Pejorative Labels in the Name of Science

PZ Myers is at it again, calling Ken Miller a "creationist," despite the fact that Miller is an outspoken advocate of evolutionary theory and was a witness for the prosecution in the Dover trial. I think enough electronic ink has been spilled on this already, and the title of this post sums it up.

However, I will add one thing. This makes it even more obvious that those who use this misleading label to denigrate those skeptical of Darwinian theory or proponents of Intelligent Design are preferring propaganda to civil discourse. These tactics will hurt them in the long run. Their goal is to mislead the public, and the public is not going to be happy when they learn the important differences between Young Earth Creationists and those who merely question Darwinian theory on the basis of the evidence. The credibility of the scientific community will be hurt, and that is really a shame. Ironically, one might argue that these tactics represent the biggest threat to science.

Some may think this guy is just a wing nut and can be ignored, but he apparently is the writer of the #1 Science Blog (as determined by Nature).

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Update: Is the term "creationist" inherently pejorative? I discuss it briefly here.