Instead of getting lost in the clutter of comments here or there, I have decided to create a separate post because I am presenting a slightly different criticism.

I have not seen the movie yet but I first encountered Ben Stein’s blog last Summer when he started the promotion. It smacked of too much statism. I am just going to quote him directly:

In today’s world, at least in America, an Einstein or a Newton or a Galileo would probably not be allowed to receive grants to study or to publish his research.

Did you catch that?
Here it is in plain language: Ben Stein is linking grants to freedom.
Is he suggesting that Einstein or Newton or Galileo were entitled to grants? or that they needed grants?

You see, I agree with very nearly everything he says except he makes a huge mistake. Just because a person does not get a grant, it does not mean his freedom to study is suppressed. Certainly things are pretty unfair if everybody else gets grants but that is a different battle. Nobody is entitled to grants.

The “freedom of inquiry” is not suppressed if grants are being denied. The Intelligent Design believer can go study on his own and pay for it himself.

Ben Stein should be careful when he uses the word freedom but coming from a person who made money writing talking points for U.S. Presidents, it does not surprise me that his sense of entitlement is a little bit tarnished.

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Hold on! Scratch everything I just wrote.
Come to think of it: if only there was a grant to study underwater basket-weaving, my freedom of inquiry could flourish!

Why are we rehashing this discussion? Oh, yeah! We have to pump some more life into this pre-release promotional campaign!