Ga. Evolution Stickers Ordered Removed

[bozothedeathmachine]

Score one for the reasonable...


Linky

 

[Psi Baba]

Thank God--er--well, you know what I mean. Glad to hear that. Thanks for pointing to that article. I found this statement by the judge to be especially sensible:

But the judge disagreed: "While evolution is subject to criticism, particularly with respect to the mechanism by which it occurred, the sticker misleads students regarding the significance and value of evolution in the scientific community."

 

[LucyR]

"The stickers were added after more than 2,000 parents complained that the textbooks presented evolution as fact, without mentioning rival ideas about the beginnings of life, such as the biblical story of creation."

2000?! What is the root of this stupidity? Is the US education system really that bad? What makes these people so backward?

There is of course the usual misunderstanding of the word "theory".

 

[merphie]

"The stickers were added after more than 2,000 parents complained that the textbooks presented evolution as fact, without mentioning rival ideas about the beginnings of life, such as the biblical story of creation."

2000?! What is the root of this stupidity? Is the US education system really that bad? What makes these people so backward?

There is of course the usual misunderstanding of the word "theory".

Agreed. You can see a lot of this. They just removed another religious monument from a state building not to long ago.

Why do we need reason? The schools don't teach it. My kids just went through drug awareness week and they complained when I took a drink of soda while driving. (I was drinking and driving)

 

[corplinx]

I don't believe this story at all. I've been told for the past 4 years that America has become a theocracy.

If you are telling me that people on this forum and elsewhere cherrypick the losses and ignore the wins, I will tell you take such foolish talk elsewhere.

Bah!

 

[merphie]

I don't believe this story at all. I've been told for the past 4 years that America has become a theocracy.

If you are telling me that people on this forum and elsewhere cherrypick the losses and ignore the wins, I will tell you take such foolish talk elsewhere.

Bah!

I don't believe we are a theocracy yet. However what my kids tell about their day at school I sometimes wonder.

 

[cesium]

I definantly think that this is a case of horible ignorance. We do not yet have a concrete idea of the begennings and changes of life, but we do have many experiments and ideas that lean toward the theory of evolution.

My point: EVOLUTION IS A THEORY which has not yet been concretely proven or disproven

I feel that it is important to list alternative ideas, or at least confirm thier existance.

The fact that this is a stupid STICKER annoyes me further, it is simply there to keep people happy, and no one is forcing students to read it.

Further, although I do not have the exact text of the sticker, I dont think that simply confirming the existance of other theories is endorsement of religion, but listing individual theories (such as creationalism) may be.

 

[Khonshu]

Then please tell me all the alternative SCIENTIFIC theories about the development of life on our planet besides evolution.

Creationism, in any form, is not scientific and should not be taught as such. Period. If an alternative scientific theory develops, then yes, by all means teach it. But do not dress religion in scientific-sounding terms and label it as science.

 

[epepke]

My point: EVOLUTION IS A THEORY which has not yet been concretely proven or disproven

Yeah, your point.

Evolution is a fact. It happens.

The theory of evolution by natural selection is a theory. There is lots of evidence, but it isn't a fact.

Many people can't tell the difference, because they can barely read or think. Perhaps you are one.

 

[KelvinG]

I don't believe this story at all. I've been told for the past 4 years that America has become a theocracy.

If you are telling me that people on this forum and elsewhere cherrypick the losses and ignore the wins, I will tell you take such foolish talk elsewhere.

Bah!

If people were ignoring the wins, this thread never would have been started.

 

[LucyR]

My point: EVOLUTION IS A THEORY which has not yet been concretely proven or disproven

As opposed to?

What's your understanding of the word "theory" when used in a scientific context?

 

[H3LL]

This thread beat me to it:

More disclaimer stickers at this site and the court ruling.

Textbook Disclaimer Stickers:
Textbook Disclaimers

BREAKING NEWS (at least on January 13, 2005): The infamous Cobb County sticker is officially unconstitutional. Read the decision (2.4 MB pdf). Congratulations to the ACLU and NCSE, and thanks to the brave parents who brought the suit. But it's really too bad the Cobb County school district, the loser in the decision, now has to pay the rather large legal fees, sucking valuable assets away from school budgets. To cover the expected revenue shortfall, and to avoid tax increases in Cobb County, perhaps Marjorie Rogers (the Creationist who started the whole mess) can extract donations from the 2,300 supporters who signed her original petition that objected to evolution instruction. Just an idea.

Victory Sticker (A 'must have'):

<center>

</center>

PDF version of the court ruling:

Cooper Decision


Edited to add link

 

[H3LL]

Evolution n.

The process by which supporters of ID and/or creationism learn the scientific meaning or the word theory, get their @ss kicked in court, eat humble pie and learn that their pet myths are are not appreciated by people with a brain and the ability to read both the constitution and books other than the buy-bull.

 

[Psi Baba]

Evolution n.

The process by which supporters of ID and/or creationism learn the scientific meaning or the word theory, get their @ss kicked in court, eat humble pie and learn that their pet myths are are not appreciated by people with a brain and the ability to read both the constitution and books other than the buy-bull.

 

[Cleon]

Whew.

It was this case that spawned my theory that every time Georgia is in the national news, it's always for something stupid.

(My corollary to this was that Georgia should adopt the state motto: "Georgia&#151;at least we're not Alabama!")

 

[TragicMonkey]

Whew.

It was this case that spawned my theory that every time Georgia is in the national news, it's always for something stupid.

Not true, what about the Hogzilla Festival? Oh, wait, never mind.

 

[Questioninggeller]

Yeah, your point.

Evolution is a fact. It happens.

The theory of evolution by natural selection is a theory. There is lots of evidence, but it isn't a fact.

Many people can't tell the difference, because they can barely read or think. Perhaps you are one.

Well stated.

 

[Daylight]

If you are one of the teachers that gets laid off, could you sue the Georgia chapter of the Christian Coalition? They caused the mess, shouldn't they he held accountable?

 

[merphie]

I definantly think that this is a case of horible ignorance. We do not yet have a concrete idea of the begennings and changes of life, but we do have many experiments and ideas that lean toward the theory of evolution.

My point: EVOLUTION IS A THEORY which has not yet been concretely proven or disproven

I feel that it is important to list alternative ideas, or at least confirm thier existance.

The fact that this is a stupid STICKER annoyes me further, it is simply there to keep people happy, and no one is forcing students to read it.

Further, although I do not have the exact text of the sticker, I dont think that simply confirming the existance of other theories is endorsement of religion, but listing individual theories (such as creationalism) may be.

Your point is wrong. The theory of evolution is no different than the Atomic Theory. The theory of gravity. Are these to be questioned? We know the atomic theory works quite well.

Alternative ideas are great, but you should have fact to support them. Religion has very little facts. 'creationalism' is not a theory. It's religion.

The sticker is indeed annoying, but you have to look at things from the perspective of a child. You and I may ignore it or even laugh. A child may not.

 

[Crossbow]

Your point is wrong. The theory of evolution is no different than the Atomic Theory. The theory of gravity. Are these to be questioned? We know the atomic theory works quite well.

Alternative ideas are great, but you should have fact to support them. Religion has very little facts. 'creationalism' is not a theory. It's religion.

The sticker is indeed annoying, but you have to look at things from the perspective of a child. You and I may ignore it or even laugh. A child may not.

Well said merphie!

I too have often wondered why some people get so bent out of shape about the Theory of Evolution, but seem to have no qualms about:

Theory of Relativity,
Theory of Gravity,
Four Color Theory,
Sum of Consecutive Odd Primes always equals an Even Number Theory,
and so on.