I think Fred's tongue was firmly in his cheek for that one. Have a read of some of his other columns; you may not agree with what he says, but the flavour is definitely thoughtful and contrary to the apparent dismissal of the corpus of scientific knowledge he evinces in the NASA column.
I actually had the displeasure of meeting this clown at a IT expo in New York... a thouroughly reprehensible person, adn about as funny as a two legged cat. But one must admit, he certainly has drive, if not a future engagement with a rubber room...
(Sprays Link with Germ-Killing Lysol)
Why is it that "internet people" feel the need to promote themselves with mugs and thongs and such... and always the same kind of stuff, too...
it's interesting, once in a while, to step back and consider how much you actually know for yourself, compared to how much one's beliefs are based on unverified unexamined trust in popular assertions.