Parliamentary science: Congress, take notice!

Using Physics to Explain Why Supporting Gay Marriage Won't Make You Burn in Hell for All Eternity

Posted by Ross Pomeroy at Tue, 23 Apr 2013 01:04:23
RealClearScience — Newton Blog

Last week, New Zealand parliament member Maurice Williamson delivered a rousing speech in favor of legalizing same sex marriage. Enlivened with humorous wit and cheery sarcasm, Williamson's words have since been heard by millions around the world via YouTube.

For me, the best moment of Williamson's speech came at about the 1:10 mark. Responding to a letter proclaiming that he would burn in the Fires of Hell for all eternity owing to his support for gay marriage, Williamson -- trained as a computer scientist and mathematician -- replied thus:

"That was a bad mistake because I've got a degree in physics. I used the thermodynamic laws of physics; I put in my body weight and my humidity and so on. I assumed the furnace to be at 5,000 degrees and I will last for just on 2.1 seconds. It's hardly eternity."

(Continued here.)