Date:
Monday, July 6, 2009
Correspondence history between Pastor Kevin Lea and
Dr. Steven A. Austin pertaining to Pastor Kevin’s July 6, 2009 letter
documenting Dr. Austin’s plagiarism and poor science being featured in
AiG’s museum
Rev 1 – September 1, 2009
To document Pastor Kevin’s attempt to contact Dr. Austin by
Phone.
Rev 2 – October 28, 2009
To document Pastor Kevin’s face to face meeting with Dr. Austin
on October 10, 2009 at the Seattle Creation Conference where he
was a speaker.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kevin Lea" <kevinlXXXXXX
To: <steveXXXXX
Cc: "Walt Brown" <waltXXXXX
Sent: Monday, July 06, 2009 6:02 PM
Subject: Letter from Pastor Kevin Lea - Plagiarism in AiG Museum
July 6, 2009
Dear Dr. Austin,
I have attached a preliminary letter that I believe requires your very careful attention and
response. It documents your plagiarism of Dr. Brown's work on the Grand Canyon and, more
importantly, how your actions have had such a detrimental effect on the creation science
movement.
Joe Bardwell of In Jesus Name Productions told me that on August 3, 2008, at the ICC
conference, you responded to his question about what he had heard about your plagiarism with
the statement that it was Brown who had plagiarized your work and that you can prove it.
Dr. Austin, now is the time to refute my letter and provide the proof. This preliminary version is
intended to provide you with the opportunity to dispute, with documentation, the allegations
contained in the letter and its Attachments. As you read it, you will see that the letter and
attachments contain links to documents which contain your own words which prove that you
plagiarized Dr. Brown, but I want to give you every opportunity to correct me if I have
misunderstood the matter in any way.
If you can provide documentation showing where I have erred, I will make the necessary
corrections. If you cannot (and others who are also being solicited for rebuttal and comment
cannot), then the attached letter with its Attachments will be posted at our website as written. It
will also be distributed to about 200 creationist organizations with a website presence.
You may note that some of the links are not yet active, but they will be by the time of actual
posting in early August.
I encourage you to stop digging a deeper hole and instead start taking steps that can undo the
damage you have already caused the Creation Science community.
For example, on 5-6-2008 Dr. Brown sent you a copy of Endnote 34 in his Grand Canyon
chapter. (Dr. Brown's Endnote 34) This was a month before it was placed in his 8th Edition.
Brown offered to correct any errors you could identify- or remove the entire endnote if you
publicly corrected the record. Unfortunately, you ignored his offer. Now 30,000 copies of that
are in print, not to mention on the Internet. Many people are reading it.
I will be leaving for Africa tomorrow and will not return until July 25. Feel free to respond now
if you wish, some of my assistants are very familiar with the material and may be able to assist
you and the others that are receiving this preliminary letter. However, some matters may have to
wait till I return.
Sincerely,
Pastor Kevin Lea
The above email was sent to a known good address for Dr. Austin. It
did not bounce. The email was backed up by a certified letter sent to Dr.
Austin’s mailing address. The certified letter was returned to our church
with a note from the post office that Dr. Austin refused to accept it. Dr.
Austin has not responded to the email.
REV 1 UPDATE
On September 1, 2009, I called Dr. Austin at his home phone number.
Dr. Austin answered the call. I identified myself as Pastor Kevin Lea
from Calvary Church of Port Orchard. He responded with, “Hey, I got
to go, sorry, bye” and then hung up.
REV 2 UPDATE
On October 10, 2009, I had a face-to-face meeting with Dr. Steve Austin
during the lunch break for the Seattle Creation Conference. I introduced
myself as Pastor Kevin Lea and stated that I had heard from a friend that
Dr. Austin wanted to talk with me and that now was a good time if he
agreed. The following were highlights of the conversation:
He asked what we could talk about. I said that we could start by
discussing the need for him to come clean on his plagiarism which
is resulting in bad science at Ken Ham’s AiG museum. He did not
deny the plagiarism.
He contended that this entire issue was a matter of hearsay and
gossip. I countered that it was not and that it was all documented
at our web site using Dr. Austin’s own letters and words to prove
his plagiarism and bad science now on display in the AiG museum.
I also informed him that many people are reading the written
record and are becoming aware of his actions (based on Google
searches), which is why it is so important for him to start setting
the record straight himself.
Dr. Austin stated that he and Dr. Brown had signed an agreement
about the dispute (implying that everything had been settled
between him and Brown). I countered that a final resolution
agreement was never signed and that the dispute was not resolved
because of Dr. Austin’s refused to correct the record.
Dr. Austin then clarified that he and Dr. Brown had both signed the
mediation agreement. I agreed but pointed out that he then quickly
violated the agreement by refusing to put an errata sheet in his
unsold books and also refused to change the name of Canyonlands
Lake back to Grand Lake (which was the name he plagiarized from
Dr. Brown and used in his own publications for over two years).
Austin countered that the mediator only recommended that he
change the name to Grand Lake. I then reminded him that the
Mediator’s first letter directed him to change the name to Grand
Lake because it was Brown who discovered and named it. But
after the first letter, Dr. Austin bombarded the mediator with pages
of federal requirements pertaining to the naming of lakes (which
don’t apply to extinct lakes). Only then did the mediator defer (as
a lawyer thinking he might not have the authority to mandate a
lake name) but again told Dr. Austin that he thought Austin should
change the name of the lake to Grand Lake. I challenged Dr.
Austin that his use of federal requirements about lake names was
nothing more than a ploy to cover up his plagiarism. He did not
refute this statement.
Dr. Austin made other attempts to deflect my concerns by making
additional false statements which I countered with the facts as
documented in his own letters. I told him that I was soon going to
be informing 200 creation organizations about our posted
documentation. He then stated, “You know more about this than I
do” and walked off.
This face-to-face meeting with Dr. Austin followed my meeting
with Dr. Larry Vardiman. In that meeting I learned that some of
the false statements made Dr. Vardiman in his letter to me were
because he had been misled by Dr. Austin. Dr. Austin’s propensity
to try and deceive and make false statements during my interaction
with him sheds light on why ICR managers have also spread so
many false statements for so long. I pray the day will come when
truth prevails in the creation movement.
This Revision 2 update was sent to Dr. Austin, Dr. Henry Morris and Dr.
Larry Vardiman for their comment before posting. They all chose to not
respond.