DWA: Why, yes. For practical purposes, public opinion is THE reality that matters. :o)

You appear to have far more faith in the "common sense" than is justified by its track record. If you take absurdist positions simply for the sake of appearing absurd, then there really isn't much to talk about with you on this Board.

I asked: Just who are these high-profile sycophants?

DWA: Are you projecting the idea that the current protagonists of direct ancestral kinship between T.Rex and modern domestic chickens were not mainly sycophantic, rather that scientifically detailed minute-by-evolutionary-minute analysis critical?

I see that you are avoiding the question. Please identify those protagonists and then we can discuss their point of view, but I don't see much productivity coming from talking about figments of your imagineering.

DWA: I will be properly humbled, of course, IF you can/could come up with some retractions of the original boldest media expressions in that North Carolina university venue. It would even restore some tiny faith in the popular press.