Re: LUCY: ``Yes, we have no bananas!"

Paul Z. Myers (myers@astro.ocis.temple.edu)
Mon, 11 Nov 1996 15:31:20 -0500

In article <3287553b.34560842@netnews.worldnet.att.net>, fmurray@pobox.com
wrote:

>On Sat, 09 Nov 1996 13:28:24 GMT, edconrad@prolog.net (Ed Conrad)
>wrote:
>
>>Fact is, the few bits and pieces of what they called ``Lucy" -- to go
>>with the vast majority of manmade bonelike additions that were used to
>>fill the many gaps -- weren't even found in close proximity.
>>
>>Truth is, ``Lucy" is a mosaic of a few bones that were found over a
>>square mile.
>
>to which, paul myers responded:
>
>>Another conradian spam. followups redirected to talk.origins...if you
>>must, follow it there, but otherwise please ignore this clown.
>
>and then in a separate post paul said:
>
>>No...and I'm trying to persuade everyone to ignore this clown and post
>>any replies to talk.origins, instead.
>
>and then in a third post said:
>
>>Please reply to any messages from Ed Conrad in talk.origins -- they do
>>not deserve any commentary in the sci newsgroups.
>
>along the way rohinton collins added:
>
>>These types of posts are really infuriating. Please could you stop
>> posting to sci.anthropology.paleo (or for that matter sci.anthropology
>>and sci.archaeology).
>
>and steve "chris" price put in:
>
>>This is rich! Can anybody is the sci.* groups take Ed seriously anymore?
>
>several others added mocking words of their own...but none rose to
>meet the challenge of ed conrad's claim that:
>
>>Fact is, the few bits and pieces of what they called ``Lucy" -- to go
>>with the vast majority of manmade bonelike additions that were used to
>>fill the many gaps -- weren't even found in close proximity.
>>
>>Truth is, ``Lucy" is a mosaic of a few bones that were found over a
>>square mile.
>
>i suggest that if these worthies are to continue to post to sci.
>groups, they should take that "sci." seriously, drop the ad hominem
>attacks on ed, and post evidence refuting ed's claim...if ed's claim
>is substantially correct, they should so state, and then present
>arguments of interpretation...
>
>the argument that: "i don't agree with you, so you had better shut up,
>or i'll have you thrown out of here" may prevail within parts of
>academia, but this is the net....

You aren't aware of Ed Conrad's history. There were quite a few attempts
to take him seriously and actually look into the science behind his
claims, so these are not unjustified rejections of his ideas. His response
to unbiased evaluations of his "specimens" has been a reprehensible series
of claims about conspiracies and corrupt, lying scientists.

These recent claims about Lucy have also been demolished as a lot of
baseless, false accusations by several of the regulars in talk.origins.
Note also that I did not say he should stop posting, but that these kinds
of silly claims should be confined to TO.

-- 

Paul Z. Myers                 myers@astro.ocis.temple.edu

Dept. of Biology              myers@netaxs.com     

Temple University             http://fishnet.bio.temple.edu/

Philadelphia, PA 19122        (215) 204-8848