Plenty more where that came from!The marketing people for Expelled are hard at work warming up the academic audience for their agitprop film. The following bit of e-mail hype was forwarded to my attention and I have to say I am gobsmacked with anticipation. Expelled must be the most exciting film since Birth of a Nation (and just as historically accurate!). The provocative message is being spread to educators (both real and imagined) across the country.
Subject: Has your student group been Expelled??While the Lincoln quote is bogus (at least according to the Duke University Law Review), this is undoubtedly only a small blip in the otherwise fact-based work of the purveyors of intelligent design creationism.
From: Dairek Morgan <dairek@motivemarketing.biz>
Hey guys,
So, we’re at 2 months and counting. Film release date is APRIL 18th. The time is NOW to plan your group initiatives. If you haven’t already, check out www.getexpelled.com to download and order a lot of really cool FREE resources (stuff should be ready for shipping on Thursday).
You’ve all signed up online to be involved in the film and I’m really thankful to have you. As a former youth pastor from Nashville, TN, the reason I took this job and am so passionate about this project is because I saw one too many of my students go off to college and be indoctrinated with a belief system that said their faith was antiquated and foolish. Ever heard of The Blasphemy Challenge?? THIS IS WHERE THIS TEACHING LEADS—AND HOW ITS AFFECTING STUDENTS RIGHT NOW!! (www.blasphemychallenge.com) Seeing that was all I needed to know that I would throw my whole being into this project. Abe Lincoln said that “the philosophy in the schoolroom in one generation will be the philosophy of the government in the next.” Ideas have consequences. Our students are being deceived, and I know this film can help shed some light on the conversation. Faith and science are not incompatible and I believe this film will go a long way in allowing the two room to stand together in the cultural conversation.
Since the message is aimed at teachers, it's not surprising to see that it has a kind of lesson plan in it. I suppose it would be unkind to complain about redundancies and other infelicities in it:
Here’s what you can do to get the word out about this film to the students.Dairek ends his message with some celebrity endorsements for the message of Expelled. They pretty much speak for themselves—and demonstrate the company that the Expelled crew keeps. One shudders.
Here’s some things I’m asking you to do:Amazing SYNERGY can happen when we all do a little. This film has the potential to change the cultural conversation in our country. I appreciate your participation.
- Post an Expelled banner on your website/myspace: http://getexpelled.com/downloads_webbanners.php
- Tell your students about the film (send an ecard or just start an email chain).
- Organize an evening on OPENING week-end to take your students to see the film. Why not do a 7:00 showing and then an open forum discussion over ice cream afterwards?? We can send you a FREE resource kit to help advertise your event. Coming soon on www.getexpelled.com.
- Get your students to participate in some of our initiatives. We’ve got all kinds of contests and other ways to help them get involved in the discussion. Www.getexpelled.com
- Educate your students on the issue. Www.intelligentdesign.org is a great starting place to learn more on the topics.
- And if you’re REALLY up for the challenge, help your students host an EXPELLED DEBATE. More info here: http://www.getexpelled.com/debate.php
Blessings,
Dairek
P.S. Please feel free to reply to this email and let me know what your youth/group is doing to get involved. It’s always good to know what’s happening at the “ground level”!
Dairek Morgan
Motive Entertainment
dairek@motivemarketing.biz
Don't forget to count how many distinguished scientists are in this distinguished crowd of Expelled supporters!
“I recommend the film enthusiastically! Ben Stein’s film exposes an entrenched and aggressive Darwinist establishment in academia that suffocates all competing points of view. What Ben Stein discovers in this riveting documentary is incredibly enlightening.” —James C. Dobson, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board, Focus on the Family
“What Ben Stein is doing in this film is extremely important by opening up an honest debate in the public square where people can hear reasoned arguments on both sides and make their own conclusions. I love Ben Stein” — Chuck Colson, Radio Commentator, Founder of Prison Fellowship
“This is an enormously important project and I am so proud of the fact that Ben Stein, who is a national treasure, is part of it. People know that there is a dictatorial impulse at work in the land to shut down even the most elementary questioning of this unquestionable belief in random evolution” —Michael Medved, nationally syndicated radio host
“We highly recommend the movie to anybody. It is not only informative and challenging—it is fun to watch. Ben Stein’s interviews with avowed atheists, is well done as he elicits responses that leave grave doubt regarding their position of absolute disbelief in a creator and/or God”. —Ken Smitherman, President, Association of Christian Schools International
“EXPELLED is an engaging film. Ben Stein has given us a powerful documentary about the widespread repression of faith-friendly scientific scholarship. Along the way, he also makes a strong case for a return to civil discourse in a time when political correctness often overshadows the search for truth”. —Ronald D. Ellis, Ph.D., President, California Baptist University
“We are seeing the consequences of locking matters of faith out of our classrooms. We applaud Ben Stein for casting light on today's challenges to academic freedom.” —Luis Palau, President, Luis Palau Association
“Propaganda molds minds in a very direct way and that is the logjam in this situation, which the Ben Stein movie, EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed, seeks to break through. I wish it well – I hope under God it will have a great effect just at that point.”. —Dr J.I. Packer, theologian
“Expelled blows the lid off the heavy-handed tactics within the scientific community to crush dissenters who dare to question Darwinism. This entertaining yet sobering documentary reveals why civilized societies cannot progress if held captive by Darwinian philosophy, and will decline from moral and just societies to brutal oppression.” —Wendy Wright, President, Concerned Women for America
“The movie is powerful...shocking....intense....humorous at times....well worth seeing. This message must be given to the next generation or else....” —Jack Brown, CEO, Capitol Prayer
“If the Ben Stein movie is asking these questions and if somebody is keeping us from finding out the great answers to the great questions - then maybe they are more than just questions. Maybe they are questions with eternal consequences.” —Peter Furler, lead singer, The Newsboys
“This movie only samples the tip of the iceberg of academic and intellectual persecution in the land of “freedom” and may trigger a cultural revolution as more people are emboldened to tell their story and make a stand. It is rare to find a movie that is entertaining, educational and motivational, but that is exactly what you get with Ben Stein’s documentary, EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed” —Dennis Wagner, Executive Director, Access Research Network
“Finally, someone has exposed the head-in-the-sand reaction of mainstream academia when it comes to intellectual honesty and the theological implications of modern science. This film is a wonderfully crafted gift to this needy culture.” —Ed Flanagan, Manitou Motion Picture Company, Ltd.
"If you seek intellectual integrity, see Expelled. If you enjoy thought-provoking conversation, bring a friend. If you value free speech, tell everyone you know to meet you at the movies and spend an alarming evening with Ben Stein. Expelled could easily be one of the most important movies of the year." —Denny Rydberg, President, Young Life
“Honest people have no fear of the truth. Expelled is a great first step in tearing down the wall and bringing honest, vigorous debate back to the academies. I want to thank you for your film, EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed.” —Curtis Martin, President-Fellowship of Catholic University Students
“As a media literacy education specialist and film/television reviewer, I encourage critical thinking. If this film respects every human person's ability to think and to question, thereby promoting our search for truth and meaning, it will renew the debate about academic freedom by initiating a dialogue that inherently respects the dignity, freedom, beliefs and opinions of all those who sit around the table—and beyond it.” —Sister Rose Pacatte, FSP Director, Pauline Center for Media Studies
“As chairman of the Mission America Coalition, I highly recommend Ben Stein’s upcoming film “Expelled”. We have personally met with Ben and have screened Expelled, and we found it to be compelling, insightful and entertaining. I encourage you to see the film when it hits America’s movie theaters in April and to invite others to join you.” —Rev. Paul Cedar, Chairman, Mission America Coalition
“EXPELLED: No Intelligence Allowed is earthshaking. I was absolutely blown away. Ben Stein boldly shines a light of honest inquiry revealing that evolution’s emperor has no clothes.” —J. Matt Barber, Director for Cultural Issues, Concerned Women for America
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4 comments:
6. And if you’re REALLY up for the challenge, help your students host an EXPELLED DEBATE.
Do they have an instruction packet on how to prevent any dissenting views in their fair debate? How about on false advertising to get people to come?
In regards to the blasphemy challenge I responded here.
Yes you did, and poorly at that.
Post an Expelled banner on your website/myspace
How nice of them to provide these banners for download, so that you can deface and mock before posting them on your website/myspace. That would be so much harder to do if they were serving the image, instead of expecting you to use your own bandwidth/disk space.
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