# Ken Ham blames "Ark Encounter" failure on atheists **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 21, 2017, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575 "2017-06-21T23:28:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/41 "2017-06-22T05:41:01Z")
Poor guy, suffering the Curse of Ham. What’s the story here? Is this theme park actually in bankruptcy, or nearly so? Is it shut down, or about to? That Patheos article just says some vague thing about the “perceived” failure of the business. What does that mean? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/42 "2017-06-22T05:42:39Z")
> **[Nonreligious Questions](https://www.patheos.com/nonreligious-questions/)** > > Whether you’ve been turned off by religion in the past or have a question about one of the world’s religions, check out what Patheos has to offer. > [@](#): > > Bottom line: Ham is a sad monkey. His Ark Encounter and Creation Museum are not performing as well as he had hoped they would, and now he is refusing to take responsibility for his own failure, and instead blaming atheists and the secular media. If he’s a sad monkey, why are there still monkeys? ---
**Author:** ![ssgenius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@ssgenius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ssgenius)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/43 "2017-06-22T05:47:38Z")
A couple of points 1. 100 million dollars for it?:eek: 2. A much as Ken Ham is despised, I will give him credit for managing to get built a 500 ft long boat in the middle of Kentucky! 3. If it goes bankrupt, what do you do with it?. Repossess it?, Auction it off, Use it as a container ship to replace the Crystal ? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/44 "2017-06-22T05:49:22Z")
Steve Carell did it with more style. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/45 "2017-06-22T05:59:12Z")
> [@ssgenius](#): > > If it goes bankrupt, what do you do with it?. Repossess it?, Auction it off, Use it as a container ship to replace the Crystal ? It’s already built. I’m sure somebody could buy it at a discount and get the place up and running as a theme park with a toned-down religious message. Look at the giant pyramid in Memphis, Tennessee. It flopped as a business venture for the original owners. But now it’s a really cool sporting goods store. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/46 "2017-06-22T06:22:26Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Is this a standard quote in your household too? > > Re: the OP, I definitely want some of the credit. Well, \*I \* say it a lot. The wife doesn’t get it tho, sadly. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/47 "2017-06-22T08:04:28Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Well, \*I \* say it a lot. The wife doesn’t get it tho, sadly. “That just raises further questions!” We have entire conversations in Futurama quotes. It’s great until we do it in front of other people and they’re all 😕 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/48 "2017-06-22T10:43:29Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Re: the OP, I definitely want some of the credit. My atheist group has been praying hard on this matter (we even did a prayer circle), but we are willing to share the credit. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/49 "2017-06-22T10:47:10Z")
Surely it’s God’s will that Ham’s venture is failing. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/50 "2017-06-22T10:52:53Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Surely it’s God’s will that Ham’s venture is failing. Maybe he should have brought in Shem and Japheth as partners… ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/51 "2017-06-22T11:26:44Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Surely it’s God’s will that Ham’s venture is failing. God: "Ken. _Ken_! **KEN!** Ken [Falls to knees]: “Uh, yes my lord?” God: “Ken have you heard the story about Noah and the Great Flood?” Ken: “Well, yes of course my lord” God: “Why did Noah build an ark, Ken?” Ken: “Because you told him there would be a great flood, Lord” God: “Correct. Have I told you there is going to be a great flood, Ken?” Ken: “No my Lord” God: “You’re an idiot, Ken.” ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/52 "2017-06-22T11:52:28Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > I read in a history book of admittedly questionable veracity that there likely was a huge flood in that area, but it wouldn’t have wiped out most of humanity, it just seriously fucked up their little corner of the world, which was all they really knew at the time. Flooding was a common problem in that area and ultimately destroyed the soil there. Are you thinking of the [Black Sea deluge hypothesis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Sea_deluge_hypothesis)? (Which isn’t taken very seriously–at least the “myth generating” part.) If you mean a recent huge flood in other areas, the thing is, floods leave evidence. If there had been a widespread flood, geologists _would_ know about it. For instance, there is a layer of sediment [showing a flood](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flood_myth#Claims_of_historicity) [at the city of Shuruppak](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuruppak#Occupation_history) 5,000-ish years ago. This local flood very possibly was the basis of future stories that ended up spreading around the ANE and being adapted to other cultures, including generating the Noah’s Ark story. (Not claiming that all stories of “there was a flood” were based on this–I mean [the](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ziusudra) [stories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atra-Hasis) that say "there was a flood, some people were chosen by a god to live, they took some treasures on a boat and waited it out.) (Strong recommendation for [Irving Finkel](https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jan/01/noahs-ark-was-circular)’s book _The Ark Before Noah_.) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/53 "2017-06-22T12:13:10Z")
[Here](https://thimblerigsark.wordpress.com/2016/07/19/my-review-of-ken-hams-ark-encounter-theme-park/) is a good review of the Ark Park by someone who is in a position to be sympathetic with the cause. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/54 "2017-06-22T12:19:16Z")
To be fair, the failure here seems to be that of the state and local officials who smelled a money bonanza in Ham’s project and/or thought it would be a good idea to soak taxpayers to support their religious beliefs. Until someone gets a good look at the theme parks’ accounts, it isn’t clear that “Ark Encounter” itself is a failure, just that it hasn’t helped the local economy. Ham and his cronies could be pocketing a decent piece of change. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/55 "2017-06-22T12:21:28Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Poor guy, suffering the Curse of Ham. He’s definitely cursed with a creepy beard, but it’s tough not to see that as self-inflicted. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/56 "2017-06-22T12:34:40Z")
Tom & Cecil, hosts of the podcast [Cognitive Dissonance](http://dissonancepod.com/) took one for the team and checked out the Ark. They had a tough time talking they were laughing so hard. [Ahh, here it is!!](http://dissonancepod.com/?s=%22Ark+encounter%22) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/57 "2017-06-22T12:44:03Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > To be fair, the failure here seems to be that of the state and local officials who smelled a money bonanza in Ham’s project and/or thought it would be a good idea to soak taxpayers to support their religious beliefs. > > Until someone gets a good look at the theme parks’ accounts, it isn’t clear that “Ark Encounter” itself is a failure, just that it hasn’t helped the local economy. Ham and his cronies could be pocketing a decent piece of change. Well, this is a crowd that you can never expect to get honesty or openness from, but there is [indirect](http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2017/04/06/despite-being-eligible-for-a-huge-tax-rebate-ark-encounter-has-earned-next-to-nothing-so-far/) [evidence](http://deadstate.org/according-to-drone-footage-ken-hams-ark-encounter-isnt-getting-the-attendance-he-predicted/). ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/58 "2017-06-22T12:52:09Z")
A single photo from a single Sunday half an hour before the place opened isn’t exactly wildly convincing. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/59 "2017-06-22T12:59:41Z")
I’ve seen pictures of it, it’s on [Google Maps](https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/Creation+Museum/@39.0852498,-84.7813849,3a,75y,110.37h,84.64t/data=!3m8!1e1!3m6!1s9ci77sqOdP4AAAQvxdP7pQ!2e0!3e2!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3D9ci77sqOdP4AAAQvxdP7pQ%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dsearch.TACTILE.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D129%26h%3D106%26yaw%3D124.193665%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x8841d1cde443c219:0x37acc1b9e7f681f4!8m2!3d39.0862752!4d-84.7830657), and to be fair it looks like a beautifully made museum. He really did put the money into making it a nice experience. It’s just full of misguided nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2017, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575/60 "2017-06-22T13:34:12Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > To be fair, the failure here seems to be that of the state and local officials who smelled a money bonanza in Ham’s project and/or thought it would be a good idea to soak taxpayers to support their religious beliefs. > > Until someone gets a good look at the theme parks’ accounts, it isn’t clear that “Ark Encounter” itself is a failure, just that it hasn’t helped the local economy. Ham and his cronies could be pocketing a decent piece of change. Well said. As happens so often, it’s the ‘little guys’ that get screwed by the big-talking hucksters who promise fortune. That said, i can’t see it being a long-term success. It’s about equi-distant from Lexington, Louisville and Cincinnatti, but getting there beyond that takes some effort. Plus, it strikes me as a “one-time” visit, a place you see once because, well. you’re supposed too because everybody’s talking about it, but once seen, there is no particular reason to go back. And I think after the first year or so, Ham is going (or already has) begun to run out of those ‘one-timers’, which is why he’s talking about adding more stuff to the Park (with undoubtedly additional tax breaks included)…after all, Cedar Point (alluded to above) adds new rollercoasters every couple of years… One thing is for sure; at $50, it will not be getting my business. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ken-ham-blames-ark-encounter-failure-on-atheists/789575.md?page=4)