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Probably because the whole thing is gimmicky as ****.
I mean, a ticket is $40. Those who actually want to see a museum filled with pseudo science could probably find a cheaper one, even if it's not shaped like a boat. And those who do want to experience this over priced, publicly funded somehow (don't worry Christian conservatives of this board, we all noticed you not addressing that...), show piece probably won't go many times. I mean, kids might think it's cool so parents might take their kids a few times, but at $40 a ticket (the kids get in for $20 or $30 I think I heard; and since those Christian conservatives tend to pop out a lot of kids, it's an expensive field trip), I wouldn't expect many regulars at the place.
Though for the sake of the tax payers who for some reason had to help prop this up, I hope it finds some commercial success. Then again, if Ken Ham, being the upstanding guy he is, will find loopholes to allow for public funding, I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if he said this was a religious organization and get it tax exemption. So for the tax payers that firmly believe in the constitution or not wasting public money, I fear there is no silver lining.
You want this to fail, don't you? People like you have been wanting Christianity to "go away" for thousands of years. We are still here, much to your disappointment!
I freely admit I am a nonbeliever. In any god or religion. I say that while acknowledging:
1. I could be wrong. It may very well be that a god or gods exist and that it/they are responsible for the creation of the cosmos. There's has, however, never been a single shred of any kind of evidence to support anything of this sort, which is why I tend to default to nonbelief. Again, that doesn't mean I'm absolutely not way wrong.
I also understand why and how someone would look at the complexity and diversity of earthly life, and the wonders of the universe, reality, existence, etc. and deduce that there MUST be a god or gods and that some creative, intelligent force is behind it all. I understand that. To me, that isn't illogical or unreasonable even in the face of lack of evidence.
2. I truly feel the religious traditions, beliefs, rituals and stories of all religions contain some wisdom, beauty and truth.
Just keeping it to The Bible, to me it is perhaps the most wondrous, majestic, mysterious, profound and poetic work of the human mind and heart ever produced. This doesn't mean I consider it all literally true, and the fact that it isn't all literally true does not at all diminish its beauty or worth.
Religion has undoubtedly been the cause of a great deal of bloodshed and atrocities throughout human history, but it has also been (and continues to be) a positive thing as well, for many people and in many ways.
So, no. I am not personally eager to see Christianity or any other cultural religious tradition go away from the world.
But I do find it unfortunate that there are radical, extreme members of every religion who use their beliefs as a shield for, or justification for, willful ignorance, hatred, violence, bigotry, etc. That part of religion I would be happy to see die out, but it has as much to do with human ignorance and arrogance as it does with any specific religious dogma. Religion is so often just a convenient vehicle for people gravitating more and more towards ignorance, hate, etc.
Still, I think the vast majority of believers of any religion are bright, reasonable, kind and charitable people. They aren't so simply because of their religious beliefs, but because most people are, at base, decent and want the same things.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cupper3
Even their own pictures show a nearly empty parking lot.
Maybe they all traveled there in another, actually mobile ark?
But your relevancy (and that of most religions in the developed world) is getting less and less, and getting the influence is declining at a logarithmic scale. I frankly don't care if you keep your worship of imaginary entities within your places of worship and home, just don't try and have it influence public expenditures.
But it's ok for atheists to influence public expenditures, right?
BTW, you have ZERO I repeat ZERO evidence that we worship imaginary entities.
Just keeping it to The Bible, to me it is perhaps the most wondrous, majestic, mysterious, profound and poetic work of the human mind and heart ever produced. This doesn't mean I consider it all literally true, and the fact that it isn't all literally true does not at all diminish its beauty or worth.
What about it do you find so moving?
Personally, I find it horrific. It is filled with genocide and misogyny.
Look at your source and who they quote...Ham's Creation.
Scientology also is famous for photo-shopping and exaggerating their opening numbers also. Many organizations make themselves bigger than they really are.
But let's accept Ham's exaggeration. Considering this was a grand opening, with invited guests, it is still surprisingly small. Even their own pictures show a nearly empty parking lot.
You got any hardcore proof on the attendance numbers over the weekend? At any rate, I don't understand why the attendance numbers is note worthy other than an apparent personal desire to see a Christian fail publically.
Historically speaking, Christianity and theme parks are not really a good mix. Heritage Park USA and Holy Land are two defunct parks growing in the weeds. I think a tourist experience to truly enrich a Christian's life would be a visit to Israel, not a Bible themed rollercoster.
Location: In a little house on the prairie - literally
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jeffbase40
But it's ok for atheists to influence public expenditures, right?
Only if they don't promote any fairy tales that those atheists may believe in. I can virtually guarantee you that you would have trouble finding any atheist believing in any fairy tale.
Quote:
BTW, you have ZERO I repeat ZERO evidence that we worship imaginary entities.
Can't proof a negative, but you have been told that again. And again. And again. However, you and your ilk make extraordinary claims, so you should be able to provide extraordinary proof.
Location: In a little house on the prairie - literally
10,202 posts, read 7,922,771 times
Reputation: 4561
Quote:
Originally Posted by jeffbase40
You got any hardcore proof on the attendance numbers over the weekend? At any rate, I don't understand why the attendance numbers is note worthy other than an apparent personal desire to see a Christian fail publically.
I said, even if we accept Ham's PR numbers, it is still a colossal fail.
Quote:
Historically speaking, Christianity and theme parks are not really a good mix. Heritage Park USA and Holy Land are two defunct parks growing in the weeds. I think a tourist experience to truly enrich a Christian's life would be a visit to Israel, not a Bible themed rollercoster.
We agree. Which makes it even more egregious that public tax dollars were used to fund this monstrosity.
Historically speaking, Christianity and theme parks are not really a good mix. Heritage Park USA and Holy Land are two defunct parks growing in the weeds. I think a tourist experience to truly enrich a Christian's life would be a visit to Israel, not a Bible themed rollercoster.
I totally agree about theme parks but then I think that way of all theme parks, a poor imitation of real life.
I would have thought that from the experience of the other two defunct parks there would have been more hesitancy for any financing of the Ark Encounter.
Personally, I find it horrific. It is filled with genocide and misogyny.
The misogynistic aspects of it, and of most religions in general, are actually my biggest problem with scriptures and religions. I was raised by my mother and two older sisters, and I have the honor and privilege of having an incredible wife (married 20 years tomorrow!) and two amazing daughters. I have a deep and profound admiration for women.
It sickens me that so much of religion seems predicated on treatment of women as second class citizens, or their marginalization. On guilt, blame, shame. And I can't apologize for those things in The Bible. It's grievous, but unfortunately part and parcel of many biblical texts.
Wrath, anger, genocide, war, slavery, torture, etc. are all also found in no small measure within The Bible.
However, for all its good AND ills, we cannot today envision what the Western World would be like divorced from the influence of Christianity and Christian thought. Who knows, it might be a better place, but for all the negative and horrible things Christianity (and most other religions) have been the cause of, The Bible has had an immeasurable impact on our culture and in the arts. I don't have to be a believer to be moved by paintings of the masters, philosophical writings of Christian thinkers, mystics, poets, or the religiously-inspired music of so many composers.
While much is of what Jesus allegedly said isn't necessarily original to Jesus, and I don't believe in the divinity of Jesus (many early Christian sects didn't) I find much of the Gospels very touching. The message of sharing, forgiveness, acceptance, sacrifice and redemption is wonderful, even if I disbelieve in the historical accuracy of much of them.
I also enjoy Psalms a great deal. The Psalms are like love poetry to God.
Even stories I consider myth and legend--the Garden of Eden, the ark, the parables, and so on--are compelling and instructive to me in their symbolism.
Much of the horrific stuff in The Bible just reads like action-adventure to me.
I certainly roll my eyes at many passages in The Bible, but overall it s a unique, unparalleled work of literature.
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