Rush Limbaugh: Did you see the Big Bang?

[Hydra009]

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2018/03/15/rush-limbaugh-if-no-one-saw-the-big-bang-how-do-we-know-it-really-happened/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiShv-2PQT0

Okay, the Big Bang. There was this whatever-size — call it a golf ball-, tennis ball-size of matter that banged and we’re all here. Where was it? Where was this glob of matter that banged that created the universe? Where was it? No, no, no. You can’t say, “It was in the void.” You can’t say it was in another dimension, parallel or otherwise, astral plane. It had to be somewhere. Where was it? What was around it? Could you see it? Could somebody see this golf-ball-size bit of energy if they were not part of that? Could you be somewhere and see it? Could you be somewhere and witness this Big Bang instead of being a part of it? If so, where were you? Well, since nobody could see it, how the hell do they know it really happened? But I’m not supposed to ask that.

The first question is the weirdest one because he's talking about the very beginning of the universe - all of the universe's matter/energy in a spot about the size of a golf ball - and he's asking what's around it.  He's essentially asking what part of the universe was outside of the universe at this time.  Does not compute.

The second "question" (assertion, really) is that if no one witnessed the Big Bang, how do we know it really happened?

1) Does he honestly expect a reporter there on the scene?  "Hello, Tom.  I'm here at the Big Bang, where spacetime is rapidly expanding outwards and matter/energy is cooling from a soup of quark–gluon plasma into more recognizable elements.  Back to you, Tom."
2) We know lots of things indirectly.
3) Has this guy ever read about of any of the evidences he's so blithely dismissing?  It's not like this stuff is secret knowledge.  You just walk into the library, grab a book on the subject, get them to scan it, then walk out

This guy is a massively influential figure among conservatives and he's a complete moron.

[SGOS]

Trump should put him in the Cabinet as Science Advisor.

[Baruch]

This was one of the stupider memes from the Kansas school board wars.  Not just evolution, but Big Bang was labelled ... liberal tripe.

Religious and political folks (or the combination, oh my!) use a different epistemology than the secular one.  This can be confusing, perhaps deliberately so, in say Islam, when they talk about "science" confirming the Quran.  The opposite of apologetic (that confirming stuff) is polemics (X is the Devil's work).

Yeah, I don't know what Rush actually believes, him or Alex Jones ... they might just be the ultimate meme trolls.

[Baruch]

Trump should put him in the Cabinet as Science Advisor.

Please don't give the "reality show" in Washington DC any more bright ideas.  I just overhead other seniors at breakfast refer to it as a "realty show".  Brilliant!  So who is the producer??

[Unbeliever]

Well, first of all: where did the big bang happen?

It happened right here - no matter where in the universe "here" is, that's where the big bang happened.

What was outside of the universe when it banged?

The rest of the infinite universe, that was also banging at the same time. The big bang that we know of resulted in our observable universe (our Hubble bubble), and the other Hubble bubbles had their big bangs, that were coterminous with ours. Every point in infinite space was banging at the same instant.

At least, that's how I understand it. I could be mistaken.

By Limbaugh's logic, the police could never solve a crime unless there were witnesses, no matter how much forensic evidence they had.

[GSOgymrat]

This guy is a massively influential figure among conservatives and he's a complete moron.

Yes but his motivation isn't to understand the origin of the universe but please his audience. He's appealing to his tribe and when doing so facts are beside the point. Saying things that will antagonize the enemy tribe, even the claims aren't true, is a signal that one is so loyal they will risk attack. He's essentially a fat, bald ape throwing poo and beating his chest.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Ken Ham: Were you there?

Rush Limbaugh: Did you see it?

Me: Did you see the light divided from the dark?

[Cavebear]

I recall some creationist debater who used that trick.  I forget his name, but he liked to argue that you couldn't prove something had happened because "were you there".  He would repeat that endlessly in the debate.  I have it on an old PBS video somewhere. 

And I always wanted to attend one of his lectures and stand up and say "so Noah built an ark?"  Where of course he would say "yes" and then I would get to shout "were you there"?  LOL!

But his lecture invitations never seemed to get to me, so I never did get to ask my question.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Ken Ham debating Bill Nye.

[Cavebear]

Ken Ham debating Bill Nye.

Thank you.  Couldn't recall the name.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Thank you.  Couldn't recall the name.

He owns the Answers in Genesis Museum and the "Ark Encounter". If you want to know what Kentucky is like, consider that both of those are in the KY state.

[Cavebear]

He owns the Answers in Genesis Museum and the "Ark Encounter". If you want to know what Kentucky is like, consider that both of those are in the KY state.

I should have guessed that he was "that guy", LOL!

[Unbeliever]

Yeah, but the Ark Encounter theme park will be going under soon, I think. It was a $100 million boondoggle.

[Cavebear]

Yeah, but the Ark Encounter theme park will be going under soon, I think. It was a $100 million boondoggle.

One can only hope.  And I do!

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Sugar daddies will wing in with money, I have no doubt.