Assertion 6.16: Evolution is the basis for laissez-faire capitalism.
Analysis:
(i) Philosopher Philip Kitcher correctly points out that evolution, like all good scientific theories, is morally neutral:
Various people have appealed to the theory of evolution to lend respectability to their appalling moral views...But this fact says very little about evolutionary theory itself. Virtually any morally neutral, or even morally good, doctrine can be misused for evil purposes. (Kitcher 1982:196)
(ii) Creationists, most of whom are fundamentalist Christians, should be able to understand the point by considering some of the horrendous moral doctrines others have taken Christianity to be their basis for, and asking whether or not this means that Christianity must therefore be evil or incorrect:
The most popular doctrine for use in rationalizing evil and immoral actions has surely been Christianity. There is a long record of brutalities and atrocities perpetrated in the name of Christ: the Crusades, the persecution of the Huguenots, periodic waves of anti-Semitism, sporadic witch burnings, the Inquisition, 300 years of Irish "troubles"; the list could go on and on. Add to this the explicit racism of some contemporary Christian sects, the repressive moral doctrines imposed by the Church at many times in the past, the denials of justice and human rights in the name of the "divine right of Christian princes."
Yet although the Christian Church has a checkered history, it is evident that Christians can claim - quite justifiably - that the evils result from perversions of religious doctrine. Evil or misguided men have twisted the Gospel to evil ends...But if charity ought to be extended to the Christian doctrine, then it is equally appropriate for evolutionary theory. Both the Bible and evolutionary theory can be misread and their principles abused. (Kitcher 1989:197-198)
(iii) The late Carl Sagan rightly explains that
Voracious robber barons may explain their cutthroat practices by an appeal to Social Darwinism...But Darwin did not make John D. Rockefeller...Greed, the Industrial Revolution, the free enterprise system, and corruption of the government by the monied are adequate to explain nineteenth-century capitalism...Very likely [this] or similar events would have transpired with or without Darwin. And modern Darwinism makes it abundantly clear that many less ruthless traits, some not always admired by robber barons...- altruism, general intelligence, compassion - may be the key to survival (Sagan 1997:260)
References
Kitcher P. 1982. Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism. Cambrdige, Mass: MIT Press.
Sagan C. 1997. The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. New York: Random House.
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