k v. d
I was recently reading through some of the testimony given by Dr. Michael Behe, the Lehigh biology prof who is a proponent of Intelligent Design and is serving as an expert witness for the defense in the Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District (DASD) Case.

I realize that this stuff is quite boring, but if you’re interested, here are some of my favorite parts. Make of it what you will:

(1)
discussing the textbook Of Pandas and People which has been proposed as a reference text to be made available as a part of the Dover School District’s biology curriculum for 9th graders.
Q What did you review and comment on, Professor Behe?
A I reviewed the literature concerning blood clotting, and worked with the editor on the section that became the blood clotting system. So I was principally responsible for that section.
Q So you were reviewing your own work?
A I was helping review or helping edit or helping write the section on blood clotting.
Q Which was your own contribution?
A That’s -- yes, that’s correct.
Q That’s not typically how the term "critical review"
is used; would you agree with that?
A Yeah, that’s correct.

(2)
Q I just want to get it clear here, intelligent design is about cause?
A Well, cause is a broad word, and when you re trying to explain how something came about, you can say it came about for a variety of reasons. But intelligent design is one reason or one aspect or one cause to explain how the purposeful arrangement of parts that we see did come about.
Q Back to my original question. What is the mechanism that intelligent design proposes?
A And I wonder, could -- am I permitted to know what I replied to your question the first time?
Q I don t think I got a reply, so I m asking you, you’ve made this claim here, "Intelligent design theory focuses exclusively on the proposed mechanism of how complex biological structures arose." And I want to know what is the mechanism that intelligent design proposes for how complex biological structures arose?
A Again, it does not propose a mechanism in the sense of a step-by-step description of how those structures arose. But it can infer that in the mechanism, in the process by which these structures arose, an intelligent cause was involved.
Q But it does not propose an actual mechanism?
A Again, the word "mechanism" -- the word "mechanism" can be used broadly, but no, I would not say that there was a mechanism. I would say we have an aspect of the history of the structure.

(3)
The most interesting bit for me was the excerpt from a 1999 publication of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Renewal of Science and Culture (the main outlet for ID research), where Behe is a fellow. This article discusses a "five-year strategic plan" and describes the effort to stem the tide of “scientific materialism” which is fingered as the source of materialism in our society as a whole. I honestly have no idea what that means, but here’s what the article says should be done about it:

We are building on this momentum, broadening the wedge with a positive scientific alternative to materialistic scientific theories, which has come to be called the theory of intelligent design. Design theory promises to reverse the stifling dominance of the materialist world view, and to replace it with a science consonant with Christian and theistic convictions.

For me this is scary stuff and not remotely connected to reality, but there it
is. Behe’s response to this being brought up was simply that he didn’t write it,
didn’t know who wrote it and didn’t much care that it came from his Center.