ACLU Files Suit in Pa. Over Evolution

FOX News ^

[wkdaysoff]

HARRISBURG, Pa. — The state American Civil Liberties Union (search) plans to file a federal lawsuit Tuesday against a Pennsylvania school district that is requiring students to learn about alternatives to the theory of evolution (search).

The ACLU said its lawsuit will be the first to challenge whether public schools should teach "intelligent design," which holds that the universe is so complex that it must have been created by some higher power....

[js1138]

Then why use the courts to promote it?

Who is it going to court?????

Who is it going to legislators and school board attempting to get non scientist to rule on what science teachers must teach?

[Shryke]

You've confused me a touch. By "forgotten" do you mean "forgiven"? As in someone here did the forgiving/forgetting?

[dennisw]

I think the ACLU has a death wish .... The American people have had enough of their garbage and that of their fellow travelers. There is going to be a popular revulsion at their atheistic gamesmanship in our courts and we will get judges who will slap them down.


Evolution is only half right as far as I'm concerned.

[crail]

Fewer and fewer people in the general population believe in evolution. In science, we don't see the same shift. It doesn't matter that the general public doesn't like, for example, Quantum theory. If they were told about it, they would surely think physicists are on dope. That will not change the fact that QM is the single most accurate theory for predicting the outcome of experiments dealing with small particles: ever. Likewise with evolution. There is currently much more evidence for evolution than ID. In the future, maybe not, but today, yes. Pushing a theory into elementary schools, without the evidence backing, is like running straight to third base on a date. Do the work, get the evidence, publish, take the path every other scientific theory had to take before it got accepted. If ID is right, science will seismically shift behind it based on the weight of the evidence. Until then, Evolution simply has more evidence.

[TOUGH STOUGH]

Evolution is a theory that hasn't been proven, which means other theories are possible. It is outrageous that anyone would bring a law suit because it is required that other theories be taught.

[Right Wing Professor]

You are the one advocating this theory, and therefore have the burden of proof. "Doesn't this look as if..." is not proof. Proof is measurement, analysis, prediction, experiment, etc., as you well know

The statement was made that there are no transitional fossils. That is false. There are hundreds of known trantional fossils. I've given examples. The arguments that these are indeed transitional fossils are far more sophisticated than you assert. We measure them, we analyze them, we make predictions, and we test the predictions by further observation. Quod erat demonstrandum.

[js1138]

When freepers are forgiven, they return under their original name and original join date. Lots of people have been temporarily banned. It is against the rules to rejoin under a new name. There have been a few exceptions. I recall one in particular who was re-banned within a week.

[stremba]

Simple combinatorial mathematics makes the actual sequence of the last 25 Powerball drawings extremely unlikely to ever have happened too. BTW, who told you that to be scientific a theory must have numbers? What numbers are there in the statement that the crust of the earth is composed of large segments, or plates, and that these plates move and bump against each other to produce earthquakes and vulcanism? This is the theory of plate techtonics, and it is a perfectly scientific theory. There are other similar examples.

[Right Wing Professor]

By that logic the concept that cultural diversity, so beloved by the schools, is on its face beneficial to society cannot be backed by hard data, and should have no place whatsoever in the environment of learning..

I agree completely.

[dmz]

Creationism is NOT a scientific theory.

Again, teach ID all you want, just not in science class.

[Shryke]

So, you mean that someone from somewhere else decided to re-flood FR?

[Iris7]

You are the one advocating the theory so you have the burden of proof. A "testable hypothesis" claim cuts no ice.

Claims based on selection and morphology especially.

It is up to you to prove your case, and for me to pick at your reasoning, experimental design, etc. Looks to me that you guys are theorizing in advance of the data.

[PatrickHenry]

EvolutionPing

Not a list for the creationism side of the debate. See the list's description in my freeper homepage. Then FReepmail to be added/dropped.

[IrishBrigade12]

We don't teach alternatives to gravity because without its existence none of us debating this issue, or any other, would be here to do so...Darwinism, while it may in fact be scientific enough to be lovingly embraced by secularism, holds no such debatable superiority as gravity does, and therefore is valid as a topic worthy of challenge, regardless of your condescension and poorly framed offhand remarks...

[Dataman]

Who is it going to court?????

Evolutionists. Read the article.

Who is it going to legislators and school board attempting to get non scientist to rule on what science teachers must teach?

Last time I checked, legislators and school boards were not courts. Besides, scientists often testify in favor of ID, a point you seem to have suppressed.

Creationists and ID-ers want academic freedom. Evolutionists want a monopoly.

[Shryke]

Evolution is a theory that hasn't been proven, which means other theories are possible.

Other scientific theories are possible. NONE have been offered.

[Right Wing Professor]

We don't teach alternatives to gravity because without its existence none of us debating this issue, or any other, would be here to do so.

And this is different from evolution how?

[PatrickHenry]

Those who oppose evolution might achieve some credibility in these threads by making an effort to understand what they're arguing against.
The Theory of Evolution. (Excellent introductory encyclopedia article.)

It would also be useful to learn what science is: The scientific method.

[js1138]

So what other theories are there that merit being taught? Theories that actually qualify as science and have research programs.

Don't say ID, because even the creators of the ID movement admit they have no actual program capable of being taught in schools. I believe they have been hard at work on one for quite a few years.

[dmz]

I could not agree with you more, given that we talk about the theory of evolution not the law of evolution.

Please let me know when a scientific alternative to evolution is theorized. I don't believe that ID is it.