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Battle Of The Two Theories

by Open-Publishing - Monday 26 September 2005
5 comments

School-University Religions-Beliefs USA

School’s evolution teaching goes on trial today

by Greg Lloyd Smith

HARRISBURG, PA — (OfficialWire) — 09/26/05 — A group of parents in the small town of Dover, Pennsylvania, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), is seeking to overturn a decision by the local school board who have insisted that so-called Intelligent Design-the theory that complex organisms have been designed (presumably by God) rather than having evolved in response to natural selection-must be included in student’s curriculum.

The case will be heard in the U.S. District Court in Harrisburg and is expected to revisit many of the issues already hashed through between Creationism and Darwinism during the 1925 Scopes Monkey trial.

Any verdict in the case is likely to end up before the Bush administration’s well-stacked Supreme Court because of the importance of the issues at stake.

In October last year, Dover’s school board voted six to three to require a statement on ’intelligent design’ to be read to ninth-grade science students. One board member, William Buckingham, urged his colleagues: "Nearly 2,000 years ago someone died on a cross for us. Shouldn’t we have the courage to stand up for him?" The statement said: "Because Darwin’s theory is a theory, it continues to be tested as new evidence is discovered. The theory is not a fact. Gaps in theory exist for which there is no evidence ... Intelligent design is an explanation of the origin of life that differs from Darwin ... With respect to any theory, students are encouraged to keep an open mind."

The 11 parents who are challenging the Dover School Board are expected to argue that ’intelligent design’ is a cover for creationism and therefore an attempt to impose religion in schools.

"We’re fighting for the first amendment, the separation of church and state and the integrity of schools," Philadelphia lawyer Eric Rothschild told the Los Angeles Times. "This trial should decide whether a school board can impose its religious views on other students."

Education aside, the real issue at stake is the growing influence of the religious right in America.

I, for one, would prefer that religion (creationism, its well-known tales and theroies) remain in the churches, synagogues and mosques, where I will visit it should I ever feel the need.

– http://news.baou.com/main.php?actio...

Forum posts

  • Your last sentence, that religion remain in the privacy of the communicants, is certainly the AMerican goal of separation of church and state. However, the True Believers want to demonstrate the superiority of their beliefs against all others, and are determined to install their symbols, icons, bible passages, commandments, and dogma on everyone within reach of the Bush administration. They insist you convert to their beliefs, because their beliefs are superior, their gods better and bigger, their bible truer and wiser than any other, and their priests and popes the wisest and best of humanity despite their taste for pederasty and shagging female organists. Bush is the most intrusive president we have ever had, the best scam artist of all who claims to speak directly to God, but never reports what God has ever answered to him. We would like to know what God told Bush about Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq, about Yellow Cake, about the need for regime change, and about the crusade Bush wants to eliminate all Muslims from the earth because they have false beliefs, a false sacred book, a false god, and false dogma. Whether or not he actually believes he can help bring about the Apocalypse, the Rapture, or not, his True Believers actually believe it and will back him on anything he proposes, no matter how stupid, murderous or pitiless. The term "EVIL" has been proposed by Bush as the need for regime change for Saddam Hussein. I say that this can be reversed, and that the one we need a regime change from is Bush himself. The sooner he is thrown out of office, the better.

  • Dover’s school board doesn’t seem to know the difference between religion and science. If they want to introduce intelligent design, they can do so in a comparative religion class, it doesn’t belong in a science class. There’s nothing scientific about intelligent design.

    • A comparitative religion course is most appropriate.
      So its QED for science and Amen for religion.
      A happy ending for all.
      cheers, jt

    • what about the Flying Spaghetti Monster. His holy noodelness also has it’s place in public scools, then