[Right Wing Professor]

An important comment from an important mainstream scientific society.

[bray]

I stopped believing in evolution 10 years after I stopped believing in the Easter Bunny! Only a fool will believe that horse hockey any more. Before you fundamentalist evolutionists begin flaming, where is the missing link??

Pray for W and Our Troops

[birbear]

I usually stay out of these ID/Creationism vs Evolution debates because they usually result in the same cliches being hurled back and forth.

I do have a somewhat unique experience that I'll share.

I had the benefit of attending both private and public schools. The private school (a nondenominational Christian school) was able to teach creation and evolution at the same time. (And that's exactly how it was presented -- with two different text books -- a creation science text, and a standard public school text.) The pros and cons of both theories were laid bare for all students to see.

In my public school class work, my biology teacher felt hamstrung. I told her my experience in my private school, and she said, "I wish I could present other theories other than evolution in class. Not that I necessarily believe them, but I think students should have a right to know that there are other theories out there."

Based on everything I've read (and though I'm not a scientist, I consider myself to be more read on this subject than the average lay person) I believe in a young earth/universe. Most of my classmates in the private school, if asked today, would probably subscribe to the traditional theories of evolution. That's okay with me, because I know they've been exposed to other theories.

It seems to me that the evolutionists are more dogmatic than those who wish to share all theories. And being overly dogmatic is never a good thing.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

"President Bush, in advocating that the concept of 'intelligent design' be taught alongside the theory of evolution, puts America's schoolchildren at risk," says Fred Spilhaus, Executive Director of the American Geophysical Union.

That's utterly ridiculous! Bosh. Nonsense.

Only the top of the 90th percentile goes on to do hard science. They can figure it out. Most people muddle through life fine without ever having to use applications from evolutionary Darwinism or the Zarathustran Big Bang. Or to worry about any of the Monkey Bones silliness that gets sexually neurotic liberal secular humanists all worked up.

What a dork. Sound the Dork Alarm!

[mathluv]

Over 10 years ago, when Texas was adopting science textbooks, the requirements from the science educators required ALL theories be offered, not just evolution.

Some don't want to consider evolution a "theory", but it still is.

[Redleg Duke]

What's that? The American Metaphysical Society?

[Matchett-PI]

"...science is said to be religiously neutral, if only because science and religion are, by their very natures, epistemically distinct. However, the actual practice and content of science challenge this claim. In many areas, science is anything but religiously neutral; moreover, the standard arguments for methodological naturalism suffer from various grave shortcomings. .." Methodological Naturalism ~ Alvin Plantinga

More on my profile page.

[Fester Chugabrew]

Scientific theories, like evolution, relativity and plate tectonics . . .

This guy has the audacity to lump the philosophy of evolution together with relativity and plate tectonics as if they are of equal value and certainty. If he cannot understand the lack of certitude that attends to conjectural extrapolations from a static record, why should anyone consider him to be a representative of "mainstream" science? Regardless, I don't think Galileo was your typical "mainstream" scientist in his day, either.

"Puts schoolchildren at risk." What unmitigated poppycock! If anything puts them at risk it is teachers who do not know the difference between science and philosophy.

[Revolting cat!]

Let's just teach children and students to be sceptical and discerning, that's enough for this cat! The Establishment, any establishment, cannot tolerate scepticism when it comes to its cherished dogmas.

Sceptical people take scientific reports in newspapers with a grain of salt and wait for the next week's edition where today's report may well be contradicted. Discerning readers and listeners don't read Hairy Potty books and don't hail Eddie Van Halen as this century's Mozart!

[tamalejoe]

WASHINGTON - "President Bush, in advocating that the concept of 'intelligent design' be taught alongside the theory of evolution, puts America's schoolchildren at risk," says Fred Spilhaus, Executive Director of the American Geophysical Union.

How the hell does hearing both sides of a debate or argument put anybody at risk??????

Far as I'm concerned, it's the guy who wants the total monopoly on information flow who's the risk.

[Rightwing Conspiratr1]

An important comment from an important mainstream scientific society.

No it's silly religious commentary from a whack nutcase. Putting America's children at risk my ass.

[Eagles Talon IV]

"Americans will need basic understanding of science in order to participate effectively in the 21st century world. It is essential that students on every level learn what science is and how scientific knowledge progresses."

Wrong, they need basic understanding of how to count and spell and speak.

[Charlespg]

WASHINGTON - "President Bush, in advocating that the concept of 'intelligent design' be taught alongside the theory of evolution, puts America's schoolchildren at risk," says Fred Spilhaus, Executive Director of the American Geophysical Union.

yah yah yah ,whatever Homer

[ocean]

I just want to know one thing. How did the eyeball evolve to be so common among otherwise completely opposite and unrelated Life forms????

Fish, polar bears, snakes, sea horses, ducks all utilize the eye for sight while having evolved different means for other functions.

Someone explain.

[shuckmaster]

They should require that all churches give a scientist a few minutes to let the congregation hear a bit of factual truth before they start in with their superstitious myth telling.

[shuckmaster]

They should require that all churches give a scientist a few minutes to let the congregation hear a bit of factual truth before they start in with their superstitious myth telling.

[Clemenza]

Keep ID in Sunday school. It has as much to do with hard science as those Scholastics in the old days who used to argue about how many angels could fit on a pin.

[Fledermaus]

Since when does the left care about actual science? They are too busy pedalling junk science to advance their socialism agenda.

What's wrong with discussion and debate? Heck, I've got wilder ideas than both ID and evolution. Am I supposed to be forced into these two camps or exercise my rights as a free individual and express my views and ideas?

People get really stupid when this issue comes up which makes me think it isn't about science at all. Just another battle in the culture war if you ask me.

[RobbyS]

Baloney. Does he really think that the average high school students learns diddly about evolution in biology classes? They can hardly give intelligent answers about human sexual reproduction.

[An.American.Expatriate]

That is an untestable belief and, therefore, cannot qualify as a scientific theory.

Neither pro or con here, BUT, if THIS is the only reason that scientists reject ID, then we are in a lot of trouble!!

Many theories were based on deductive reasoning and, although at the time not provable, were accepted. Here we have a group that advocates an alternative theory and, at least based on what was said, it is rejected because the existence of the creator can not (yet) be proven!

IIRC the Theory of Relativity is STILL not 100% proven (and some of it has been changed due to newer discoveries). Does this mean that the Theory itself is invalid??

IMHO, scientists today are about as open minded as the Catholic Church of Copernicus' & Galileo's time. If the alternative proposed is outside "accepted" norms, the proponents are heritics.

Just my two cents.