Expelled: A movie worth checking out
Posted in For Sellers, perspective | By Blair Newman and Dave Emerson | Tags: closed mindedness, entertainment, evolution, Expelled, home selling, intelligent design, movies, real estate, Realtors
Last night Barb, Nate, & I went to see Ben Stein’s new movie, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. It’s a wry, stark, and thought-provoking semi-documentary look at how closed-minded our scientific and educational establishment has become about alternatives to neo-Darwinism.
Maybe closed-mindedness is the default setting of humankind. Something we all have to fight against. I see it all the time in the real estate world. Potential sellers call me, supposedly to find out what the current market value is of their home. Often after I review the data and explain my professional opinion, they proceed to tell me how wrong I am.
“OK,” I think. “Why exactly did you ask me to do the research if you already knew the answer?” Actually, it’s simple. They wanted me to confirm what they thought they already knew. Maybe to show the spouse how wrong he/she was. Combination of pride and self-interest. (See reason #1 of “5 reasons NOT to pick a listing agent” for more on this.) “I made up my mind; don’t bother me with the facts.”
Somehow, it seems that this human bent towards closed-mindedness is often more pronounced in those who are in positions of authority. (For examples, consider Washington, D.C., Sacramento, or, most likely, your boss.) Truly successful leaders must fight hard to keep an open mind. Because power and closed-mindedness is a very dangerous combination (see Adolf Hitler, Vietnam War, or sub-prime lending).
Well, according to Ben’s new movie, an extreme version of that sort of closed mindedness has invaded much of the scientific community. Not just “I made up my mind. . . ” but “I made up my mind & yours too!”
Closed mindedness to the point where even mentioning an opposing viewpoint can get a professor fired. Talk about “academic freedom.”
A very thought provoking movie, with a little of Stein’s wry humor thrown in. I highly recommend it. Click here and insert your zip code for showtimes.
And keep an open mind.
Tags: closed mindedness, entertainment, evolution, Expelled, home selling, intelligent design, movies, real estate, Realtors
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May 2nd, 2008 at 1:34 pm
ben stein is an arrogant over rated rube-
religion has caused more deaths in the worlds
history than cancer.. there is no god never was
never will be anyone who believes in one
is a childish moron period
May 2nd, 2008 at 1:59 pm
allen,
Thanks for your contribution. The whole point of the movie is to allow differences of opinion.
So I’ll start by naming a few believers who I don’t consider “childish morons:” Neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Coach John Wooden, Barack Oboma, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Sir Isaac Newton, Abraham Lincoln, Jimmy Carter, Mother Theresa, C.S. Lewis, Ghandi, and even Solomon himself.
As for Stein’s, I found his wry humor hilarious, but he does appear to be deeply moved by the Holocaust. (BTW, I don’t recall Hitler being a Bible-thumper, but he sure was a Darwinist.)
Anyway, this movie isn’t about religion but about the blatant suppression of legitimate but controversial science by a small elite.
I don’t disgree with your criticism of religion as a whole. Much of religion is thinly veiled self-interest or blatant hypocrisy.
I do, however, have only the highest regard for the life and teachings of Jesus. And I do believe that more hospitals, universities, rescue missions, and relief organizations have been founded by Christians than by atheists. Christians also were in the forefront of the anti-slavery and civil rights movements.
BTW, whether Stein’s overrated or not, he certainly had Richard Dawkins (”The God Delusion”) tied up in knots before he was done with him.
Go see the movie, and tell me you don’t at least agree with Stein’s position on freedom of expression.