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Duane Gish

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Duane Gish is a biochemist who is best known as vice president of the Institute for Creation Research. Gish has a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of California, Berkeley and is the author of several books and articles espousing the tenets of creation science, a religious/science movement that seeks to challenge the scientific validity of the theory of evolution in favor of the Biblical account of creation found in the Book of Genesis.

In his efforts to promote the tenets of creation science, Gish frequently debates other prominent and well-known scientists, and Gish has been severely criticized by the scientific community for the debating tactics that he allegedly employs. Gish has been denounced by his critics as being either intentionally dishonest, or simply deluded by his religious convictions. Gish responds to these critics by claiming that the evolutionary biologists who make these charges are anti-creationists who simply will not concede to any scientific point against evolution.

The greatest criticism of Gish's point of view concerning evolution is that evolution has nothing to do with the origin of life, a point that Charles Darwin clearly made in his book. This was called 'On the origin of species' after all, and not 'On the origin of life.' It is claimed by evolutionary biologists that whether life came about by natural or supernatural origins is of no concern for evolution and the theory of evolution.

The best known contemporary evolutionary biologists, Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Dawkins, refuse to debate people like Gish, by claiming that debate is not how science works. Gould and Dawkins claim that, in science, it is not important who is the best debater, it is important who can come up with a theory which best explains the (observed) facts. Gish agrees with this, however, and claims that the real reason evolutionary biologists won't debate is simply because the theory of evolution ends up looking bad. In debates, Gish always focuses primarily on one central thing, that is, discrediting evolutionary theory.

Publications of Gish and other creation scientists on the subject of creationism have so far always been refused by respected scientific journals. Creationists claim that the reason for this is that 'mainstream science' is simply not open to alternatives to evolution. For example, intelligent design advocate Michael Behe emailed some science journals to ask them if they would allow him to refute some articles that were negative towards intelligent design in a rebuttal article. He disclosed an email that he received from an editor of a science journal (he withheld the name for privacy issues) who seemed to be open to allowing Dr. Behe a rebuttal space, but later had to deny him on the grounds of a collective board decision. In the first email to Dr. Behe, the editor seemed to agree with what creationists often say, that mainstream science was closed minded to 'non-orthodoxy.' The editor states: 'I am painfully aware of the close-mindedness of the scientific community to non-orthodoxy...' [1].

According to most review boards of the journals, creation articles are rejected because the publications do not contain any science. According to the creationists, they are refused because of the journal's commitment to naturalism, and refuse to consider any alternative. As a result of mainstream journals refusing to give creationists a voice, Creation scientists have established their own peer-reviewed journals that do accept publications about creation science, but these are not accepted as having much scientific value by most of the secular scientific community.

In responding to one of his critics, Dr. Gish stated, 'The subject of origins, especially when cast in the context of an evolutionary versus a supernatural origin, is very contentious and obviously encourages an all out effort to destroy the opposition by whatever means available. We creation scientists nevertheless are shocked by the vicious unprincipled attack against our integrity and science. . . . I never attempt to challenge the integrity or good character of my opponents. But when subjected to this sort of abuse I do point out to the audience that to resort to such tactics is an admission that my opponent's position is weak.'

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