I don't see what the big deal is. Intelligent design could mean a lot of things, only one of them divine. It could also mean extraterrestrial. Nobody knows for certain where life on this planet came from or how it progressed. The scientists are right on both accounts. There is a certain amount of evolution that takes place and there is a whole lot of things that can't be explained by evolution. Teaching both views is does not hamper science but rather invigorates it. If you don't believe one view or the other then prove it. There is nothing like a little competition over views to stir a debate.
ID can be taught in Sunday school, but it's not a science nor is it scientifically derived. It's merely an idea dreamed up by those who do not comprehend science.
Bravo!
Way too many people on both sides of the issue do not want debate. A debate involves listening to the other sides points, and using logical and rational arguments to counter them.
But since you can't dissect God or recreate the primordial ooze that spawned life, both sides are unable to prove anything, and pushes both sides into the realm of 'theory'.
Some folks will deny anything and everything that won't fit into their own personal box of beliefs instead of realizing the accumulation of ALL knowledge should be the true and honest goal.
"I don't see what the big deal is. Intelligent design could mean a lot of things, only one of them divine."
That is exactly the point. "Intelligent Design" is not a theory nor is it even a hypothesis. It is a throwing up of arms and giving up on searching for the answer. It is a wrapping of the unknown in the aura of unknowable. It is the ether of the our century.
How much do you want to bet that most IDers consider these guys kooks?