Exposing Discovery Institute Part 1: Casey Luskin

Have you heard of the Discovery Institute? Have you fallen under the impression that they know what they are talking about, or can be considered an even remotely legitimate source of information? Well, you've come to right place. They aren't. They're a propaganda mill, and all of their content is full of lies. They hide behind a paper-thin roster of scientists who have deluded themselves into dishonestly preaching outside of their expertise, and they blatantly misrepresent any scientific research or scientists they are referring to. Constantly. Sometimes they even commit slander. That's what this video is about, and it is the first installment in a series where I will expose the fraudulent activity of all the major contributors at the Discovery Institute, one clown at a time. Part 1 addresses Casey Luskin, and it is centered around some very serious slander he committed against an esteemed anthropologist. But don't worry, I cover lots of other lies and stupidity that come out of his mouth as well. If you're a fan of the DI, do please find the courage to watch this rather than running to the comments section to yell at me. It's not all that long, and I promise that I make it extremely clear and undeniable that Casey is a liar. If you have a shred of honesty within you, you will quickly see that this is the case. Enjoy!

Check out "Is This Wi-Fi Organic?", my book on disarming pseudoscience!

[ProfessorDaveExplains]

Hey everyone, it has come to my attention that some people are having trouble with the audio for the PBS Nova doc segments. This is very confusing to me, it works just fine on every single one of my devices. Luckily I later show the transcript for these sections so you can read that, or the subtitles, but I think if you mess around with headphones and/or plug in speakers and/or try other devices everyone should be able to get it to work one way or another. I'm not sure how to fix this, otherwise I would delete and reupload. Sorry for the inconvenience!

[jasonmccomb]

I am a recovering evangelical christian. I believed them hook, line, and sinker. To escape, I actually had to get divorced. I am so appreciative of channels like this. Thanks for helping to keep me sane and educating me.

[oldguy]

Had a high school biology teacher who said" You enter my class naive. You leave either informed or belligerently stupid " .Love that guy.

[retrowave]

Thank you, Dave.

A friend of mine had become a full creationist again after finding Discovery Institute, and when I showed this video, he immediately apologized for falling for the lies and promised to check sources the next time. I just wanted to type this so you knew that your video does have an affect, even on people formerly part of their fanbase.

[AlphaOfCrimson]

Creationists not agreeing on whether a fossil is a human or ape is the funniest thing in the world. They are basically admitting that the find is transitional.

[vampiregoth]

I'm an evolutionary biologist and behavioral ecologist - I like to read DI articles just to keep tabs on what these people are saying so I can keep on top of rebutting them when students bring it up. I appreciate the work you've put into this, this will be a great resource to point people towards if they're DI fans.

[Steelmage]

- So, Casey, what's your favorite lie?
- I don't lie!
- Yeah, that's my favorite as well....

[kevinmurphy]

Speaking to a Catholic priest many years ago, he cautioned me to beware a new version of creationism. He literally said "You'll hear it as Intelligent Design and they will pretend it's science. It an attempt by evangelicals to repackage creationism. It is neither Intelligent nor God's design...it's bullshit" I was left rather stunned by this most vehement denial of ID by a man of the cloth.

[RobertsfunWords]

I appreciate your work. I used to be an evangelical pastor. The road out of the religion was costly and painful in many ways.
Towards the end you are trying to encapsulate the motives and goals of these people. That is hard to do as it is so multifaceted. Certainly fear of mortality is a major tool they work with.

You are doing something valuable and for some will give a huge gift of joy. Let me explain that with a personal anecdote:
Not long after departing the faith, I took my binoculars out one night and for the first time spotted the Andromeda Galaxy. I suppose for any astronomy lover that can be a great moment. For me is was symbolic: I was able to embrace the truth: that the light travelled 2.5 million years to get here, unaided by a deity lying about creating an fakely-old universe 6, 000 years ago.
It was an emotional high for me, similar to the "come to Jesus moment" the evangelicals promote. The difference being that falling in love with curiosity and truth starts a life full of many such joys.
I think you are an enabler of this joy for many. Humans thrive in curiosity and truth: you help bring this to people.

[sammyk]

it is utterly disgraceful to admit that this kind of content is actually vitally important to be produced, in this day and era. thank you for stepping up and doing it so brilliantly.

no mercy, Dave. go for them!

[bensrandomshows]

Really cool how you managed to get in contact with the misrepresented scientists and gave them a chance to correct the record!

[Cerealbox]

I'm always amazed that a group of people who hold themselves out to be moral authorities are constantly lying.

[RuriRurouni]

What I love about Professor Dave is that he does not even try to hide his contempt for these absolute charlatans, fraudsters, grifters, and outright criminals. He straight up calls them what they are, and you can hear his seriousness in his vocal inflection. So many debunkers of these liars shy away from outright labeling them as the criminals they are.

Fight on, Dave. You're doing amazing work with academic outreach and combating disinformation on this platform.

[mcwoodrum]

Prof. Dave, I’m a conservation biology undergrad who sometimes has a hard time formulating my rebuttals to this type of absolutely ridiculous anti-science argumentation. Thank you so much for helping me organize these points! You’re awesome!

[aidanmahar]

I love how you contact the actual researchers for these videos. Not only does it support everything you’re saying and show the dishonesty of creationists, but it also helps your audience see that science is accessible and open. I really love all the work you do with science literacy

[akiblue]

My physical anthropology 101 prof walked into class on day 1 and before introducing himself said "I will not answer any questions regarding creationism, you have 30 seconds to pack up your things and drop this class if you can't accept these terms, I will not repeat myself." He waited 30 seconds, noone left so he introduced himself and started class.

[freeaccount]

I've actually had a creationist cite the Lucy pelvis alteration as evidence for pseudoscience. He also portrayed Lucy as the only specimen found to support claims. Thank you for this.

[fazergazer]

Dave, reading through the comments, it’s uplifting and encouraging to note the number of folks who were rescued from the abyss of anti-science fundamentalism. The world needs more of you, Dave.

[gustavogodoy]

oh boy, Professor Dave debunking biblical literalists on Easter.

[mikerittall]

I had to stop the video because I lost it laughing when Dave said "In science when you prove a pillar of science wrong you get a Nobel prize."

I can't tell you how many times I've tried to explain this sentiment to people who think "science" is trying to cover up "truth". When, in fact, the opposite is true. Want a Nobel prize? Prove something wrong or discover something new.

Hahaha, I will be paraphrasing Dave's quote from now on.

Edit: I lost it laughing because what Dave said is so undeniably true that's it funny to think anyone thinks otherwise.