Hate give this guy publicity but...

[Globi]

Who will do it instead is to be seen as Mr May is looking for a replacement. Anybody?

Kathy Sinnott perhaps?

[Ygern]

Dr Steven Novella (of Skeptic's Guide fame) has written a nice piece on why Mr Lenihan's defense of “diversity of opinion is a good thing” is a very bad one, certainly not worthy of a Minister of Science.
http://www.theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=2313

Announcing that you think Evolution is a hoax is not an interesting alternative opinion. It is at best the sign of an ignorant and arrogant author, at worst one who is deceitful. I say deceitful because there is no way anyone can sit down and read all the relevant treatises on evolution and come out on the other side claiming it is all a con job any more than you claim that you reject the theory of gravity because you don't understand Newtonian physics.

It's not good enough for a Minister of Science, however much he may want to be nice to his constituents, to publicly support a tract that is manifest nonsense and pseudoscience. I do not expect a Minister of Science to be a scientist, but I do expect him to be at least as scientifically literate as a high school student.

[Ygern]

I just heard a bit of the interview May did with Ray Darcy this morning.
He actually said that Francis Collins doesn't believe in evolution!

Christ on a bike. What a filthy liar.

[inedifix]

Mr Lenihan said while he “remained to be convinced” by Mr May’s arguments, he would be attending the launch in a personal capacity and as he believed “diversity of opinion is a good thing”.

This is still rather worrying, and perhaps it's a shame Conor Lenihan won't be speaking at this launch. The key point is not, whether he "remains to be convinced by Mr May's book", but the more critical one of "is the Minister of State for Science convinced by the scientific theory of evolution?"

He may well think that diversity of opinion is a good thing, but I'd like to know if he feels evolution and creationism are equally valid theories, or does he regard evolution as the only 'scientifically' valid one.

I truly hope a journalist still gets to put these question to him directly - does Ireland have a science minister who accepts the theory of evolution as the best explanation for speciation, or does it not?

[Beebub]

Mr Lenihan said while he “remained to be convinced” by Mr May’s arguments, he would be attending the launch in a personal capacity and as he believed “diversity of opinion is a good thing”.

In fairness to him, it all happened so quickly he didn't have any kind of time to think about his comments or responses. At 6pm he was still listed on the website as launching it as Mr. Conor Lenihan, TD, Minister for Science.

By 8pm this had changed to Launch by 'Mr. Conor Lenihan' with the titles removed apparently at Lenihan's request. By 9.15 pm he was still planning on launching the book as per Patsy McGarry's breaking news story linked to above. I have it on good authority that at 10.45pm his office annouced that he would not be launching the book and he made the comments from Galway. I suspect he was doing his best to let May down easily, however his comments were certainly ill conceived. I have written a letter to the IT on the subject.

'tis a great pity we got engrossed in Cowen's late night because without that I'm certain Lenihan would have been a bigger story.

[Rogan]

Following on from my emailed complaint to Conor Lenihan's office, he's expressed an interest in speaking with me, I'd imagine this is because I highlighted my address, which is in his constituency. If there's any specific questions you would like me to put to him, please feel free to post them here and I'll do my best to get them answered.

[dugges]

@Rogan

Tell him it is very irresponsible for a minister holding a post in Science to promote an anti-science book (friend or not)

He brought this whole shit-storm on himself

Are you going for a kebab then??

[Bik]

Ask him if he thinks Shamrock Rovers have fucked up their league hopes with the 5-1 drubbing they got from Dundalk on Monday night.

I've seen him a few times at the Tallaght stadium, so I assume he's a fan (that's still not enough to get my vote though )

[Beebub]

If there's any specific questions you would like me to put to him, please feel free to post them here and I'll do my best to get them answered.

Very good, you should take him up on his offer.

How about:

Do you accept evolution as fact?

Do you beleive the ideas of the likes of May should be given equal time in classrooms?

Are you going for a kebab then??

You should also initially request that if it's a phone conversation that he doesn't do it from his bed. He did this on the phone with a TV3 programme (I think) and fell asleep half way through the interview, when load snores could be clearly heard.

[Rogan]

The main questions I want answered are:

Why did he agree to launch a book that states that evolution is a hoax, a joke, a fantasy, an impossibility, a fiction and a fairytale for adults, while stating that it's the greatest deceit in the history of Science? And does he understand why there was such an outrage when it came to light that he agreed to take part in the book launch, seeing that he's responsible for the promotion of Science within Ireland?

Was he really that naive to think that he could support the book on a personal level as a friend and constituent (even though his title "Minister for Science" was on the original promotional material) and separate this support from that of his ministerial office?

Does he really think that someone with no background in science and without a proper formal education, with the arrogance to declare the claims of leading scientists as "bullshit" deserves any recognition from our countries Minister for Science? (at an official book launch)

Is he going to take any action towards reversing the damaging effects of his earlier decision to take part in the launch? Seeing that the story has spread to leading Science blogs and websites, making Ireland the laughing stock of the science world? (Maybe an official announcement declaring his stance on the theory of evolution and his true feelings about the contents of the book).