Intelligent Design Theory: Science or Religion?

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (3/20/2006) -- American's increasing acceptance of religious diversity doesn't extend to those who don't believe in a god, according to a national survey by researchers in the University of Minnesota's department of sociology.

From a telephone sampling of more than 2,000 households, university researchers found that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, gays and lesbians and other minority groups in "sharing their vision of American society." Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry.

Even though atheists are few in number, not formally organized and relatively hard to publicly identify, they are seen as a threat to the American way of life by a large portion of the American public. "Atheists, who account for about 3 percent of the U.S. population, offer a glaring exception to the rule of increasing social tolerance over the last 30 years," says Penny Edgell, associate sociology professor and the study's lead researcher.

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And exactly what has atheists done to contravent the US Constitution? Shall we list the number of things the fundamental religionsts have done to destory it?

And exactly what has atheists done to contravent the US Constitution?

. Opponents of ID simply walk up to the fuzzy edge of science (and sciences edges always are fuzzy), points into the inky void, and says, "There be dragons." If there be dragons, then so be it. But maybe there's a New World over there, and it will only be found by those who bother to look for it.

WTF are you on about?



(replace "opponents," above, with "proponents," if you please.)

Evolution curriculum sparks debate in SoCal community
(The Associated Press, March 23, 2006)

LANCASTER, CALIFORNIA: The school board's adoption of a new philosophy encouraging students to question evolution has been met with criticism from some who say the move is a way of sneaking creationism or intelligent design into the classroom.

Tuesday's action came two weeks after a local businessman proposed the change, saying students should be encouraged to question evolution and teachers should be allowed to introduce arguments against it.

The businessman, 22-year-old Alex Branning, said the new approach will give students "thinking skills" needed to compete in today's economy and insisted he was not anti-evolution. "We owe it to our students to give them a world-class science education that prepares them as scientifically literate citizens and members of the work force," Branning said.

Trustee Mel Kleven said the new philosophy will promote "an open environment" in the classroom.

But skeptics question the motive behind the change.

"You don't do students a favor by pretending there are controversies in the scientific community where there are none," said Kevin Padian, a professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley.

California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell said schools should follow the state's standards on the teaching of evolution.

"If it's a backdoor attempt at promoting creationism or intelligent design, if that's being portrayed as gospel, that would be incorrect in a science class," O'Connell told the Antelope Valley Press.

A school district official who helped craft the statement said the move fits in with the state's framework for teaching science.

"Sure, kids can question things, but once you start crossing the line into beliefs or religion, that's not something that's appropriate for science," said Howard Sundberg, Lancaster's assistant superintendent of educational services.

"Those questions could help a theory to be understood," Sundberg said. "I just don't see any bad that can come out of it, as long as we stay within the domain of science."

In January, the El Tejon school district canceled an elective philosophy course on intelligent design after a group of parents sued, accusing it of violating the constitutional separation of church and state. Intelligent design holds that life is so complex it must have had a creator.

In June 2004, the Roseville Joint Union High School District in Northern California voted 3-2 to reject a curriculum that would require biology teachers to offer alternatives to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution.

The businessman, 22-year-old Alex Branning, said the new approach will give students "thinking skills" needed to compete in today's economy and insisted he was not anti-evolution. "We owe it to our students to give them a world-class science education that prepares them as scientifically literate citizens and members of the work force," Branning said.

Quote:

The businessman, 22-year-old Alex Branning, said the new approach will give students "thinking skills" needed to compete in today's economy and insisted he was not anti-evolution. "We owe it to our students to give them a world-class science education that prepares them as scientifically literate citizens and members of the work force," Branning said.

I think I might well be inclined to invest in Mr Branning if I was an American.

They found the last New World didn't they?

1) IDers have found the final new world, the last one that will be found -- which assertion would be preposterous.

2) IDers found the most recent New World -- but, in fact, they didn't find anything new at all.

an argument that's been losing its claim on more and more of the human psyche for millennia.

Biologist defends evolution against faith masquerading as science
(RELIGION NEWS SERVICE, Saturday, March 25, 2006)

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN: Some conservative Christians call evolution "just a theory." But to Gregory Forbes, it is a scientific principle under attack. He considers it his mission to defend it in Michigan and across the country.

"In science, there has never been a more well-founded theory than evolutionary theory," Forbes said in a rapid-fire delivery, surrounded by animal skulls and turtle shells in his office at Grand Rapids Community College. "It's as good as science gets."

By contrast, intelligent design, which proposes an unspecified higher intelligence behind creation, is not science at all but a dishonest attempt to inject religion into science classes, Forbes argues.

As the evolution specialist for Michigan science teachers, Forbes pushes back against legislators who are pushing to have public-school students taught intelligent design alongside evolution.

In lectures around Michigan and other states, Forbes, a biology instructor, explains the workings of evolution, the difference between science and religion and what he calls the dangers of a misguided movement to mingle the two.

"My passion is to make sure this society is educated in modern science," Forbes declares with the conviction of a crusader.

He takes that passion to churches as well as to educators. Forbes recently did a three-week series on evolution at All Souls Community Church in Grand Rapids, a Unitarian congregation. One talk was titled "Science, Pseudoscience and Just Plain Nonsense."

The Rev. Brent Smith of All Souls said that churches need to discuss evolution, which he sees as related to other fruits of the Enlightenment, such as liberty and democracy. "Churches have to address this ambivalence in our culture when it comes to science," Smith said. "Science is under attack by doctrinal Christianity, and it always has been."

Forbes was recently recognized for his efforts when the Western Michigan branch of the American Civil Liberties Union gave him its Libertarian of the Year Award. In accepting the award, Forbes gave a talk titled "Evolution: What's All the Fuss About 4 Billion Years After the Fact?"

The fuss as he sees it is a growing threat to evolution teaching from a faith-based belief masquerading as science.

He refers to nationwide efforts to promote intelligent design, often called ID, as an alternative to evolution.

Those efforts were dealt a harsh blow in December when a U.S. district judge struck down a Dover, Pa., school-district policy requiring teachers to tell students ID is a possible "explanation of the origin of life." Judge John Jones III blasted it as a pretext to "promote religion in the public-school classroom."

The Kansas State Board of Education in November approved science standards that critics say open classroom doors to supernatural explanations of creation.

And two bills have been introduced in the Michigan House of Representatives that could affect how evolution is taught. They require students to assess the validity of certain scientific theories and form arguments for and against them.

Sponsors insist they are not trying to foist ID on students but merely give them a chance to critically evaluate evolution and other theories.

"It just gives a good opportunity for these kids to apply real educational knowledge and form arguments either for or against that theory," said Rep. Michael Sak, a Democrat from Grand Rapids.

Sak co-sponsored a bill that requires students to critically evaluate evolution and global warming. He insists that it is not an attempt to inject religion, but he said that intelligent design should be addressed somewhere in school curriculums. Sak, a former teacher and principal, contends that evolution "hasn't been proven to be true. It's not factual, it's a theory."

Such legislation, Forbes said, is a threat to sound science teaching.

The bills are an attempt to "teach the controversy," when, in fact, none exists about evolution in the science community, Forbes said. The controversy is manufactured by those trying to push ID, which he considers biblical creationism dressed up in scientific language. Intelligent design has its place, Forbes said - in a theology or philosophy course.

Forbes declares with the conviction of a crusader.

wande quoted-

Quote:

Forbes declares with the conviction of a crusader.

Oh yeah!I'll bet Mr Forbes would have declined the general working conditions of a Crusader as fast as his little legs would carry him and hidden himself in a cave to avoid being called up.

It's not just religion essdeeoids are after.It's the sodding English language as well.

"Conviction of a crusader"-my arse.