Ark Encounter news

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National and international news and views about the Answers in Genesis Ark Encounter project.

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Notes

  • Article titles in italic indicate the story appeared in the print edition.


2011

February

January

  • January 27. Anderson Cooper 360° - CNN. Atlanta, Georgia. USA. Tax incentives for Biblical theme park? with Anderson Cooper.
    Ken Ham versus Barry Lynn (American United for Separation of Church and State).
  • January 23. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor. Fairness has been lost in C-J coverage of Ark Encounter by Mark Looy. Page A4. Fairness has been lost in C-J coverage of Ark Encounter
    "The Courier-Journal seems determined to move the Ark Encounter out of state even before construction begins. In its latest two broadsides against the full-size Noah's Ark, the paper quoted theme park representatives who are skeptical about its success, and Tuesday's editorial suggested that the project is a “white elephant.” These opinions are not based on any relevant studies or hard data."
  • January 20. Boone County Recorder. Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. USA. Editorial. Tax breaks to build an ark? 'Noah' way, brother by Jim Waters. Page A13. Re-publication of Bluegrass Beacon article.
  • January 20. Boone Community Recorder. Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. USA. Editorial. Tax breaks to build an ark? 'Noah' way, brother by Jim Waters. Page A13. Re-publication of Bluegrass Beacon article.
  • January 18. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Editorial. Ark's prospects. Page A6. Ark's prospects.
    "The more that's learned about Ark Encounter — the creationist theme park planned for Northern Kentucky — the less it seems like something state government should be engaging."
  • January 17. Northern Kentucky Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. "Would you visit Ark park? by Andrew Wolfson, Louisville Courier-Journal. Pages A1 and A9.
  • January 17. Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. "Would you visit Ark park? by Andrew Wolfson, Louisville Courier-Journal. Pages A1 and A9.
  • January 17. Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Would you visit Ark Encounter park? by Andrew Wolfson, Louisville Courier-Journal.
    "Projections that 1.6 million people a year would visit Ark Encounter - the proposed Biblical theme park in Grant County to be financed in part with Kentucky tax incentives - are wildly optimistic, according to a half-dozen theme-park experts."
  • January 16. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Experts challenge vision for Ark park by Andrew Wolfson. Pages A1 and A10. Letter to the editor on page H2.
    "Projections that 1.6 million people a year will visit Ark Encounter — the proposed biblical theme park in Northern Kentucky to be financed in part with Kentucky tax incentives—are wildly optimistic, according to a half-dozen theme-park experts."
    "The experts, who include a former Disney executive and a consultant who helped start King’s Island near Cincinnati, said the project’s embrace of a literal interpretation of the Bible—that the world was created in six days and that humans co-existed with dinosaurs — likely will alienate a large part of the theme-park market, including some Christians."
  • January 15. Kentucky Academy of Science Newsletter. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Guest editorials. A Boatload of Trouble for Kentucky? by Robert Kingsolver. Page 12. Guest Editorial by Daniel Phelps. Page 13. .pdf of January newsletter
  • January 13. Phnom Penh Post. Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Going green, just like Noah. Page 11. Washington Post article.
  • January 11. The State Journal. Frankfort, Kentucky. USA. Reader contributed web news content. The Ark park question.
  • January 10. The State Journal. Frankfort, Kentucky. USA. Free Ride for the ark? Noah way! Page A4. Louisville Courier-Journal editorial.
  • January 10. Guardian. London, England. Putting the fun in US fundamentalism by Theo Hobson.
    "Last month, the state of Kentucky gave the go-ahead for a new Christian theme park, whose centrepiece will be a reconstruction of Noah's ark. The megaboat will, of course, be built to biblical specs – why tamper with God's foray into ship design? It will be about 500ft long, and house large live animals including giraffes, and (non-live) dinosaurs. Ark Encounter will be open for business in 2014, global weather permitting."
  • January 10. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor. Some scientists also embrace creationism by David Menton, Andrew Snelling and Georgia Purdom. Page A7. Some scientists also embrace creationism.
    "For one, the guest columnist, Roger Guffey, claimed there were no "serious" scientists who are creationists. We are full-time Ph.D. researchers with the Creation Museum and Answers in Genesis in Northern Kentucky, and we will be helping to design the full-scale Noah's Ark and other attractions to be built north of Lexington."
  • January 10. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Tennessee, Kentucky have different approach to biblical parks by Linda B. Blackford.
    "WILLIAMSTOWN — Residents of this small Grant County town are preparing to welcome a new amusement park in 2014 featuring a life-size Noah's Ark, which some believe will transform the area's economic landscape with hotels, restaurants and tourists."
  • January 9. Denver Post. Denver, Colorado. USA. Biblical attractions R us by Ed Quillen.
    "States compete viciously for tourism dollars, so I started to worry about Colorado's economic future when I read about a planned tourist attraction in Kentucky that will get some state tax breaks. It's a theme park called "Ark Encounter," which will feature, among other things, a replica of Noah's Ark built to biblical specifications, complete with animals."
  • January 9. Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. USA. Create this by Charles P. Pierce, author of Idiot America.
    "Dear Steve Beshear: As you may or may not know, a while back I paid a visit to the Creation Museum, which was built in that part of Kentucky that we occasional visitors like to call “up by Cincinnati.” I enjoyed the dinosaur with the saddle. I also enjoyed the animatronic Moses who spoke in a dialect that I believe was concocted for a high school production of Fiddler on the Roof staged by a Christian academy somewhere in South Dakota. Now, though, I see, as governor, you’ve given your blessing – and some fat tax incentives – to those same people so they can build a Noah’s Ark theme park. (I particularly like the proposed 100-foot Tower of Babel. Will there be a restaurant? Will the waiter understand my order?) I have to say I’m not surprised, since Kentucky is not unfamiliar with acts of public devotion. After all, your state already has Churchill Downs and Keeneland, where the name of the Deity is frequently invoked, particularly at the quarter-pole, albeit often in vain. Well, now, one loopy religious entertainment complex is a fluke. Two is a development strategy. So don’t stop here. Go full-metal Scripture: the Walls of Jericho Casino, where, every time a player hits a jackpot at the slots, somebody blows a trumpet and a wall falls down. Out along the highway would be a good place for the Sodom and Gomorrah Adult Entertainment Complex. Brimstone falls every day at 6, just like the volcano eruptions out at the Mirage."
  • January 9. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Will it float? It's difficult to fathom by Linda B. Blackford. Pages A1 & A7.
  • January 8. The Guardian. Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Canada. Noah's Ark theme park has preliminary approval. Page C4. Associated Press.
  • January 8. TreeHugger.com. New York City, New York. USA. With a Super Green Noah's Ark Theme Park, Conservative Christians Embrace Environmentalism by Alex Davies.
    "Conservative religion and environmentalism are often seen as mutually exclusive. They're filed under right wing and left wing, along with issues such as evolution, creationism and birth control. But as more and more religious leaders are calling on their followers to protect the environment, a new biblical theme park is challenging those categories by using a wide range of sustainable technologies to make itself one of the greenest new attractions in the US."
  • January 7. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Ark Encounter to build 'green' from ground up by Philip Kennicott, Washington Post. Page A1 and A2. Support ark park by Pat Moran. Page A10. Letter to the editor.
  • January 7. Hamilton Journal News. Hamilton, Ohio. USA. Noah’s Ark park will mislead our schoolchildren by J.K. Bhattacharjee, G.R. Janssen and T.G. Gregg.
    "Ark Encounter, a planned theme park of Answers in Genesis (the Creation Museum) of Northern Kentucky and Ark Encounter LLC of Louisville, will hijack science. The centerpiece of their effort is an attack on evolution itself. Here we go again."
  • January 6. The Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. USA. Ark won’t float on tax dollars by Mark Looy.
    "While the Vindicator can’t be expected to fact check editorials that appear in other newspapers and later show up in The Vindicator, it can lead to a major problem."
  • January 6. Age of Engagement blog. New York City, New York. USA. The Rise of Innovation Conservatives and Energy Conscious Creationists by Matthew C. Nisbet.
    "As Kennicott profiles, the Christian fundamentalist group behind the Creationist Museum in Kentucky have plans to build a LEED certified "Ark Encounter" theme park that will feature geothermal heating, rainwater capture, active and passive solar heating and specialized window glazing. Even the 500-foot-long ark, the largest timber-framed structure in America, will use sustainable heating, cooling, and lighting designed to reduce energy use, reports Kennicott."
    "Ark Encounter represents the outcome of a shift in how Christians think of two basic biblical ideas: dominion and stewardship, notes Kennicott. This theological shift along with the perceived economic advantages of innovation constitute new common ground for engaging organizations and communities dismissive of climate change on the problem of energy insecurity."
  • January 6. Mother Nature Network blog. USA. Environmental and social responsibility news site. LEED for arks? by Melissa Hincha-Owenby.
    "The new project is just part of a growing trend of environmentalism among religious groups, including evangelical Christians, despite the fact that some are self-proclaimed climate change skeptics. Mike Zovath, senior vice president of Answers in Genesis, is one such skeptic. In an article for The Washington Post, Zovath discusses his views on green building."
  • January 6. World Interior Design Network. London, England. Ark Encounter in US to flaunt green design elements.
    "Answers in Genesis has announced that The Ark Encounter, a giant model of Noah’s Ark in a Christian-themed amusement park in Northern Kentucky, will be designed to be one of the largest green construction projects in the US."
    "Answers in Genesis, the organization behind the construction of the massive full-scale Noah’s Ark, has stated that the project will take full advantage of the latest environmental technologies to be good stewards of creation. The 500ft-long wooden ark is expected to become the largest timber-frame structure in the US."
  • January 6. Toledo Blade. Toledo, Ohio. USA. Letters to the editor. Taxpayers won't pay for ark by Mark Looy.
    "Your Jan. 3 editorial "Biblical outrage" incorrectly stated that Kentucky taxpayers would subsidize the operation of the Ark Encounter, a themed attraction featuring a full-size Noah's Ark in northern Kentucky."
    "The only people to pay for the ark's operation will be Ark Encounter visitors, who will pay sales tax as they purchase tickets and food at the attraction. If the ark's application is approved, Kentucky will rebate a portion of the sales tax to the for-profit Ark Encounter LLC, based on attendance performance."
  • January 6. Washington Post. Washington, D.C. USA. Style section. Green architecture: It's officially a flood. by Philip Kennicott. Page 1, C1, & C8.
  • January 5. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. USA. WHAT 2 WATCH 4 by The Staff.
    "It may be weeks or even months before dirt is moved on a 800-acre site off Ky. 36 in Williamstown, but a full-scale replica of Noah’s Ark is in the works."
    "In 2009, the Grant County Industrial Development Authority began working with developers on the $150 million project which is expected to bring 900 full and part-time jobs to Grant County when the tourist attractions opens in 2014."
  • January 5. Scripturosity blog. USA. Biblical Relevance in Today’s World: The “Ark Encounter” Theme Park by Marc Jacobs.
    "The recent unveiling of development plans for a new theme park in Kentucky has sent the media ticker-tape screaming off the reel. The December 1, 2010 project announcement was attended by the Governor of Kentucky along with representatives from the Christian organization and architectural brain-trust, Answers in Genesis."
  • January 5. Washington Post. Washington, D.C. USA. Noah's Ark replica shows conservative Christians are embracing green building by Philip Kennicott.
    "When the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky., opened on Memorial Day 2007, temperatures inside the 100,000-square-foot complex began to spike. Huge crowds of warm bodies will do that to an HVAC system, and it took months of tweaking through the museum's first hot summer to get the system working properly."
    "Mike Zovath, senior vice president of Answers in Genesis, the organization that built the Creation Museum, says he has learned his lesson. As a consortium that includes his group prepares to break ground this spring on a biblical theme park called Ark Encounter, which will include a replication of Noah's Ark built according to the dimensions given in the Book of Genesis, it is turning to the latest trends in "green" architecture. Scheduled to open in 2014, Ark Encounter will include environmentally sustainable technology "from Day One," Zovath said, and will be built by a firm that specializes in LEED-certified construction and design, the industry standard for environmentally efficient buildings."
  • January 4. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. USA. Letter to the editor. Re: Ark Encounter by Mark Looy. Page B6.
  • January 4. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. USA. Letter to the editor. Re: Ark Encounter by Mark Looy.
    "Some basic research by the Post-Gazette would have revealed that its Dec. 29 editorial was incorrect in stating that Kentucky taxpayers would be subsidizing the operation of the Ark Encounter, a themed attraction featuring a full-size Noah's Ark in northern Kentucky."
  • January 4. The Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. USA. Tea party should be outraged. Reprint of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article.
    "Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: If ever there was a boondoggle worthy of tea party outrage, it would be the public dollars that might go into subsidies for a creationist theme park."
    "On Dec. 20 the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority gave preliminary approval for up to $43 million in tax incentives to help fund an attraction in Grant County based on the Genesis story of Noah’s ark."
  • January 3. Toledo Blade. Toledo, Ohio. USA. Biblical outrage. Page A6. Reprint of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial. Biblical outrage.
    "IF EVER a boondoggle was worthy of Tea Partiers' pitchforks and torches, millions of dollars in possible taxpayer subsidies for a creationist theme park in Kentucky should be at the top of the list."
  • January 3. Neue Zuercher Zeitung. Zurich, Switzerland. Kentucky baut eine Arche Noah by Roman Elsener. Page 16.
    "Nicht nur im Gebirge Ararat, wo Noah mit seiner Familie und den Tieren der Welt nach einem Jahr und zehn Tagen Sintflut endlich aufgesetzt haben soll, kann heute seine Arche gesucht werden. In Kentucky wurden im Dezember Pläne bekannt, wonach eine 150 Meter lange Replik von Noahs Schiff Kernattraktion eines Erlebnisparks werden soll. Umgeben wird das Schiff gemäss den Plänen des Unternehmens Arkencounter («Archenbegegnung») mit einem Bibelpark, inklusive des Turmes zu Babel, einem Spezialeffekt-Kino und einem Zoo."
  • January 1. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor. Ark story universal by Rev. Leroy Hammond. Page A11.
  • January 1. Odessa American. Odessa, Texas. USA. Odessan helps rebuild Noah's Ark by Lyxan Toledanes.
    "Amongst the rolling hills of northern Kentucky, the age-old tale of Noah and the ark will soon come to life. In a new venture by 1968 Permian graduate Cary Summers, the legendary ark will be recreated for the new Bible-based theme park, Ark Encounter."
    "In development for five years, Ark Encounter’s primary feature will be the 500-foot-long and 45-foot-tall all-wood ark rising high above the landscape and the surrounding ancient Middle-Eastern-inspired village."

2010

December

  • December 31. Gather.com. Boston, Massachusetts. USA. Ark Encounter Theme Park Unveiled, Taxpayers to Pay (Video) by Dexter X. South.
    "The new Ark Encounter theme park plans have been unveiled amid controversy. The biblically correct theme park wants taxpayer funds to make it profitable. Some conservatives and atheists join hands to protest the new addition to the Creation Museum."
  • December 30. MSNBC.com. New York City, New York. USA. Noah's Ark theme park plan still afloat despite a deluge of criticism by Jim Gold.
    "You won't have to take the Bible literally to be swept away by a full-size replica of Noah's ark, says the creationist ministry intent on building one in Kentucky with state aid."
    "Nor will you have to be a true believer to work at the 800-acre park near Williamstown, about 65 miles northeast of Louisville and roughly midway between Lexington, Ky., and Cincinnati, just off Interstate 75."
  • December 29. National Center for Science Education - NCSE. Oakland, California. USA. Inroads for the ark park?
    "The developers proposing to build a creationist theme park in northern Kentucky are now asking the state to improve a highway interchange to accommodate the park's expected visitors, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal (December 23, 2010). A spokesperson for the state Transportation Cabinet commented, "At this point, no commitments have been made." Although it is not yet known how much the proposed improvements would cost, the spokesperson noted that the state spent $45 million on road improvements to accommodate traffic at the Kentucky Speedway in northern Kentucky, which opened in 2000."
  • December 29. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Editorial: A costly modern Ark.
    "Ark Encounter, the creationism theme park proposed for Northern Kentucky, looms as a more expensive proposition than state officials first suggested."
  • December 29. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. A costly modern Ark. Page A6.
    "Ark Encounter, the creationism theme park proposed for Northern Kentucky, looms as a more expensive proposition than state officials first suggested."
  • December 29. The Economist. New York City, New York. USA. Christian theme park: Noah Problem.
    "THE cubit is not merely an obsolete unit; it is also an imprecise one. One cubit is the length of a man’s arm from elbow to fingertips, but different people have different-sized arms, so cubits range from 17.5 to 20.6 inches (44.5 to 52.3cm). Whichever length one plumps for, however, a boat 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high is undeniably immense. Yet if all goes according to plan, some time in 2011 a team of Amish builders will begin constructing such a boat on an 800-acre (324-hectare) plot of land in Grant County, Kentucky."
  • December 29. Atlantic Wire. Washington, D.C. USA. Kentucky Creationist Museum Will Feature Dragons, Unicorns by Max Fisher.
    "Kentucky's state-backed $150 million creationist theme park, The Ark Encounter, will allow visitors to explore a literal interpretation of the Bible's story of Noah and the ark. But pseudonymous liberal Kentucky blogger Media Czech raises two important questions about that interpretation and how it will be manifest in theme park form. First, were there dinosaurs on the original ark? Second, what about unicorns?"
  • December 27. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to editor. Ark will generate jobs, tax revenue at no risk to state by Steve Stevens, president Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. Page A9.
  • December 27. Profile. Kiev, Ukraine. Russian language version of German Der Spiegel magazine. ДИНОЗАВРЫ НА БОРТУ by Vladimir Shirokov.
    "Инструкция для судостроителей была не слишком подробной: "Сделай себе ковчег из дерева гофер, осмоли его смолою. И сделай его так: длина ковчега - 300 локтей, ширина его - 50 локтей, а высота его - 30 локтей. И сделай отверстие в ковчеге. Устрой в нем нижнее, второе и третье жилье". Так - в сокращенном изложении - говорится в первой книге Моисея, Бытии, в шестой главе. Вскоре по завершению строительства Ной вместе с семьей, скотом и "всеми пресмыкающимися" отправился в плавание по водам потопа."
  • December 27. Examiner.com. USA. Creationism Examinor. Ark Encounter project moving forward by Terry Hurlbut.
    "The Ark Encounter project, a theme park with a full-scale replica of Noah's Ark as its central attraction, has recently won preliminary approval of its asked-for tax incentives, while the controversy over those incentives, and the policy behind them, continues."
  • December 26. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Opinions. How about tax incentives for museum about evolution, natural history? by Roger Guffey. Page D2.
  • December 24. Bild. Berlin, Germany. Christlicher Themenpark in Kentucky geplant by Anna Löhlein.
    "Eine Bibelstunde im Freizeitpark? Klingt absurd, ist es aber nicht. Der US-Bundesstaat Kentucky plant einen christlichen Themenpark. Die Hauptattraktion: die Arche Noah in Originalgröße! Im kommenden Jahr starten die Bauarbeiten, im Frühling 2014 heißt es dann: Arche ahoi!"
  • December 24. FoxNews.com. New York City, New York. USA. Critics Blast Potential Taxpayer Funding of Noah's Ark Theme Park
    "The planned construction of Ark Encounter, a creationist theme park in Kentucky that could be eligible for millions of dollars in tax incentives, has come under fire from critics who say it would rupture the wall of separation between church and state."
  • December 24. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Road Work sought near Ark park by Stephenie Steitzer. Page B1 & B7.
  • December 24. Dakota Voice. Rapid City, South Dakota. USA. Anti-Christian Group Attacks Ark Encounter by Bob Ellis.
    "Fox News is reporting on the ongoing war on Christian freedom of religious expression perpetrated by “Reverend” Barry Lynn’s Americans United for Separation of Church and State organization."
  • December 23. Basler Zeitung. Basel, Switzerland. Disneyland für Biblefromme by Dietmar Ostermann.
  • December 22. Tagesschau. Hamburg, Germany. German television and radio news service. Kentucky streitet über biblischen Erlebnispark by Sabine Müller. Radio broadcast of story
    "Die christliche Organisation "Answers in Genesis" will im US-Bundesstaat Kentucky einen "Arche Noah"-Erlebnispark bauen - inklusive 150 Meter langem Nachbau des Schiffes mit Schauspielern und Tierpaaren. Lebende Dinosaurier werden auf der Arche aber wohl nicht zu sehen sein."
  • December 22. Berliner Zeitung. Berlin, Germany. Disneyland für Fundamentalisten by Dietmar Ostermann.
    "Der schmale Feldweg führt über sanfte Hügel auf ein ausgreifendes Plateau. Längst ist der Highway 75 nicht mehr zu sehen, nur von ferne hört man noch den Motorenlärm. Auch Williamstown ist aus dem Blick verschwunden, Dünner Schnee liegt auf den Wiesen, eine alte Planierraupe steht einsam unter einem Baum. Investoren wollten hier, im Norden Kentuckys, an der Autobahn zwischen Lexington und Cincinnati, mal einen Golfplatz anlegen. Dann kam die Wirtschaftskrise. Jetzt gibt es neue Pläne für die verlassene Farm: Ein Mekka des christlichen Tourismus soll hier entstehen, ein Disneyland für Bibelfromme, wo sich Spaß und Religion mischen. Zu Eintrittspreisen von 30 Dollar aufwärts."
  • December 22. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Editorial. Danger of getting Zapped. Page A12.
  • December 21. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Incentives progress for park, track by Beth Musgrave. Page A1 & A5.
  • December 20. Rheinische Post. Düsseldorf, Germany. Biblisches Disneyland by Frank Herrmann.
  • December 20. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor. Tax incentives for Ark park hurt interfaith efforts by Rev. Cynthia Cain (Unitarian Universalist

church), Rabbi Marc Kline (Temple Adath Israel), and Rev Mark D. Johnson (Central Baptist Church). Page A11.

  • December 19. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor.Ark theme park will offer good-paying jobs, improve Ky. economy by Cary Summers. Page D2.
  • December 18. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Letter to the editor. Ark park misguide by Billy Ray Wilson. Page A11.
  • December 18. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. State cited feasibility study it hadn't seen on Ark Park by Linda B. Blackford. Page A1 & A12.
  • December 18. Der Standard. Vienna, Austria. Noahs biblisches Disneyland in Kentucky by Frank Herrmann, p.5.
    "Eine fundamentalistische Sekte errichtet in einem ausgestorbenen Nest in Kentucky eine 150 Meter lange Arche Noah samt Vergnügungspark. Der Bibel-Tourismus soll Leben und Arbeitsplätze in die Region bringen."
  • December 17. Baublatt. Rüschlikon, Switzerland. Swiss building trade website. Noahs Arche strandet in den USA.
    "Ein Themenpark mit Noahs Arche und einem Turm zu Babel soll im US-Bundesstaat Kentucky Familien nicht nur Vergnügen bieten, sondern auch Gross und Klein für die Bibel begeistern. Doch dem Projekt weht ein eisiger Wind entgegen."
  • December 17. Der Standard. Vienna, Austria. Vor Ort in Noahs biblischem Disneyland by Frank Herrmann.
    "Das also soll er sein, der Berg Ararat. Im Tal gurgelt ein Bach. Oben auf der Kuppe verrostet ein Bulldozer, seit die Finanzkrise den Plan für einen Golfplatz durchkreuzte. In der Ferne ragen die Kirchturmspitzen der Kleinstadt Williamstown in den blassblauen Dezemberhimmel, ein Gotteshaus neben dem anderen."
  • December 17. Wall Street Journal. New York City, New York. USA. Rebuilding Noah's Ark, Tax-Free by Wilfred M. McClay. Houses of Worship opinion column. p. A17.
  • December 17. Pharyngula blog. Morris, Minnesota. USA. The latest ark news from Kentucky by PZ Myers.
    "There is some faint concern from the Kentucky governor that the Ark theme park will discriminate in hiring — I doubt that it will become a major sticking point. But still, it's true, they will be selective in their hiring based on religious belief. They say that isn't true, but one thing we know about creationists is that they lie."
  • December 17. The Week. New York City, New York. USA. The Week contest: Theme Park - January 7, 2011.
    "This week's question: Kentucky is planning to open a creationist theme park anchored by a giant Noah’s Ark, which the governor hopes will draw over a million visitors a year. Please come up with a theme park befitting another state."
  • December 17. Unreasonable Faith blog. USA. Ark Encounters by Daniel Florien.
    "I’ve been watching the story of the Noah’s Ark Park with trepidation. For those who haven’t heard, the group Answers in Genesis, run by Ken Ham, are planning to build an amusement park based around the story of Noah in Kentucky. The centerpiece will be a full-scale model of Noah’s Ark. As the plans go, the ark will house a museum promoting a literal reading of Genesis. I’m guessing it will be a condensed version of their Creation Museum."
  • December 16. Stavanger Aftenblad. Stavanger, Norway. Noas ark, med dinosaurer by Sven Egil Omdal. Kultur section, p. 31.
    "CHARLES DARWIN kom aldri til Petersburg, Kentucky. Der vet de likevel hvordan artene oppsto: I løpet av én uke for 6000 år siden. Fra mandag til lørdag ble alt skapt, og mens Herren hvilte på den sjuende dag vandret dinosaurene sammen med de første menneskene i Edens hage. Det kan alle se, som kommer til Skapelsesmuseet i byen. Siden åpningen i 2007, har 1,2 millioner løst billett. Og når Noas ark – i full størrelse – blir ferdig i 2014, kommer den til å romme både triceratopser og stegosaurer, formodentlig to av hvert slag. I Petersburg, Kentucky tar de skapelsesberetningen på alvor, i den grad at de lager fornøyelsespark av den. "
  • December 16. Wall Street Journal. New York City, New York. USA. Houses of Worship opinion column. Rebuilding Noah's Ark, Tax-Free by Wilfred M. McClay.
    "When state governments cause controversy by offering money to local businesses, the story usually involves corruption, kickbacks, log-rolling, or insider favors. Rare is the scandal that centers on a proposed full-sized, "biblically correct" replica of Noah's Ark—but that's the situation today in Kentucky."
    "On Dec. 1, Kentucky Gov. Steven L. Beshear announced that the state would provide tax incentives to support the construction of Ark Encounter, a sprawling theme park on 800 acres of rural Grant County. Under Kentucky's Tourism Development Act, the state can compensate approved businesses for as much as a quarter of their development costs, using funds drawn out of sales-tax receipts. It's a considerable sweetener to promote development and jobs."
  • December 14. USA Today - Travel. McLean, Virginia. USA. Are religion and theme parks a good mix? by Jayne Clark.
    "Plans for a religious theme park featuring a Noah's Ark of biblical proportions has generated controversy since it was announced that the project would receive $35 million in tax rebates."
    "Ark Encounter, a $150 million theme park that will present a literal interpretation of the Book of Genesis, is set to open in 2014 in Grant County, Ky., southwest of Cincinnati. It has the support of Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear, who argues that it's an entertainment, not a religious complex, that will create jobs and attract 1.6 million visitors a year."
  • December 13. British Centre for Science Education blog. United Kingdom. British anti-creationist/ID website. Answers in Genesis – Down and Out in the UK? by Roger Stanyard.
    "Answers in Genesis USA has moved from an $8 million a year operation to an expected $40 million a year set up. Its new 'creation museum' in Kentucky has been a huge “success” and it is now launching a stupendously tacky $150 million 'Ark Encounter' theme park. It has become the dominant creationist organisation world wide and its head, Ken Ham, is now 'Mr Big' (by a long margin) of the creationist movement. We expect further developments – perhaps a TV channel distributed world-wide or even attempts to replicate the Ark/museum set up in Europe. It is clear from comments by Answers in Genesis that Ark Encounter will be marketed internationally."
    "Answers in Genesis has become an international mega-church; its church buildings are theme parks; it's head a theologically unqualified and unordained autocrat unaccountable to its congregation, its ambitions, theocracy. As its absurd name implies, it is a church that worships the Bible, not God. A sink of ideology, scientific and theological ignorance and bigotry. A very dangerous combination, indeed."
  • December 13. World News Report. Prague, Czech Republic. EIN Presswire. Ark Encounter to Receive Kentucky Tax Incentives by EIN Presswire.
    "In an attempt to combat joblessness and decreasing revenues, the state of Kentucky has given tax incentives to a group of entrepreneurs that plans on making a biblical theme park centered around a life-sized replica of Noah's Ark."
  • December 13. Dayton Daily News. Dayton, Ohio. USA. Incentives for religious theme park fuel controversy by Randy Tucker.
    "The building of the original ark didn’t require $35 million in tax rebates."
    "Then again, the original ark wasn’t slated to attract 1.6 million visitors a year."
  • December 13. Newsweek. New York City, New York. USA. Scopes Index -- Politics, p. 13. Short paragraph comparing news of Ark Encounter to other events.
  • December 12. Star Tribune. Minneapolis, Minnesota. USA. Creationism meets the Constitution by Laura Goodstein, New York Times article. Page A19.
  • December 12. TAZ.de. Berlin, Germany. Staatshilfe für Noahs Arche.
    "BERLIN taz | Was macht der Gouverneur von Kentucky, um die Arbeitslosenquote in dem US-Bundesstaat zu senken? Er lässt eine Arche errichten und bietet den Investoren massive Steuererleichterungen an."
  • December 12. entreCristianos. Madrid, Spain. Spanish Christian website. Construyen Arca de Noe en dimensiones reales.
    "El parque temático se construirá en el estado Kentucky en los Estados Unidos. Será el parque bíblico más grande del mundo y tendrá una réplica del Arca de Noé con las dimensiones exactas."
  • December 12. Haaretz. Tel Aviv, Israel. תיבת נח תציל גם את מובטלי קנטקי.
    "מושל קנטקי מצא פתרון לגל האבטלה הגואה במדינה: שחזור של תיבת נח. המדינה מבטיחה תמריצי מס נדיבים לקבוצת יזמים המתכננים לשחזר את תיבת נח בגודל מלא, למלא אותה בבעלי חיים ובשחקנים, ולהפוך אותה לאטרקציה המרכזית בפארק שעשועים שיציג נושאים מהתנ"ך ומהברית החדשה."
  • December 11. O Barriga Verde. Florianópolis, Brazil. Grupo criacionista vai reconstruir Arca de Noé by Paula Rothman.
    "Parque temático criacionista, o Ark Encounter terá atrações para crianças e adultos, sendo seu grande destaque uma réplica em tamanho real da Arca de Noé. O projeto é parceria entre a empresa privada Ark Encounter e a organização Answers in Genesis, um grupo que defende o criacionismo e está por trás do Museu da Criação (Creation Museum), nos Estados Unidos. "
  • December 11. The Miami Herald. Miami, Florida. USA. In Kentuckly, Noah's Ark theme park is planned by Laurie Goodstein, New York Times, p. 5B.
  • December 11. Taranaki Daily News. New Plymouth, New Zealand. Ark builder about to recreate Noah's vision. New York Times article, p. 11.
  • December 11. The Dominion Post. Wellington, New Zealand. Ark builder about to recreate Noah's vision. New York Times article, p. A24.
  • December 11. The Press. Christchurch, New Zealand. Ark builder about to re-create Noah's vision on a Kentucky ridge. New York Times article, p. B7.
  • December 10. Die Welt. Berlin, Germany. Keine Steuern für die Arche Noah by Uwe Schmitt.
    "Unter den US-Bundesstaaten, die in Verschuldung und Arbeitslosigkeit ertrinken, findet Kentucky den schöpferischsten Ausweg: Der Staat will eine gewaltige Replik der Arche Noah bauen lassen, sie mit Schauspielern und manierlichen, (aus Platzgründen) halbwüchsigen Tierpaaren beleben, 900 Arbeitsplätze schaffen und 1,6 Millionen Besucher im ersten Jahr vor Sintflut und Langeweile retten. Kentucky ist bereit, den 150 Millionen Dollar teuren Themenpark Ark Encounter mit 37,5 Millionen Dollar Steuernachlass zu fördern. Wer könnte, in Gottes Namen, etwas dagegen einwenden?"
  • December 10. The Jewish Chronicle. London, England. New Noah's Ark--in Kentucky by Leon Symons, p. 19.
  • December 10. Science. Washington, D.C. USA. American Association for the Advancement of Science-AAAS. ScienceInsider. Subscription required for access to article.
    "The president of the Kentucky Paleontological Society has criticized the state's involvement with plans by a company to build Ark Encounter, a $150 million biblical amusement park related to Noah's Ark that will include models of dinosaurs. Daniel Phelps says the project, which may be eligible for up to $37.5 million in tax breaks if built, amounts to “government entanglement with religion” and could make the state unattractive to scientists and technically minded individuals."
  • December 10. The New American. Grand Chute, Wisconsin. USA. Magazine website. Planned Noah’s Ark Theme Park in Kentucky Draws Praise, Criticism by Dave Bohon.
    "A planned $150 million theme park in northern Kentucky, to be called the “Ark Encounter,” is prompting cheers from Bible-believing Christians and gasps of alarm from secularists who fear the attraction may cross the supposed line of “separation between church and state."
  • December 9. Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. Washington, D.C. USA. Separation of church and state advocacy website. Noah's Ark Theme Park Update by Don Byrd.
  • December 9. Evangelici.net. Italy. Italian Christian website. Usa, l'arca di Noè spacca il Kentucky by Anna Guaita. From Il Messaggero Italian newspaper.
    "Sarà lunga 150 metri, costruita a mano e fatta interamente di legno, e porterà a bordo coppie di animali, proprio come il modello biblico a cui si ispira. La novella "arca di Noè" che viene costruita nel Kentucky vuole essere un'iniziativa turistica, ma sta causando un gran discutere al livello politico. Il costo dell’arca, circa 150 milioni di dollari, sarà in parte sostenuto dalle casse dello Stato del Kentucky, e questo fa gridare allo scandalo i laici e gli scienziati, perché di fatto in tal modo si viola il primo Emendamento della Costituzione americana che richiede la separazione di Stato e Chiesa."
  • December 9. The Detroit News. Detroit, Michigan. USA. Ky. gov floats noah's ark park as job vehicle by Laurie Goodstein, p. 22A. New York Times article.
  • December 9. Irish Independent. Dublin, Ireland. Sideline by Will Pavia, p. 37.
    "When Noah built his Ark there were, according to Jewish tradition, many nay-sayers. Now that Mike Zovath has announced his intention to rebuild it upon a ridge in Kentucky, to the exact proportions described in the Bible, he faces similar dissent."
  • December 9. The National Interest blog. Washington, D.C. USA. Religion, the Stimulant of the People by Paul R. Pillar.
    "The state of Kentucky is providing major tax incentives for the development of a Bible-based theme park called Ark Encounter. The featured attraction at the park will be a rendition of Noah's ark, complete with an on-board menagerie. The park also will include a Tower of Babel and special effects depicting the ten plagues and the parting of the Red Sea. The park was conceived by, and has an ownership relationship with, the same Christian ministry that built the Creation Museum, also in Kentucky. That museum has evolution-denying exhibits that depict humans and dinosaurs living together on an earth that God created in six days. The tax incentives, which will enable the developers of Ark Encounter to recoup as much as a quarter of their investment, have raised the issue of separation of church and state, given that it constitutes major public support for a facility that promotes a specific religious message. The governor of Kentucky downplays the issue and says the public support is all about creating jobs."
  • December 9. BigPond News. Australia. Internet service provider portal. Biblical theme park planned for US.
    "In the world of theme parks there is a brand new attraction being planned for Kentucky in the United States."
  • December 9. NKY.com. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Beshear: Contract will ban discrimination at ark park by Amanda Van Benschoten.
    "Gov. Steve Beshear said Thursday that he will require the state’s contract with developers of a Noah’s Ark-based theme park in Northern Kentucky to prohibit the project from receiving state tax incentives if there is discrimination in hiring based on religion or other attributes."
  • December 9. Barefoot and Progressive blog. Kentucky. USA. Beshear speaks with WFPL about Kentucky's Flintstone Truther Park by Media Czech.
    "Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear sat down with WFPL today and took questions about Ark Encounter, the new park that will teach children that a 600 year old man herded T-Rexes onto a boat 4000 years ago and we're giving $37.5 million in tax breaks to."
  • December 9. WFPL-FM, 89.3, NPR. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Audio of interview with Governor Beshear. Ask the Governor by Laura Ellis. Comments on Ark Encounter project begins at 21:29 minutes, ends at 29:07.
    "STATE OF AFFAIRS 12/09/10: He’s been in the news lately for trying to prevent layoffs, responding to the Passport audit, and announcing a theme park which has gotten some national attention too – maybe you heard about it? Thursday, Governor Steve Beshear joins us to talk about these and other goings-on in the Commonwealth, and to take your questions. Join us with your thoughts."
  • December 9. WFPL-FM, 89.3, NPR. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Beshear Says Ark Encounter Operators Must Follow Hiring Laws by Gabe Bullard.
    "Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear says a proposed Biblically-themed amusement park will have to follow state hiring laws in order to receive tax incentives."
    "The park is expected to receive about 37.5 million dollars in tax incentives. On WFPL’s State of Affairs Thursday, Beshear said the park will generate jobs, but the developers cannot discriminate based on religion or any other criteria when hiring."
  • December 9. NKY.com. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Beshear says Ark park contract will prohibit religious discrimination by Joseph Gerth, Louisville, Courier-Journal.
    "Gov. Steve Beshear said Thursday that he will require the state’s contract with developers of a Noah’s Ark-based theme park in Northern Kentucky to prohibit the project from receiving state tax incentives if there is discrimination in hiring based on religion or other attributes."
  • December 9. Al Jazeera. Qatar. Opinion piece. Beware of gift bearing Libertarians by Cliff Schecter.
    "Imagine, if you will, an amusement park set to open in the not-too-distant future. But instead of roller coasters and cotton candy, this one will have"juvenile giraffes" and odes to the good ole days. Which to the founders of this wonderland occurred about 6,000 years ago, when man and T-Rex blithely roamed the Earth together."
  • December 9. Die Welt. Berlin, Germany. US-Staat droht Klageflut wegen Arche-Noah-Park by Uwe Schmitt.
    "Unter den US-Bundesstaaten, die in Verschuldung und Arbeitslosigkeit ertrinken, findet Kentucky den schöpferischsten Ausweg: Man will eine gewaltige Replik der Arche Noah bauen lassen, sie mit Schauspielern und manierlichen, (aus Platzgründen) halbwüchsigen Tierpaaren beleben, 900 Arbeitsplätze schaffen und 1,6 Millionen Besucher im ersten Jahr vor Sintflut und Langeweile retten. Kentucky ist bereit, den 150 Millionen Dollar teuren Themenpark „Ark Encounter“ mit 37,5 Millionen Dollar Steuernachlaß zu fördern. Wer könnte, in Gottes Namen, etwas dagegen einwenden?"
  • December 9. NewsComAu. Sydney, Australia. Australian news website. Outrage over plans for Noah's Ark theme park by Kate Midena.
    "CRITICS are up in arms over a US company's plan to build a 7481 square-metre full-scale replica of Noah's Ark."
  • December 8. Conservative Declaration blog. USA. Steven’s Ark by Griffin Voorhees.
  • December 8. Exploring Our Matrix blog. USA. Science Theme Park by Dr. James F. McGrath.
    "Sandra Dutton suggests that a science-focused theme park would be a good response to the Noah's Ark Theme Park that Answers in Genesis is planning to build. I know that Indianapolis' wonderful Children's Museum includes a number of great science-related components and activities, including a mock fossil dig. But I can't think of a full-fledged science theme park."
  • December 8. El Correa blog. Calle Pintor Losada, Spain. Kentucky podría destinar 37,5 millones de dólares a la construcción de un parque temático del Arca de Noé by Luis Alfonso Gámez.
    "Los promotores de un nuevo parque de temático creacionista que se abrirá en Kentucky (Estados Unidos) podrían recibir en diez años 37,5 millones de dólares de las arcas públicas como incentivos para la promoción del turismo, según The Courier-Journal. El gobernador del Estado, el demócrata Steve Beshear, está entusiasmado con la idea, ya que cree que el Encuentro en el Arca, como se llamará el complejo, se convertirá en un foco de atracción del turismo familiar. El responsable político cuantifica en 900 los puestos de trabajo que se crearán, y la organización creacionista Answers in Genesis (Respuestas en el Génesis), que está detrás del proyecto, asegura que el parque recibirá 1,6 millones de visitantes en su primer año. "
  • December 8. Newser. Chicago, Illinois. USA. News gathering website. Sink the $40M Tax Break for Noah's Ark Park by Mary Papenfuss.
    "Much more exciting: A Scientology galactic park at taxpayer expense"
    "Kentucky's plan to grant a $40 million tax break to a Noah's Ark theme park is roiling waters as far away as Los Angeles. The $150 million "Ark Encounter" park, featuring a three-story-high ship, is being conceived by a Christian ministry that believes humans co-existed with dinosaurs and that the earth was created in six days by God a mere 6,000 years ago. Legal experts say Kentucky's tax break would contravene the constitutionally required separation of church and state—so how much better it would be to spend those tax funds "improving science education to mitigate the simple-mindedness this inflicts on Kentucky children," zings Los Angeles Times columnist Paul Thornton."
  • December 8. The News Chronicle. USA. Online news magazine. Noah’s Ark theme park to be built in Kentucky by Labelle Bitalac.
    "Developers are looking to create a full-scale replica of Noah’s Ark for a theme park planned in Kentucky."
  • December 8. National Religious Broadcasters. Manassas, Virginia. USA. Walk Through Noah’s Ark.
    "Answers in Genesis (AiG) announced last week that in the Spring of 2014, an all-wood, full-scale replica of Noah’s Ark will rise from the Kentucky landscape and be open for tours. As part of the LLC that owns Ark Encounter, AiG will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Ark, which is expected to be the “largest timber-frame structure in the USA.” But there’s more! The Ark will be part of a historically-themed park, close to AiG’s Creation Museum. The Ark Encounter theme park will include replicas of an ancient walled city, the Tower of Babel, a first-Century Middle Eastern village, a petting zoo, and much more. In addition to providing an expected 900 jobs, this project will also embody the Genesis stewardship mandate as “one of the largest ‘green’ construction projects in the country.” "
  • December 8. USA Museum. USA. Now that KY has a Creation Museum & Noah’s Ark mockup, could they split Kentucky Lake for The Moses Experience?.
    "The Creation Museum and Noah’s Ark themepark (which hasn’t happened yet) are located in two adjoining counties (Grant and Boone). Grant County wants it because even though they sit on the Interstate 75 corridor about 30 miles south of Cincinnati, they are looking for a source of income for the county. Over 20 years ago they had an outlet mall built which did okay for awhile, but has about folded. The Creation Museum sits an area that is politically and religiuously conservative from a demographic point of view (It could have just as easily been located in Gatlinburg or Branson, Missouri–what’s the difference?). The Creation Museum also sits down the road from Big Bone Lick State Park–a place where mastadon bones were first discovered and dug up over 250 years ago. It is the southern-most point where the glaciers extended to during the last ice age. The museum exists to refute natural history and deny that any sort of evolutionary process ever occurred."
  • December 8. iafrica.com. Cape Town, South Africa. Africa. South African web portal. Noah floats into Kentucky by staff reporter.
    "The southern (sic) US state of Kentucky is set to entrench its Old Testament tourism offering with a new religious theme park called ‘Ark Encounter’."
  • December 8. The Guardian. London, England. Divine dispatches: a religion roundup by by Riazat Butt.
    "News that Kentucky will have a second, biblical-themed, er, theme park has caused much excitement across the pond. The state already boasts the Creation Museum and now the governor is poised to give the green light to an Ark park. Ark Encounters. Encounters of the Ark kind. Anyway, it's not just the green light that the planners are set to get. They will get tax incentives, too, leading Melissa Bell at the Washington Post and Laurie Goodstein at the New York Times to query whether this arrangement is a violation of the first amendment. Ed Brayton and the National Centre for Science Education also discuss the issue."
  • December 8. The Journal Gazette. Fort Wayne, USA. Country. Editorial. Creation of a poor precedent.
    "Owners of the Creation Museum in Kentucky (pictured at right) want to build a creationism theme park, and they want taxpayers to help pay for it. Shockingly, some Kentucky politicians, including Gov. Steve Beshear, are in favor of giving the science-bashing theme park public dollars."
  • December 8. Weekly World News. USA. Satire website. Kentucky to Build Noah's Ark by Frank Lake.
    "KENTUCKY - Anticipating another “biblical” flood, Kentucky is building an ark for some of its elite citizens."
    "Under the guise of building a “tourist attraction”, the state of Kentucky is preparing for a biblical flood, which state lawmakers anticipate happening by June of 2011."
  • December 8. Thirdage.com. USA. Baby boomer social website. Noah's Ark Replica Causing Controversy.
    "Noah's Ark is under construction in Kentucky, or at least a life-sized model of it is, and opponents of the Biblical theme park, in which it will be an attraction, are angry over tax incentives promised by Gov. Steve Beshear. Besehar, however, assures the public everything is on the level."
  • December 8. The Enterprise. Brockton, Massachusetts. USA. Noah way this should happen by Lloyd Garver.
    "Kentucky Gov. Steven L. Beshear recently proposed that the state build a Noah's ark theme park to boost its economy and provide jobs for Kentuckians who are out of work. Under his plan, a Christian ministry called Answers in Genesis will build the park. Naturally, because of the Constitution's prohibition of establishing just one religion, I assumed that the governor also has plans to build a Jewish theme park, a Muslim park, an atheist park and, well, I'm not sure about an agnostic park."
  • December 8. National Center for Science Education - NCSE. Oakland, California. USA. Anti-creationist/ID website. Creationism theme park controversy continues.
    "Ark Encounter, the proposed creationist theme park in northern Kentucky, continues to attract comment."
  • December 7. Unsere Kirche. Bielefeld, Germany. German Christian website. Die Arche Noah kommt nach Kentucky.
    "Der 130 Meter lange Nachbau aus Holz soll in der Nähe des Städtchens Williamstown entstehen. Dort plant der evangelikale Verband »Answers in Genesis« (Antworten in der Schöpfung) auch einen 300 Hektar großen Freizeitpark mit biblischen Motiven. Kritiker stört, dass das Vorhaben, das dem Vernehmen nach rund 150 Millionen Dollar kosten wird, auch mit öffentlichen Geldern gefördert werden soll."
  • December 7. Western Reporter. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Kentucky Southern Baptist publication/website. Look who’s building an ark now by Todd Deaton.
    "Why not add Noah’s Petting Zoo—where kids can pet donkeys, camels, llamas and goats—and a botanical garden with enclosures for lions, tigers and bears? Oh my! We could have Noah’s Big Boat Adventure, a boat ride that travels along a track with ancient flood scenes, waterfalls and rapids. What about a log flume ride for the more adventuresome teenagers that plunges from the top of a replica of Mt. Ararat? The Tower of Babel could begin to shake and crumble, sending huge blocks crashing to the ground around us, like one of those Tower of Terror disaster attractions—and riders could wear earphones with announcers retelling the story in many languages. High above it all, we could fly in a plastic dove-shaped glider, soaring and dipping in search of an olive branch. Then at ice cream stands, we could buy rainbow popsicles and ocean-blue slushies with tiny umbrellas sticking out the top."
  • December 7. Il Messaggero. Rome, Italy. Un’arca di Noè spacca il Kentucky by Anna Guaita, p. 15.
    "NEW YORK - Sarà lunga 150 metri, costruita a mano e fatta interamente di legno, e porterà a bordo coppie di animali, proprio come il modello biblico a cui si ispira. La novella ”arca di Noè” che viene costruita nel Kentucky vuole essere un’iniziativa turistica, ma sta causando un gran discutere al livello politico. Il costo dell’arca, circa 150 milioni di dollari, sarà in parte sostenuto dalle casse dello Stato del Kentucky, e questo fa gridare allo scandalo i laici e gli scienziati, perché di fatto in tal modo si viola il primo Emendamento della Costituzione americana che richiede la separazione di Stato e Chiesa."
  • December 7. El Mundo. Madrid, Spain. Un arca de Noé en el corazón de Estados Unidos by Ricard González, p. 27.
    "El gobernador de Kentucky, el demócrata Steven Beshear, está decidido a promover con generosos incentivos fiscales la construcción en su estado de una reproducción del Arca de Noé que sea lo más fiel posible a la original, dadas las limitaciones existentes. Su motivación no es salvar a las distintas especies animales de su extinción por un inminente diluvio universal, sino reflotar la economía de uno de los estados que la crisis ha inundado de desempleados"
  • December 7. International Herald Tribune. Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. International edition of the New York Times. Setting Noah's ark afloat, with state's blessing by Laurie Goodstein, p. 4.
  • December 7. South China Morning Post. Hong Kong, China. Noah's ark replica said to violate constitution by Laurie Goodstein, p. A12. New York Times article.
  • December 7. The Age. Melbourne, Australia. Holy row creates headache for modern day Noah's ark by Laurie Goodstein, p. 8. New York Times article.
  • December 7. Mladá Fronta DNES. Prague, Czech Republic. Investoři postaví Noemovu archu, p. A8.
    "Americký stát Kentucky se brzy rozroste o atrakci v biblickém duchu. Podnikatelé spjati s křesťanskou organizací Answers in Genesis zde chystají výstavbu tematického zábavního parku. Dominantou areálu Setkání s Archou bude plavidlo, na kterém se Noe společně se svou rodinou a zvířaty zachránil před potopou. Součástí parku bude i Babylónská věž, procházka Starým Zákonem nebo Deset egyptských ran. Daňové úlevy projektu, který má zaměstnat až 900 lidí, už slíbil guvernér státu Steven L. Beshear. To se ale nelíbí některým ústavním expertům. Ti upozorňují na možný rozpor s americkou ústavou. Ta zaručuje odluku církví od státu. Takové námitky však guvernér odmítá. „Lidé z Kentucky mne nezvolili guvernérem, abych diskutoval o náboženství, ale abych vytvářel pracovní místa,“ ohradil se. (tov) "
  • December 7. The Epoch Times. New York City, New York. USA. Noah's Ark Theme Park Planned in Kentucky by Jack Phillips.
    "Kentucky developers are planning on developing a theme park revolving around a full-scale replica of Noah's Ark, according to ABC News."
  • December 7. Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty. Washington, D.C. USA. Separation of church and state advocacy website. Proposed Noah's Ark Park Draws Church-State Questions by Don Byrd.
    "In this economy, it's understandable why states are doing whatever they can to invite job-creating opportunities. But using tax dollars for the purpose of promoting the religious content of the park - or with any manner of preferential treatment - would be a mistake."
  • December 7. Ballina Shire Advocate. Ballina, New South Wales. Australia. Ark the ultimate tourist trap by David Usborne.
    "AND it will come to pass that on the third day of the fifth month of 2014, a mighty ark will appear on a hill not far from Interstate 75 so that the people of north-east Kentucky will not perish in a great storm and will reap great rewards of money and prosperity as the tourists there will multiply and buy many dolls in the likeness of Noah."
    "This is not Kentucky bourbon talking. The state is already home to the Creationist Museum - which for three years has been a point of pilgrimage for those Americans who are willing to believe that the world was created in six days and Darwin lost his marbles on the bridge of the Beagle."
  • December 7. Thirdage.com. USA. Baby boomer social website. Noah's Ark the Highlight of Tax Supported Biblical Theme Park.
    "Noah's Ark, the biggest attraction in a new biblical theme park in Kentucky, is going to receive more than $35 million dollars in incentives thanks to the help of a Democratic politician. Governor Steve Beshear defended state tax incentives that could surpass $37 million for a religious theme park in Northern Kentucky, saying Wednesday he's happy to lend state support to a business that will bring hundreds of jobs. State involvement in the $150 million project brought outrage from groups focused on the separation of church and state, but Beshear said there was nothing "remotely unconstitutional" about the proposal."
  • December 7. WHAS-TV, Channel 11, ABC. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Noah's Ark amusement park sparks controversy for Kentucky by Claudia Coffey.
    "Construction has yet to begin on the northern Kentucky faith-based amusement park and already the initiative has thrust Kentucky into the national spotlight. The project is called “Ark Encounter” and the governor's decision to give the group developing the park millions of dollars in tax breaks is taking a lot of criticism; specifically whether Governor Steve Beshear can legally offer tax incentives to the faith-based park. I caught up with Governor Beshear Tuesday and he says the decision is legally sound." Includes video footage.
  • December 7. Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. USA. Opinion column. Opinion L.A. by Paul Thornton.
    "Search no longer for Noah's ark on the slopes of Mount Ararat; a bunch of Kentucky businessmen are building their own model closer to home, and with taxpayers' help..."
  • December 6. Geograffitico blog. München, Germany. German ScienceBlogs website. Kentucky: Millionensubventionen für "Noahs Arche" by Jürgen Schönstein.
    " Nur ganz kurz polemisiert, ehe ich mich zu sehr aufrege: Während es der öffentlichen Hand in den USA offenbar nicht mehr zumutbar scheint, in Notfällen lebensrettende Operationen zu bezahlen, leistet sich der Staat Kentucky ein Entwicklunsgprojekt der Sonderklasse: Die Investoren des Kreationismus-Museums in Petersburg (Kentucky) wollen mit einem Aufwand von 150 Millionen Dollar Noahs Arche mit lebenden Tieren an Bord als Themenpark nachbauen - und holen sich dafür ein Viertel der Kosten (37,5 Millionen Dollar) als Steuergeschenkee vom Staat, Nachzulesen hier in der New York Times."
  • December 6. Christelijk Informatie Platform-CIP . Tholen, Netherlands. Dutch Christian website. Replica Ark om te leren over Bijbelse geschiedenis by Jeffrey Schipper.
    "Noach nam 400 jaar de tijd om de Ark te bouwen, maar medewerkers van een nieuw bijbels themapark in de Verenigde Staten proberen een replica van de Ark in 36 maanden te realiseren. Het plan is dat de houten Ark, 75 meter breed en 45 meter hoog, in het voorjaar van 2014 onthuld moet worden. Het project zal in totaal zo'n 150 miljoen dollar bedragen."
  • December 6. Houston Chronicle. Houston, Texas. USA. A New Noah's Ark for Kentuckians by Laurie Goodstein, p. A9. New York Times article.
  • December 6. The Times of India. Mumbai, India. Noah's Ark theme park sparks religious debate by Laurie Goodstein, p. 18. New York Times article.
  • December 6. The New York Times. New York City, New York. USA. Noah's Ark, the Theme Park by by Laurie Goodstein, p. A15.
  • December 6. Death and Taxes. New York City, New York. USA. "...an indie music and culture website." Bible Thumping Drowns Out Climate Change by Matthew Uhlmann.
    "This week is a climate change party in Cancun, with 193 nations participating at the UN conference in Mexico. And in Kentucky, the finance and structure plans for the Noah’s Ark Theme Park are being solidified with the support of the Governor and a massive tax break from the state."
  • December 6. Conan. Atlanta, Georgia. USA. TBS late night show. Monologue comments about Ark Encounter project. Comment begin 5 minutes and 43 seconds into monlogue.
    "Developers in Kentucky plan on opening a creationist theme park. Yeah. When asked what the creationist theme park would look like, developers said it's still evolving. - Conan O'Brien in his monologue, Conan, December 6, 2010"
  • December 6. Green Packs. USA. Social environmental responsibility website. Eco-Friendly Noah’s Ark at the Ark Encounter Christian-Theme Park.
    "A novel eco-friendly amusement park is scheduled to be opened in 2014. Named the Ark Encounter, the Christian-theme Park will have as one of its highlights a giant model of Noah’s Ark. The amusement park is being built by the organization called Answers in Genesis, which is also well known for the Creation Museum that it has built in Petersburg."
  • December 6. Washington Times. Washington, D.C. USA. Is a Noah's ark theme park unconstitutional? by Amanda Read.
    "On Dec. 1, Kentucky Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear held a press conference to unveil plans for a theme park inspired by one of history’s most mysterious epic structures: Noah’s ark. "
    "Titled “Ark Encounter,” the proposed privately funded $150 million for-profit project is expected to be an exciting addition to Kentucky’s economy. Ark Encounter may employ 900 workers and attract 1.6 million visitors in its first year, according to an America’s Research Group feasibility study."
  • December 6. National Center for Science Education - NCSE. Oakland, California. USA. Anti-creationist/ID website. Controversy over proposed creationist theme park.
    "The announcement of a proposed creationist theme park in northern Kentucky is sparking controversy."
  • December 6. Washington Post blog. Washington, D.C. USA. Noah's ark lands in midst of state and church separation debate by Melissa Bell.
    "The ship that saved "two of each" species from a worldwide flood, according to the Bible, has been discovered a number of times over the years. The last discovery placed Noah's ark on the top of Mount Ararat in eastern Turkey."
    "Then there are the replications of the ark. A contractor in Netherlands built a version by hand, opening it to the public in 2007. Hong Kong has a Noah's ark hotel, with fiberglass animals."
    "Now, if the governor of Kentucky has his way, American tourists will be able to find the ark much closer to home. Gov. Steven L. Beshear announced on Wednesday that the Kentucky government would provide tax incentives to a group planning on constructing a Noah's ark theme park called "Ark Encounter." "
  • December 5. Atheist Attorney blog. USA. The Ark Encounter Debacle by Ben.
    "Kentucky’s Governor, Steve Beshear, has put his administration behind Ark Encounter. The profit seeking group behind the theme park includes Answers in Genesis, a christian organization opposed to the teaching of evolution. The theme park is in the same vein as the Creation Museum which also promotes biblical literalism to the general detriment of science education."
  • December 5. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. USA. Noah's Ark, the Theme Park by Laurie Goodstein, New York Times.
  • December 5. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Commentary. Beshear sails risky waters for ark park by Joseph Gerth.
    "The announced plan for the state to help fund a $150 million monument to fundamentalist religious belief in Grant County has unified liberals, moderates and even some conservatives on one theological question: What in God's name is Gov. Steve Beshear thinking? "
  • December 5. Baptists Today blog. Macon, Georgia. USA. Makin' bacon by Tony Cartledge.
    "I thought of that in comparison to a news note that Answers in Genesis, the fundamentalist young-earth organization that built the mega-million dollar Creation Museum near Cincinnati, is planning a $24.5 million expansion that will include a full-scale replica of Noah's Ark. No one knows exactly what Noah's Ark would have looked like, of course. A few specifications are given in Genesis 6:14-16, beyond the basic dimensions it's mostly guesswork."
  • December 5. New York Times. New York City, New York. USA In Kentucky, Noah’s Ark Theme Park Is Planned by Laurie Goodstein.
    "Facing a rising tide of joblessness, the governor of Kentucky has found one solution: build an ark."
    "The state has promised generous tax incentives to a group of entrepreneurs who plan to construct a full-size replica of Noah’s ark, load it with animals and actors, and make it the centerpiece of a Bible-based tourist attraction called Ark Encounter."
  • December 5. USA Today - Travel. McLean, Virginia. USA. Full-scale replica of Noah's Ark planned in Kentucky by Roger Alford, Associated Press.
    "FRANKFORT, Ky. — Modern-day investors want to do in three years what took Noah and his sons more than 100 years to do: Build an ark to the dimensions specified in the Bible."
  • December 4. Excite Netherlands. Netherlands. Amerikaans pretpark krijgt Ark van Noach en Toren van Babel.
    "In Kentucky wordt een enorm pretpark gebouwd dat zich onder meer focust op de schepping. In het park zal ook een levensgrote Ark van Noach én een Toren van Babel worden gebouwd. Het park moet in 2014 openen en zal naar verwachting 1,6 miljoen bezoekers per jaar trekken."
  • December 3. Airtimers. Austria. "All about theme parks and roller coasters." Ark Encounter – Ein wahrhaft göttlicher Freizeitpark by Duffy.
    "Immer wenn man denkt, das man schon alle Kuriositäten der Freizeitparkindustrie gesehen hat, kommt ein Projekt wie dieses um die Ecke: Die beiden US Firmengruppen „Ark Encounter LLC“ und „Answers in Genesis“ planen in der Nähe von Kentucky die Errichtung eines 150 Millionen USD teuren christlichen Freizeitparks. Als Wahrzeichen und Namensgeber für den Park fungiert eine riesige originalgetreue Nachbildung von Noah’s Arche, in der eine spektakuläre Live Show mit Tieren aus aller Welt aufgeführt werden soll."
  • December 3. Belfast Telegraph. Belfast, Northern Ireland. Holy rollercoaster - Kentucky builds biblical theme park.
    "And it will come to pass that on the third day of the fifth month of 2014, a mighty ark will appear on a hill not far from Interstate 75 so that the people of north-east Kentucky will not perish in a great storm and will reap great rewards of money and prosperity as the tourists there will multiply and buy many dolls in the likeness of Noah."
  • December 3. Popular Fidelity blog. USA. Kentucky Amusement Park To Feature Noah’s Ark, Tower Of Babel by Ron Hogan.
    "When Jesus comes back on May 21, 2011, where’s he going to go first? Well, there’s an amusement park he might be interested in, because it’s based off of his life and times! A cooperative effort between Ark Encounters LLC and Answers in Genesis, the group behind the Creation Museum, have come up with $150 million dollars they are using to construct a religious theme park they’ve dubbed The Ark Experience in northern Grant County, Kentucky. The religious theme park, The Ark Experience, will feature a first-century Middle Eastern village, a full-sized replica of Noah’s Ark with animals, and a Tower of Babel."
  • December 3. The Independent. London, England. Kentucky creates a theme park of biblical proportions by David Usborne, p. 41.
    "AND IT will come to pass that on the third day of the fifth month of 2014, a mighty ark will appear on a hill not far from Interstate 75 so that the people of north-east Kentucky will not perish in a great storm and will reap great rewards of money and prosperity as the tourists there will multiply and buy many dolls in the likeness of Noah. "
  • December 3. Columbus Dispatch. Columbus, Ohio. USA. Ark may bring flood of lawsuits by Roger Alford, Associated Press, p. B4.
  • December 3. The Christian Telegraph. England. Full-scale Noah's Ark park planned for Kentucky.
    "The same group behind the Creation Museum is partnering with another group to build a full-scale version of Noah's Ark that will anchor a family oriented Bible-theme attraction costing an estimated $150 million, reports, Baptist Press."
  • December 3. whatsthematterwithks blog. USA. Salon.com social content site. Kentucky looks to add another Creation Theme Park.
    "We visited the Creation Museum shortly after its opening in 2007, and it’s seen in “What’s the Matter with Kansas?” from the vantage point of its supporters. We can attest to the excellent quality and showmanship of its exhibits, and expect nothing less from Ark Encounter."
  • December 3. AOL Hot Searches blog. Vienna, Virginia. USA. Ark Encounter Theme Park Announced by Erin.
    "The Ark Encounter, a Bible-based theme park from the group behind the Creation Museum, was announced this week, sparking outrage among organizations that see the park as infringing upon the separation of church and state."
  • December 3. Time - NewsFeed. New York City, New York. USA. Kentucky Creates 900 New Jobs -- By Building Noah's Ark by Alexandra Silver.
    "Problem: high unemployment. Solution: build the ark."
    "In case you missed it, the governor of Kentucky recently announced the state would, in a few years, be home to a “full-scale replica of Noah's ark.” It's going to be the centerpiece of a biblical theme park — or, if you're a sponsor of the Ark Encounter project, a “historically themed attraction” — that would also feature a Tower of Babel and a first-century Middle Eastern city. Answers in Genesis (the ministry that brought us The Creation Museum) is heavily involved in the $150 million project, which according to the official website “is not an amusement park.”
  • December 3. Pharyngula blog. Morris, Minnesota. USA. Unbridled Laughingstock by PZ Myers.
    "Ive been poking fun at Kentucky this week, which is easy to do — investing in a theme park that has Biblical literalism as its centerpiece is embarrassingly ridiculous. But let's be fair. Ken Ham could have landed in Minnesota, if instead of aiming for a location within a day's travel of 40% of the nation's population, he'd wanted a place within a day's travel of North and South Dakota, and then we'd all be laughing at this rural assembly of yokels. And also, of course, Kentucky has plenty of smart, aware, rational people, as we can see from this editorial in the Louisville Courier-Journal."
  • December 3. The Spectrum. Buffalo, New York. USA. University of Buffalo student paper. Noah’s Ark-Themed Attraction is Problematic.
    "Three years ago, the fine state of Kentucky blessed us with the Creation Museum, and now they're at it again."
  • December 3. Daily News & Analysis (DNA). Lower Parel, Mumbai. India. Noah's Ark and Tower of Babel to be built in Kentucky. From Asian News International.
    "A full-scale Noah's Ark is to be constructed in Kentucky, as part of a proposed $100 million creationism-themed amusement park."
    "The planned complex will also feature a walled city, a replica of the Tower of Babel, a recreation of a first-century Middle Eastern village, a 500-seat theatre, an aviary, and a ‘journey through biblical history’ section, reports The Telegraph."
  • December 3. Mother Nature Network. USA. Environmental and social responsibility news site. World's largest religious amusement park will be green by Katherine Butler. Includes Ark Encounter YouTube video.
    "Northern Kentucky was recently announced as the site of the The Ark Encounter, the latest Christian-themed amusement venture from Answers in Genesis. The organization, also known for its Creation Museum in nearby Petersburg, describes itself as a Christian-defending ministry dedicated to helping Christians defend their faith effectively. The group's new $150 million park will feature a gigantic wooden ark inspired by the Bible. And as Msnbc.com reports, the builders plan to use LEED building techniques on the ark and throughout the park."
  • December 3. Lexington Herald-Leader. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Editorial. Commentary: Tax incentives for Ark Encounter hurt Kentucky Chicken processing plants?
    "Despite some progress in economic development, Kentucky continues to use tax incentives in pursuit of mostly low-paying, part-time seasonal jobs that would further lower the state's average wage and do little to increase the demand of higher education. This is similar to past shortsighted subsidies of chicken processing plants and customer call centers."
  • December 3. Columbus Dispatch. Columbus, Ohio. USA. Also appears in the print edition. Ark may bring flood of lawsuits by Roger Alford, Associated Press story.
  • December 3. The Independent. London, England. Also appears in the print edition. Kentucky creates a theme park of biblical proportions by David Usborne, US Editor.
    "And it will come to pass that on the third day of the fifth month of 2014, a mighty ark will appear on a hill not far from Interstate 75 so that the people of north-east Kentucky will not perish in a great storm and will reap great rewards of money and prosperity as the tourists there will multiply and buy many dolls in the likeness of Noah."
    "This is not Kentucky bourbon talking. The state is already home to the Creationist Museum – which for three years has been a point of pilgrimage for those Americans who are willing to believe that the world was created in six days and Darwin lost his marbles on the bridge of the Beagle. But Kentucky is now embracing a creationist theme park with an ark built precisely to biblical specifications as its main attraction."
  • December 2. Side By Side blog. Apex, North Carolina. USA. The Ark is Coming! by Pastor Jonas Harley.
    "Praise God for this project and may it be a great tool that will spread the truth of the gospel to the world!"
  • December 2. America24. Italy. Italian news website focusing on America. Un parco tematico creazionista per il Kentucky.
    "Le associazioni no profit che hanno aperto il Creation Museum del Nord Kentucky stanno raccogliendo i fondi per un parco educativo. La location: una gigantesca arca di Noe' a tre piani."
  • December 2. Religion News Service blog. Washington, D.C. USA. Thursday’s Religion News Roundup by Kevin Eckstrom.
    "Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear is defending $37 million in tax incentives to help build a $150 million theme park (top left) outside the Creation Museum, saying he was not elected to debate religion but rather create jobs."
  • December 2. Values Voter News blog. USA. $150 million Noah's Ark theme park to be located near Creation Museum in Kentucky in 2014. Includes Ark Encounter YouTube videos.
    "A group that has partnered with Answers in Genesis who created the Creation Museum are making a biblical sized Noah's Ark theme park in Kentucky. From the same theme park maker of Dollywood. What a combo!!! Check out their web site at ArkEncounter.com after you watch the below videos. Also see another Ark already built in Hong Kong to Biblical proportions at See pictures of the first Noah's Ark built to Biblical proportions located in Hong Kong as christianity in China grows..."
  • December 2. The New Yorker - To-Do List blog. New York City, New York. U.S.A. To-Do List: LeBron in Cleveland, WikiLeaks vs. Amazon by Samantha Henig.
    "To visit: Ark Encounter, the hundred-fifty-million-dollar creationist-themed theme park set to open in Kentucky in 2014. Governor Steve Beshear announced the plans for the park, which is privately funded but is expected to receive up to 37.5 million dollars in tax incentives over the next ten years."
  • December 2. APCOM. Rome, Italy. Italian press agency. Il primo Luna Park creazionista? Nell'America profonda, Kentucky
    "New York, 2 dic. (Apcom) - Entro il 2014 dovrebbe essere inaugurato nel Kentucky Ark Encounter, il primo parco divertimenti creazionista. Fra le attrazioni del parco ci sarà anche un modello gigante dell'Arca di Noè con animali veri, una replica della Torre di Babele e la riproduzione di un villaggio mediorientale del primo secolo. Nonostante le critiche ricevute per l'ideologia del parco, il governatore del Kentucky Steve Beshear è favorevole alla costruzione di Ark Encounter, "non abbiate timori, sarà importantissimo (per lo Stato)". Il progetto del parco di divertimento è frutto della collaborazione tra un azienda privata e l'organizzazione non-profit che già gestisce il Museo creazionista del Kentucky. Dopo che i promotori del progetto, sulla base degli incentivi per favorire lo sviluppo del turismo nel Kentuky, hanno richiesto sgravi fiscali pari a 37,5 milioni di dollari si è infiammata la polemica. I detrattori di Ark Encounter sostengono che concedere gli incentivi rappresenterebbe una violazione della separazione tra Stato e chiesa sancita dalla costituzione. Un altro punto controverso riguarda la futura politica d'assunzione del parco: gli sarà concesso di discriminare su basi religiose come fa il Museo creazionista?"
  • December 2. Amerikos Lietuvis. Hickory Hills, Illinois. U.S.A. Lithuanian American newspaper. Kentukio valstijoje planuojama atidaryti religinio pobūdžio pramogų parką.
    "Ar norėtumėte apsilankyti Nojaus Arkoje, Babelio bokšte ar daugiau nei dviejų tūkstančių metų amžiaus senumo Viduriniųjų Rytų miestelyje? Visa tai realybe taps jau po beveik ketverių metų - Kentukio valstijoje duris planuoja atverti religinio pobūdžio pramogų parkas."
  • December 2. Cyberpresse.ca blog. Canada. Un parc d’attraction créationniste au Kentucky by Richard Hétu.
    "Le gouverneur démocrate du Kentucky Steve Beshear a donné sa bénédiction hier à la construction d’un parc thématique axé sur le créationnisme qui pourrait recevoir de l’État plus de 37 millions de dollars sur dix ans en mesures incitatives. Selon lui, ce parc d’attraction appelé Ark Encounter dont l’ouverture est prévue pour 2014 attirera 1,6 million de personnes par an, générera des retombées économiques de 250 millions de dollars par an et créera 900 emplois. On y trouvera notamment des répliques de la Tour de Babel et de l’Arche de Noé, ainsi que plusieurs animaux."
  • December 2. Slate.fr. France. French version of Slate.com. L'arche de Noé devient une attraction.
    "Si la fin du monde en 2012 prenait la forme du Déluge Universel, l'humanité aurait peut-être une chance de survie. Un parc d'attraction créationniste est en effet en cours de construction aux Etats-Unis, dans le Kentucky, révèle Gawker. Et parmi les différentes attractions, il y aura une arche de Noé."
  • December 2. Gizmod.fr. France. French version of Gizmodo.com. Bientôt un parc géant (religieux) dans le Kentucky
    "Après le Holy Land Experience à Orlando (le parc thématique sur Jesus Christ) prochainement aux USA toujours, dans le Kentucky, les amateurs pourront découvrir un nouveau parc du même acabit. Les géniteurs du projet comptent y mettre en valeur le thème du créationnisme. Alléluia."
  • December 2. Atlantic Wire. Washington, D.C. . USA. Noah and the Ark Gets a $150 Million Theme Park by Erik Hayden.
    "In 2014, curious tourists will be able to flock to Kentucky to immerse themselves in Bible stories--courtesy of a $150 million dollar theme park. Named the Ark Encounter, the project includes a full-scale mock of up Noah's giant vessel and petting zoo (two of each type of animal?) along with Old Testament icons the Walled City, the Tower of Babel and the Red Sea."
  • December 2. Christian Post. Washington, D.C. USA. Full-Scale Replica of Noah's Ark Coming to Ky. Theme Park by Katherine T. Phan.
    "Noah may have taken 400 years [sic] to build the ark but investors of a new biblical theme park in northern Kentucky plan to replicate a full-scale model in under 36 months."
  • December 2. Science - Science Insider. Washington, D.C. USA. American Association for the Advancement of Science-AAAS. Plan for Creationist 'Ark' Park Draws Paleontologists' Ire by Eli Kintisch.
    "The governor says the for-profit developers behind the planned park will apply for tax breaks, which could provide up to $37.5 million in savings from the state. Governor Beshear says the park will create 900 jobs for the state. But Daniel Phelps, president of the Kentucky Paleontological Society in Lexington, says the park is "government entanglement with religion" and doesn't make the state attractive to scientists and technically minded individuals. "I don't envision people, especially those with science backgrounds, wanting to move to a state where the 'ark park' has government support," says Phelps, who works as an environmental geologist for the state."
  • December 2. New York Daily News. New York City, New York. USA. Creationism-themed amusement park heading to Northern Kentucky, will have full-size Noah's Ark by Nina Mandell.
    "Disney World, meet Sunday School."
    "A creationism-themed amusement park is coming to Kentucky in 2014, the state's governor Steve Beshear announced on Wednesday."
    "The park, which Kentucky expects to draw more than a million visitors each year, is projected to cost $150 million, the Louisville Courier-Journal reported."
    "Make no mistake about it," Beshear said, according to the paper. "This is a huge deal."
  • December 2. CNN Belief blog. Atlanta, Georgia. USA. My take: Where's the outrage over Noah's Ark park? by Stephen Prothero. CNN Belief Blog. Prothero compares the Smithsonian exhibit, which featured a video of a crucifix with ants crawling on Jesus' body, to Kentucky's support of AiG's Ark Encounter project. He's upset that not enough people are upset about the Ark Encounter project, to kill the deal with Kentucky.
  • December 2. American United for Separation of Church and State blog. Washington, D.C. USA. Ark Park Earmark: Kentucky Governor Floats Religion-Funding Scheme by Sandhya Bathija.
    "Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear thinks it’s a good idea for his state to be the home of Noah’s Ark – one that will include dinosaurs!"
    "Beshear announced yesterday his plan to provide tax incentives to the developers of a creationism theme park that will feature a replica of the well-known biblical boat."
    "The $150 million facility will be a collaboration between Ark Encounters, a private company in Springfield, Mo., and Answers in Genesis, a fundamentalist Christian organization that runs the Creation Museum that opened in Kentucky in 2007."
  • December 2. EvolutionBlog. USA. A New Tourist Attraction for Kentucky by Jason Rosenhouse.
    "It used to be that Kentucky was known primarily for bourbon and horse racing. But now they seem determined to add creationism to that list."
  • December 2. Louisville Courier Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Letters to the Editor. State support of Bible theme park unconscionable by James E. Campbell.
    " That Gov. Steve Beshear is lending support to the building of a Bible theme park, possibly including state incentives, seems to be a case of government endorsement of the religious point of view of Christian fundamentalism (“Beshear to announce creationist theme park for Kentucky,” Nov. 30). Fundamentalism (any kind) is driven by the fear that new information or discoveries will make one’s world view irrelevant. This is why creationism fights so hard to defend itself in the face of scientific discovery. The Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter are based on this kind of thinking, claiming “the absolute truth and authority of the Bible.” We would do well to remember that the Bible was written by people who thought the earth was flat."
    "That organizations like Answers in Genesis should make money by promoting the idea of biblical accuracy and literalism is one thing, but that the state of Kentucky should in any way provide endorsing support is unconscionable and very likely unconstitutional."
  • December 2. The Stir by Cafe Mom blog. USA. Kentucky's Creationist Theme Park: God's Happy, Taxpayers Aren't by Kim Conte.
    "Plans for a new Creationist Theme Park in Kentucky -- including a massive three-story replica of Noah's Ark complete with dinosaurs -- have critics wondering why the governor would ever support such a thing."
    "Gov. Steve Beshear and Answers in Genesis, the builders of Kentucky's famous Creation Museum, announced plans for a Biblical amusement park called Ark Encounter. Subsequently, reports surfaced that the builders are seeking state tax incentives that would allow them to recover 25 percent of the cost."
  • December 2. Newser. USA. User generated news website. Coming to Kentucky: Creationism Theme Park by Evann Gastaldo.
    " (Newser) – Disneyland, pshaw. Soon the new hot amusement park will be located in Kentucky, and called ... Ark Encounter. The Christian theme park will include, among other attractions, a 500-foot-long Noah's Ark complete with live animals, a Tower of Babel replica, and a re-created first-century Middle Eastern village. "Make no mistake about it, this is a huge deal," says the governor, who is backing the park despite criticisms about its ideology."
    "The park, a collaboration between a for-profit company and the non-profit that runs Kentucky's Creation Museum, is stirring up controversy because developers are asking for tourism development tax incentives of up to $37.5 million, the Courier-Journal reports. Opponents say such incentives would violate the constitutional separation of church and state. Another point of controversy: whether the park will be allowed to discriminate on the basis of religion when hiring, as the Creation Museum does. Assuming those concerns fall on deaf ears, the park is expected to open in 2014."
  • December 2. Think Progress. Washington, D.C. USA. Politically left website sponsored by the Center for American Progress. Kentucky Creationism Theme Park Set To Open In 2014 Will ‘Include Dinosaurs’ by Ben Armbruster.
    "Kentucky’s Democratic governor Steve Beshear announced yesterday that a creationism theme park — dubbed “Ark Encounter” — is expected to open in the state in 2014. The governor boasted that the park would have a $250 million impact on the local economy annually. The park “will feature a 500-foot-long wooden replica of Noah’s Ark containing live animals such as juvenile giraffes."
    "The project is a collaboration with a non-profit organization Answers in Genesis, which runs the Creation Museum in Boone County, KY. The Nation’s Chris Hayes noted on MSNBC last night that Answers in Genesis “is dedicated to portraying the Bible’s view of history. Among their claims, the Earth was created in six days, just 6,000 years ago, and that at one time, man and velociraptor co-existed peacefully.”
    "(Of course, dinosaurs went extinct nearly 65 million years ago.) Yesterday during Beshear’s press conference announcing the plan, Barefoot and Progressive‘s Joe Sonka asked if there will be dinosaurs at “Ark Encounter”
  • December 2. WKRC-TV, Channel 12, CBS. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Transcript of broadcast. Noah's Ark Park May Be Built in Tri-State
    "It's official. A 160-acre theme park based on the biblical story of Noah's ark is planned for some farmland outside Williamstown, Kentucky. If all goes as planned, ark encounter will open in the spring of 2014. For Grant County, this is a major development project and the promise of hundreds of jobs. But it also means a sleepy little town may change forever."
  • December 2. MSNBC, Countdown with Keith Olbermann. New York City, New York. USA. Noah's Ark comes to Kentucky. A rather long video segment from an extremely popular show.
  • December 2. Louisville Courier-Journal. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. Editorial | Creationist tourism. Editorial. Opposes Ark Encounter Project.
    "Gov. Steve Beshear needs a vacation. Indeed, he should have taken it this week."
    "Other than extreme fatigue, how else can one explain his embrace of a project to build a creationism theme park in Northern Kentucky (near the Creation Museum) and the apparent willingness of his administration to offer tourism-development tax incentives to developers of the park?"
    "Even if technically legal (in that the law allowing the tax breaks doesn't discriminate against other religious or anti-religious views), a state role in a private facility that would be built by a group called Answers in Genesis and espouses a fundamentalist view resting on biblical inerrancy indirectly promotes a religious dogma. That should never be the role of government."
  • December 2. KTVZ-TV, Channel 21, NBC. Bend, Oregon. USA. Private Investors Look To Build Noah's Ark In Ky. by Roger Alford, Associated Press.
    "FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Modern-day investors want to do in three years what took Noah and his sons more than 100 years to do: Build an ark to the dimensions specified in the Bible.
    "Mike Zovath, co-founder of the Answers in Genesis ministry that opened the Creation Museum in Kentucky three years ago, said Wednesday he believes the full-scale replica of Noah's Ark will draw some 1.6 million visitors a year to the Bible belt city of Williamstown."
  • December 2. Daily Mail Online. London, England. $150m plan unveiled for biggest-ever religious theme park with full-scale Noah’s Ark by Daily Mail reporter.
    "A full-scale Noah's Ark is to be built as part of a proposed $150million creationism-themed amusement park in Kentucky."
    "A theme park version of the Biblical ark will mark the focal point of the tourist attraction, which will also feature a walled city, a replica of the Tower of Babel, a recreation of a first-century Middle Eastern village and a 500-seat special effects theatre."
  • December 2. Todd's Blog. Dayton, Tennessee. USA. Thinking about anti-evolutionism by Todd Wood.
    "Some readers yesterday thought I was being too smug or judgmental in my comments about the Ark Encounter, but I want to assure you that I was entirely sincere when I said that the Ark Encounter and Creation Museum will inspire a new generation of creationists. In less than a month, it will be 2011, the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of Whitcomb and Morris's The Genesis Flood. Regardless of what I think of the content, that book inspired my generation to think beyond the evolutionary perspective and think more carefully about the importance of the doctrines of creation as revealed in Genesis. I firmly believe that the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter will be The Genesis Flood of the next fifty years. For that, I am genuinely thankful and sincerely praying for these projects."
  • December 2. Panda's Thumb blog. USA. Kentucky Jumps the Ark by Daniel Phelps.
    "The project has received support from the highest levels of the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s government. On Wednesday, December 1, Governor Beshear held a press conference with officials from AIG and Ark Encounters to announce that the state is giving the creationists a tax incentive to bring jobs to the cash strapped region. Up to $37.5 million of the $150 million total cost could go to the creationists in the form of tax breaks under Kentucky’s Tourism Development Act. Apparently, the theme park can withhold 25% of the sales tax it collects up to 25% of the total cost for building the park under the Tourism Development Act."
  • December 1. Kentucky: The Governor of the Commonwealth Office. Frankfort, Kentucky. USA. Official press release from the Kentucky Governor's office about the Ark Encounter project. Governor Beshear, Ark Encounter Announce Plans to Build a Full-Scale Noah’s Ark.
    "Governor Steve Beshear today joined the Ark Encounter LLC to announce the planned construction of a full-scale Noah’s Ark tourist attraction in northern Kentucky. Partnering with the Ark Encounter is Answers in Genesis, which is most widely known for its high-tech and popular Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky."
  • December 1. Blag Hag blog. USA. Creation Museum seeks Kentucky tax support by Jen McCreight.
    "It's bad enough the Governor was speaking at a press conference with them today. But it's terrifying now that we know why:"
  • December 1. WFPL-FM, 89.3, NPR. Louisville, Kentucky. USA. In Depth: Beshear Defends Tax Breaks For Theme Park by Tony McVeigh. See also WUKY-FM, 91.3, for same audio: State To Help Creation Museum Group Build Noah's Ark Theme Park.
    "State tax breaks are being offered as an incentive to lure a religious theme park to northern Kentucky and questions are being raised about such use of public dollars."
    "The same people who developed the $30 million Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky, are now envisioning an 800-acre religious theme park featuring a full-scale replica of Noah’s Ark. The park, to be called Ark Encounter, is proposed for farmland along I-75 in Grant County. Mike Zovath of Answers in Genesis says the $150 million project will be privately funded."
  • December 1. Baptist Press. Nashville, Tennesse. USA. Full-scale Noah's Ark park planned for Ky. compiled by Michael Foust.
    "FRANKFORT, Ky. (BP)--The same group behind the Creation Museum is partnering with another group to build a full-scale version of Noah's Ark that will anchor a family oriented Bible-theme attraction costing an estimated $150 million."
  • December 1. Mother Jones. San Francisco, California. USA. Kentucky Offers Tax Breaks for Noah's Ark Theme Park by Tim Murphy.
    "At a press conference in Frankfort today, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear announced his unlikely plan to save the state's economy—by offering a massive tax incentive to the planners of Ark Encounter, an eco-friendly Noah's Ark theme park to be built outside Cincinnati. Building a Genesis-based theme park, during a recession? Shouldn't he be focusing on Job?"
  • December 1. Todd's Blog. Dayton, Tennessee. USA. Ark Encounter by Todd Wood.
  • December 1. Alexander Cornswalled blog. USA. Defending the Faith. A nice blog posting encouraging Kentucky governor Steve Beshear's support of the Ark Encounter theme park.
  • December 1. Ark Encounter YouTube channel. USA. Much information about the Ark Encounter project. Interviews with Ken Ham, Mark Looy, Mike Zovath, Pat Marsh, and Cary Summers. Includes overview of the project.
  • December 1. People for the American Way (PAW) blog. Washington, D.C. USA. GOP Leaders Get Back to Basics: Art Censorship! by Drew. A rather bizarre rant that attempts to tie the Smithsonian's exhibit of a video featuring a statue of Jesus crawling with ants, to the announcement by Kentucky governor Steve Beshear of the Ark Encounter theme park.
  • December 1. Cincinnati Business Courier blog. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Details revealed for Kentucky's Ark park by Lucy May.
    "Faithful readers of the Courier will not be surprised by Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear’s announcement today about Ark Encounter, a new Noah’s Ark tourist attraction being planned for Northern Kentucky."
    "The Courier broke the news of this $150 million development Nov. 19. And at a news conference this morning, Beshear confirmed many of the details that we reported then."
  • December 1. WTVQ-TV, Channel 36, ABC. Lexington, Kentucky. USA. Ark Encounter Planned In Kentucky by Gary Lacy.
    “We are excited to join with the Ark Encounter group as it seeks to provide this unique, family friendly tourist attraction to the Commonwealth,” said Gov. Beshear. “Bringing new jobs to Kentucky is my top priority, and with the estimated 900 jobs this project will create, I am happy about the economic impact this project will have on the Northern Kentucky region.”
  • December 1. Huffington Post. New York City, New York. USA. Creationist Theme Park Supported By Democratic Kentucky Governor posted by Nick Wing.
    "A massive replica of Noah's Ark stretching three stories high and the distance of two football fields may soon be on its way to Northern Kentucky, where it will make its home as the staple of a creationist theme park, Ark Encounter. In an interesting twist, the creationist park is supported by the state's Democratic governor, Steve Beshear."
  • December 1. KyPost.com. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. New N.Ky. theme park plans unveiled by Jeannine Gallenstein.
    "FRANKFORT, Ky. - Plans for a new Northern Kentucky theme park were unveiled Wednesday morning in Frankfort, Ky."
    "Governor Steve Beshear joined Ark Encounter LLC and Answers in Genesis, the developers of the Creation Museum, with details of "Ark Encounter" that will be built in Grant County. The theme park is expected to be built near Veteran's Cemetery in Williamstown, but multiple sites are being considered."
  • December 1. Friendly Atheist blog. USA. Kentucky’s Governor Announces Expansion of Creation Museum by Hemant Mehta.
    "I don’t like that the Creation Museum in Kentucky is expanding, but it’s their money and they can do what they want with it."
    "I do have a problem, however, with the official announcement being made alongside Governor Steve Beshear."
  • December 1. Pharyngula blog. Morris, Minnesota. USA. Short notice and bad creationist politics. P.Z. Myers calling for Internet campaign against governor.
    "Answers in Genesis is planning to build an idiotic creationist theme park in Kentucky — we've known that for a little while now. The latest news, though, is that they've brought Steve Beshears, governor of Kentucky, on board to participate in a press conference announcing the latest accomplishment of creationism. That's right, the Democratic governor of Kentucky is going to endorse this latest monument to ignorance and miseducation."
  • December 1. MSNBC.com. New York City, New York. USA. Giant Noah's Ark likely landing in Kentucky.
    "FRANKFORT, Ky. — A huge replica of Noah's Ark and an 800-acre creationist theme park reportedly are coming to Grant County, Ky., according to NBC station WLEX."
    "Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear and Answers in Genesis, builders of the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Ky., are expected to unveil plans Wednesday for the $150 million northern Kentucky attraction, WLEX and other area news outlets reported."

November

  • November 30. The Sensuous Curmudgeon blog. USA. Kentucky’s Governor Is a Flaming Idiot.
    "There are many ways to be stupid, but today we have an account of a truly spectacular public display of world-class stupidity. And more. Much more. Stick around."
  • November 30. Cincinnati.com blog. Cincinnati, Ohio. Announcement Wednesday on creationist theme park by Amanda Van Benschoten. Kentucky/Cincinnati Enquirer website.
    "Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear and Answers in Genesis, builders of the Creation Museum in Petersburg, will unveil plans for a new Northern Kentucky attraction tomorrow morning in Frankfort."
    "The themed park, to be called Ark Encounter, will be located in Grant County near the Veteran’s Cemetery."
  • November 30. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. USA. Noah's Ark in Williamstown? by Jamie Baker-Nantz, editor.
    "Talk of a “big” development has captured the imaginations of Grant County residents for the last several months."
    "Is it a Cabela’s? Is it a water park? Is it a giant shopping complex?"
    "Local officials aren’t talking, but a story printed in last week’s Cincinnati’s Business Courier, which cited unnamed Williamstown city officials, said the big development is a $150 million religious theme park complete with a replica of Noah’s Ark."
  • November 27. Pharyngula blog. Morris, Minnesota. USA. P.T. Barnum was right by P.Z. Myers.
    "The Creation "Museum" is expanding and building a theme park. It's simply a fact that Ken Ham's Institution of Ignorance is doing business like gangbusters — it is well-attended and successful, has low-brow appeal, has negligible operating expenses (unlike a real museum), and is drawing in crowds of rubes and doing a great job of separating them from their money."
  • November 22. WSCH-FM, 99.3. Lawrenceburg, Indiana. USA. Creation Museum May Become Creation Amusement Park.
    "(Petersburg, Ky.) - Roller coasters and bumper cars may be in the works for western Boone County. The Creation Museum in Petersburg is reportedly planning a Noah’s Ark-themed amusement park. An official announcement is expected by museum owner Answers in Genesis Nov. 29."
  • November 22. Death and Taxes. New York City, New York. USA. "...an indie music and culture website." In Praise of The Creation Museum’s Noah’s Ark Amusement Park by Andrew Belonsky.
    "Creationism remains remarkably popular among Americans, with about 44% of the population affirming their belief that God made everything, in 7 days, and that dinosaurs were along for the ride. Now those people can take the vacation of their dreams, because Kentucky’s Creation Museum will reportedly open a Noah’s Ark amusement park. Amen."
  • November 20. The Enquirer. Cincinnati, Ohio. USA. Religious theme park discussed. Noah's Ark project might be on its way by Dan Horn. Business section, page B3.
  • November 20. Topix. Palo Alto, California. USA. Theme park planned for N.Ky.? posted by roboblogger. One sentence summary and link to KyPost.com article.
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