Snail criticises me for being sarcastic about Dr John Hartnett's (the Physicist cited by pete) qualifications. Snail asserted that I should have done my research before posting (yes, Snail you're right). He then referenced a Wikipedia article on Dr JH - who does, it turns out, have a very impressive CV. But then hidden away among the references to the article I find a link to a trailer to a series of two programmes broadcast by something called, 'God TV' (God help us!). Dr JH was, apparently a contributor to these programmes. Let me give you a flavour of what was presented:

"In two highly informative programmes, 'The Age of the Earth' and 'Rapid Rocks' geologist Tas Walker questions how long it takes for rock to form. This is a key issue to the debate, as some scientists believe it takes millions of years, while a literal reading of the Bible indicates that the earth is only 6,000 years old. Dr Carl Wieland presents 'Origins in the Modern World and Why it Matters'; and in 'Starlight, Time and the New Physics' Dr John Hartnett sets out to explain light-years in an earth that is not billions of years old, with some eye-opening explanations.

Gary Bates claims UFO sightings are linked to a belief in Evolution and looks at the issue of life on other planets in 'Alien Abductions and UFOs'. Dr Jonathan Sarfati examines whether Evolution could be the worldview behind abortion and euthanasia and in 'Evolution and the Holocaust' asks if there could be a link between 'Natural Selection' and the extermination of six million people.

From a Creationist perspective, Philip Bell discusses 'Apemen: Missing Links and the Bible'; Dr David Catchpoole focuses on 'Dinosaurs and the Bible'; Dr John Sanford asks 'Does Evolution hurt Science?' and in 'Journey Towards Creation' astronomer Dr Hugh Ross marvels at the intricate design of the heavens and the earth."

Contributors to this thread will find most of the above to be very familiar (although I don't think we've touched on UFOs yet!).

So is Dr JH a distinguished physicist or a silly, deluded ass ... or both(!) Discuss.