[kahljorn]

"I also recognize that the funding of scientific studies mostly always eminates from a governmental source, which always results in a confrontation between the search for truth and the struggle for power. "

I find that statement ironic considering our talks about the government and economy.

And to respond to your post: I suggest to take everything skeptically. Skepticism is a good habit, especially scientifically. The less objective and more inclined towards predisposition you are the more likely you are to have tainted results. However, if you are skeptic of science why not of religion? Shouldn't you be skeptical about all belief systems, or is it just that you have a predisposition of some sort?
Personally I'm pretty skeptical, I make observations but don't really believe them. I can still get the general idea of the theory in question, though, even without believing. Then I discuss things in way of observation from as many relevant points as possible. I guess what I'm getting to here is that from an objective viewpoint, the major difference between evolution and divine intention is that one has evidence supporting it- physical, measurable evidence.
Personally I don't see how that evidence even contradicts with 'divine intention' at all. You said you think the scientific community is against the beliefs of religion, like it's an atheistic attack, but I believe it's the other way around. As far as I know people were never burned as heretics for saying the earth wasn't square. I think it seems more plausible that some part of religion developed it's beliefs explicitley to contradict science; these beliefs that contradict it aren't even held by every believer.
Even science has had it's mishaps. I agree with you entirely on that, but do you let that restrain you from further scientific research, a response based solely on fear that can have no progressive motion to it?

Please, let's discuss intelligent design. I know next to nothing about it because nobody ever discusses it. Please tell me any information, the basics; when the world started, how it started, why it started, where, etc. This way we can actually discuss them from a relative, skeptical angle.
One thing I have heard is that the world started in 4,000 bc. This is strange to me because many cultures were, historically, around at that time. An example would be Egypt which if you read, in the bible, are actually real people, religously.