Don T: Find me one reputable scientist who will state that absence of evidence FOR a theory is objective evidence against it.

Uh, Don, find me a scientist that would call something a theory that has absolutely no supporting evidence. In order for a theory to be proved wrong it has to rise to the level of being a theory in the first place. Go back to the King Kong analogy. You can spend all day saying that that King Kong exists, and pointing out that lots of other people think he exists, but until there is some actual evidence you won't get much traction. What you are saying is that anyone could dream up any idea at all and claim it as a theory. Fortunately, the real world doesn't work that way. The idea that someone saying something is true and then calling it a theory has the same logical content as someone creating a controversy over Intelligent Design and then saying that since there is a controversy over over it we ought to teach it in the public schools. Stuff and nonsense!