Intelligent Design Theory: Science or Religion?

If I thought there were anything to reincarnation, I'd peg spendi as this era's Montague Summers.

(chumly: i think spendius is not concerned about the scientific merits of either intelligent design or evolution. he simply feels that teaching evolution would somehow lead to moral corruption.)

I want to clarify what I said earlier about metaphysics. In religious terms, the intelligent designer would be a deity. In metaphysical terms, the intelligent designer would be a "first cause" or "prime mover".

To imply any congruence would be the equivalent of claiming the length of a woman's skirt is a function of a bacterium's adaptability.

Alarmed head axes creation lecture
(Graeme Paton, Times Educational Supplement, 28 April 2006)

A secondary school has cancelled a visit by a leading creationist who claims to have found evidence proving Noah's flood really happened.

Alan Harvey, head of Millfield high, on Lancashire's Fylde coast, said that John Mackay's views rejecting the theory of evolution were too extreme and his presentation of them too unbalanced.

Mr Mackay, a former science teacher from Australia, had been due to address pupils at the non-denominational school as part of a controversial UK tour.

Secular groups had criticised the lecture, one of a series at schools, church halls and universities, saying it amounted to an attempt to "indoctrinate" youngsters.

But now Mr Harvey has cancelled the visit, which was due to take place in May, saying the creationist's views are incompatible with the theory of natural selection presented elsewhere in the curriculum.

It would have been the second time Mr Mackay had spoken at the school following a talk to religious education pupils during a previous visit to the UK.
Mr Harvey said: "We have decided against proceeding with it. We observed how it went last time and we felt it was not appropriate. We thought he was too strongly focused on creationism and not sufficiently balanced to give the broader view of evolution as well."

Organisers of Mr Mackay's tour declined to identify Millfield as a venue, claiming that the lecture there was in danger of being "hijacked" by secular groups.

Mr Harvey said Millfield, which was only identified following local enquiries by The TES, is a non-denominational school with "strong" links to local churches. A number of governors are local clergymen, it plans to open its own chapel and inspectors noted in its last Ofsted report that pupils are skilled at arguing "for or against an atheistic view of the creation of the universe".

Mr Harvey said: "As a scientist and a Christian myself, I like to see a broad perspective expressed rather than one that's specifically geared towards one view and the rejection of all the others."

spendius wrote:
timber wrote-

Quote:
If I thought there were anything to reincarnation, I'd peg spendi as this era's Montague Summers.


Tried him. Totally unreadable. Not a spark to set my gas on fire.


That speaks well for evolution.

Schools minister says creationism has no place in classroom science

However, young people are poorly served by deliberate attempts to withhold, distort or misrepresent scientific knowledge and understanding in order to promote particular religious beliefs."

New Law Allows for Creationism in the Classroom
(Associated Press, April 28, 2006)

JACKSON, Miss. -- School officials can't prohibit teachers and students from discussing how life began under a new state law signed by Gov. Haley Barbour.

As originally drafted, the measure was designed to foster discussions about the theory of "intelligent design" and flaws with Darwin's explanation of how humans evolved. However, the Legislature expanded it to simply say no limits can be imposed on teachers and students in class talking about "the origin of life."

Intelligent design is presented as an alternative to natural explanations for evolution, but at least one court ruled it out of public schools because it's considered religious doctrine. A federal judge in Pennsylvania last year said intelligent design is not science and is essentially religion, which the U.S. Supreme Court says can't be taught in public schools.

The bill, which took effect with Barbour's signature, passed the Legislature in March.

"No local school board, school superintendent or school principal shall prohibit a public school classroom teacher from discussing and answering questions from individual students on the origin of life," the bill reads.

While banning school leaders from muzzling classroom discussions on this subject, the new law isn't as detailed as the initial version. The Senate had voted to prohibit schools from stifling classroom discussions about the "flaws or problems which may exist in Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution and the existence of other theories of evolution, including, but not limited to, the Intelligent Design explanation of the origin of life." The House rejected that language, prompting legislative negotiators to draft the less explicit compromise that's now law.

Local school officials say they've not had a problem and worry the new law is so vague that court challenges may loom.

"That's probably something that's going to be contested. It is very vague," said Lowndes County schools Superintendent Mike Halford of the need for clarification of what can be discussed in the classroom.

"We're starting to see lawsuits pop up from this," said Halford, pointing to other states where disputes have sprung up about what students can be taught about the origin of life. "It's just a problem we don't need," he said.

Columbus High School Principal LaNell Kellum said her school hasn't faced disputes about what evolutionary theories can be discussed in class. "In all my years, we have not had a problem with that. That has not been an issue," Kellum said. "We've not had a problem with that in Columbus."

Noting Darwin's theory of evolution is part of the state's school curriculum, she said teachers use professional ethics and follow the state-written guidelines for teaching their subjects. "Our teachers have been able to use their professional judgment and teach the curriculum without a problem," she said.

Dylan's a Russian

Quote:

Dylan's a Russian

From the gulag of Bemidji.