Christopher Rupe and Dr. John Sanford
In his personal prologue, John Sanford admits that he, as a mature scientist in the field of genetics, had accepted the story of human evolution without question until he determined that his own field showed the impossibility of that scenario. He collaborated to write this book because when he presents his case against evolution, as laid out in his book Genetic Entropy, people argue that he must be wrong because the fossils clearly show ape to human evolution. In tackling that topic, he answers the objection that neither he nor Christopher Rupe have PhDs in paleoanthropology by pointing out that paradigm-challenging ideas never come from within a field, where “group think” rules. The book systematically analyzes the data, picking up the thread begun in the 1992 book, Bones of Contention by Marvin Lubenow. Time has not helped the evolutionist cause. More specimens and better analytical techniques have solidified
the case.
Neanderthal has been shown to be fully human and from the archeological record, Homo erectus also makes tools, art and buries its dead, despite having physical deformities. Essentially, genus Homo, including Nadeli and “Hobbit” are all humans, some degenerate, due to small population size, inbreeding, starvation and changes in the population that result from those conditions. If you use modern forensic computer programs to reconstruct the appearance of these individuals, instead of evolutionarily biased artistic reconstructions, you get faces of people you might see on the street today.
“Lucy,” the archetypical human precursor, is a very incomplete skeleton. The hands and feet are missing and the skull and pelvis fragmented. Thus a lot of latitude was possible in the reconstruction of the anatomy. Overall, Australopithecus is clearly an ape but at this point in the narrative a more disturbing element is introduced. Some of the bones found with her seemed to belong to a Homo species. Then a track of footprints was found (far away from Lucy) and even slightly older but fully human in form. The largest would have worn a size 11 shoe and probably been over 6 feet tall. Lucy was about 3 foot even! Disputes arose about the dating but eventually the prints were attributed to Lucy’s kind. Museums today depict Lucy with human feet and hands (and a thoughtful expression on her face.) As more specimens indicated that Australopithecus had ape-like hands and feet, it was proposed that there was sexual dimorphism – the males human-like and the females apish. That ought to get a feminist response – if there is a difference in humans, usually the men are the more ape-like.
The expose of the dating controversies ought to also attract lawyers, as the dating and re-dating, rejection and rationalization of dating techniques shows that the theory drives the data rather than the other way around. Maybe psychologists ought to get in the mix too because every fossil hunter clearly thinks that his is the key discovery and bends heaven and earth to support it. Political intrigue and clever marketing are rewarded. But as a result, every time a new discovery is supported, it throws human evolution into turmoil.
After dismantling the fossil evidence, Sanford reviews the genetic evidence, which is devastating to any possible positive change and conclusive that every species is deteriorating. Having removed all other possibilities, the authors suggest the only rational conclusion: that humans did not evolve but were created. The authors deal with all the usual objections to that possibility and end with a personal appeal.
An evolutionist will have to be impressed with the extensive documentation and be led to the conclusion unwillingly, but hopefully affected by the humble expression of human concern of these two diligent authors.
The book is well illustrated and has its extensive documentation in footnotes. It was published by FMS Publications (www.contestedbones.org) in 2017, 333 pages, costing $20.00 softcover, $25.00 hardcover. It could use an index.
Ross S. Olson MD