Can we do a separate thread for Creation/Evolution? That's a fun argument that we haven't screamed at each other about in at least a couple of months, and I'd love to do that again.
As to evil, I've managed to reduce the dissonance a little more simply. Evil is a direct product of free will. If we have the freedom to choose our own fate, we will choose to do Bad Things just like we will choose to do Good Things. God did two things to "create evil": (1) He gave us the ability to choose. (2) He defined some things as "good" and others as "evil," and recognized that evil things can be done just like good things. Rebelling against God, for example, is defined as "evil," in the context of this discussion.
For a well-written philosophical discussion of free will, check out "Following Gandalf," by Matthew Dickerson (Amazon: Used, $6). He lays out the arguments for free will and evil quite nicely, much more eloquently than I could manage.
Cheers,
Dan