Posted on 02/17/2009 8:10:21 AM PST by GodGunsGuts
Oklahoma bill to promote intelligent design talk fails By RON JENKINS / Associated Press Writer
February 16, 2009
The Senate Education Committee on Monday narrowly defeated legislation to allow classroom discussion of alternative theories to evolution, along with other topics where science conflicts with religious or moral viewpoints.
The vote was 7-6 against Sen. Randy Brogdon's Scientific Education and Academic Freedom Act.
Brogdon, R-Owasso, said science teachers in his district fear retribution for bringing up alternative theories on a wide range of subjects, such as evolution and stem cell research.
Sen. Richard Lerblance, D-McAlester, called the measure a subterfuge that would lead to teaching of theories based on religious viewpoints and not science.
"Senate Bill 320 is a wolf dressed in sheep's skin," Lerblance said, predicting it was a first step toward teaching intelligent design in Oklahoma schools.
"This is the biggest case of window dressing that I've seen" and "a direct slap at education," Lerblance added.
The theory of an intelligent design to the universe and life has been advanced to counter court rulings prohibiting the teaching of creationism as science.
Brogdon said he did not mandate anything in his legislation, other than to allow teachers and students to have "an open dialogue on many types of issues."
Sen. Susan Paddack, D-Ada, noted that Brogdon's bill was endorsed by a preacher who spoke to the Senate last week and issued a warning about spreading atheism.
Brogdon said the minister spoke from the heart and his sentiments would probably be supported by "80 percent, probably 90 percent of Oklahomans."
Sen. Jim Halligan, R-Stillwater, was among those voting against the measure.
Halligan objected to a provision he said would allow students to refuse to answer test questions on a subject because they did not believe what was being taught in textbooks.
80-90% of Oklahomans thwarted by their own legislature ping!
Thanks for the ping. I live in Oklahoma and this surprises me but with everyone glued to their TV’s all evening places like Oklahoma are losing its identity.
My thought is the public schools, which are Marxist by definition, can’t but teach their religion.
If you really want your children to learn about ID, teach them yourself. If you really want your children to learn about God, teach them yourself.
If you’re counting on government schools to do it for you, you’ve already lost the battle.
Good. Science class is for science. I have no objection, though, to religion being taught as such in other classes.
And who is it you think put you and your ilk in charge to define what is or isn’t science or what is or isn’t religion for everyone?
I couldn’t agree more. Still, if Darwin’s fanciful creeation myth is going to be taught in schools, then Creation and ID science should be given equal time. Better still would be to keep all three (creation, evolution, ID) out of the public schools and leave the debate over historical/origins interpretations completely to the private sector. Or if they are to be taught in public schools at all, they should be relegated to an elective class where all three are given equal time.
What “ilk” would that be?
Thanks for the ping!
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