Online

The scientist is concerned above all with the truth, with simply seeing things as they are, regardless of any other interests or concerns. The job of the public intellectual is not so simple. As an intellectual, he is certainly concerned with the truth as it is discovered by his intellect. Yet he is also concerned with the public things, that is, with the common good, and therefore with the well-being and needs of his fellow citizens. And while the truth is assuredly not in principle hostile to human well-being, neither is every truth unproblematically consistent with human well-being in every instance.

Dawkins, however, appears to be utterly indifferent to the spiritual and emotional difficulties that his writings cause for many of his readers.

Do conservatives rock?

In response to John J Miller's widely-read articles on the top 100 conservative rock songs, Carson Holloway remarks:

The very quest for conservative rock, it seems to me, is one that a conservative should eschew . . . we may well suspect that rock fosters a kind of emotivism and even irrationalism that is at its base hostile to conservatism. It offers a fundamental miseducation of the soul and therefore tends to produce citizens who are ill-equipped to conserve anything worthy of our humanity.

A book for everyone

The American Enterprise says Carson Holloway's new book, The Right Darwin, will appeal to liberals and conservatives who are tired of the ideological debate over Darwinism. Finally, something we all can agree on:

Although proponents of the new Darwinian conservatism strenuously attempt to prove the universal morality that Darwinism supposedly renders, Holloway contends that any human being of any ideological persuasion should see the insufficiency of Darwinism in providing any sort of moral grounding. Holloway says Darwinism understands morality as that which is “natural.” For Darwinism, what makes one feel good is natural. Therefore, what makes one feel good is moral. Acting in one’s self-interest also follows suit as “natural” and therefore moral. Clearly, problems arise here. A stable and flourishing polity requires more than self-absorbed individuals interested only in making themselves feel good.

Survival of the Moralist

The Washington Times features an interview with Carson Holloway today about his new book, The Right Darwin?.

Question: Why are conservatism and Darwinism traditionally at odds?
Answer: I think the traditional view of conservatives is that Darwinism, at least in the popular perspective, appeared to undermine the credibility of religious belief. The typical conservative religious view is that religion is essential to the maintenance of a decent and free society.
    So, traditional conservatives tended to be suspicious of Darwinism. The claim has been made by some Darwinists that Darwin makes it possible for us to understand all of the apparent order of nature without reference to an intelligent cause, such as God, as it is traditionally understood. ... [In religion] you have to have reference to a creator to explain order. Darwinism says on the surface that we can explain creation without any religious cause.

The Right Darwin?

Carson Holloway's new book, The Right Darwin?, comes under scrutiny from his former teacher, Larry Arnhart:

One of the most thoughtful attacks on Darwinian conservatism has just been published by Spence Publishing—Carson Holloway's The Right Darwin?. Holloway is now a professor of political science at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Ever since he was a Ph.D. student in my classes at Northern Illinois University, we have been carrying on a vigorous but friendly debate over these issues.

Read more.

Was Darwin a Conservative?

We're pleased to announce the publication of Carson Holloway's new book, The Right Darwin? Evolution, Religion, and the Future of Democracy. An excerpt is available here.

As always, our new releases are available directly from Spence Publishing for half price. Shipping on orders over $30 is free.