Spineless

Time to report on some disgraceful, cowardly behavior from Aydin Örstan, a research associate employed by my favorite museum, the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh. (Aside: correct pronunciation: kar•NAY•gie, not KAR•nah•gie, as any native Pittsburgher knows.)

Örstan runs the Circus of the Spineless, a carnival featuring posts about invertebrates. Krauze, a contributor to the TelicThoughts blog, submitted this post to the most recent circus.

It was summarily rejected. The only explanation from Mr. Örstan:

My policy on this blog is not to have any links in any of my posts to any creationist (including “intelligent” design) sites. Hence I turned down a submission from one such site. I offer no apologies.

Well Aydin, I don’t expect that anybody is requesting an apology.

Örstan’s actions are no doubt representative of editors at the scientific journals: if a submission smacks of ID, reject it. Örstan further weakens the so-called “level playing field” theory, the ludicrous claim that an ID submission would be evaluated by the community on its merits. We all knew the “level playing field” mantra proclaimed nothing more than a fantasy, so in that sense Örstan has performed a service.

Örstan’s editorial policy, as I have blogged before, is representative of the circular reasoning:

1. Do not publish ID in peer-reviewed journals, because it is not science.
   
   
2. ID is not science, because it does not publish in peer-reviewed journals.
   
   
3. If it is published in peer-reviewed journals, excoriate the editor.

It also points out how the evolution blogs define creationist, to wit, anyone who disagrees with evolution. By this definition, Ken Miller can be a "good Catholic" and not a creationist, while any IDer, regardless of his religious perspective, is. A creationist, that is.

Circus: indeed.

Spineless: indeed.