John Shimkus, R-Ill., appears to be headed for the chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce committee. This is the same John Shimkus who, at a committee meeting a year ago, quoted Genesis 8:21-22 as his grounds for not worrying about global climate change:
Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though all inclinations of his heart are evil from childhood and never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done. As long as the earth endures, seed-time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, will never cease.
After reading these verses, Shimkus said the following:
I believe that is the infallible word of god, and that’s the way it is going to be for his creation… The earth will end only when God declares its time to be over. Man will not destroy this earth. This earth will not be destroyed by a flood.
Here’s the video of the congressman’s original comments. Notice that he also says in the clip that he believes that “God’s word is infallible, unchanging, perfect.” And apparently, by Mr. Shimkus’s lights, it’s supremely profitable for energy policy guidance. Lovely. Under the new Republican regime, I eagerly await the appointment of an astrologer to chair the House Science Advisory Committee:
Update: The above video, though part of a congressional hearing, has been removed by YouTube. Shimkus’s lawyers, it would appear, are busy this morning. Anyway, here’s an article on John Shimkus. Presumably, his lawyers can’t shut down reading:
Update II: Another YouTube user has uploaded the video. How long it will be available, I don’t know. The typed-over comments are distracting, but it’s the same footage:
Update III: The original link appears to have been restored. It’s nice to see that YouTube has decided not to remove a video that obviously should belong to the public record.
Prometheus Unbound 
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