Rand Paul and the Age of the Earth--hmm.

I note that while he brushes off the age of the earth question as one he won't answer, he does respond eloquently regarding his committment to anti-abortion activism. And I think I understand why.

From the Christian home-schoolers, that question seems to have been rooted in finding out to what level Paul was willing to express his bona fides as a committed literalist Christian. Was he going to go all in and give the "Young Earth" answer? Would he invoke science?

By shrugging it off, I think he might have been tipping a hand to the recognition that he'd get flak either way he answered it. But by addressing his anti-abortion cred, he established that he was right there in the same pew in a way that spoke to policy without speaking to belief. I think that was pretty canny of him, although I of course don't share his beliefs. Me--I take it as fairly documented that the earth is about four and a half billion years old and consider that reproductive issues are for a woman to decide with her partner and her medical practioner if need be, because they are very much a part of her personal business: physically, emotionally, socially, financially and morally. So long story short--I found both his answers to the early two-part question pretty much unsatisfactory.