With even the Vatican accepting evolution as fact, Kansas voters have taken a step toward being in the same century as the rest of us.
Conservatives lose majority on State Board of Ed
Moderate Republicans scored key primary victories in State Board of Education races, wrestling control from conservatives in a battle shaped by the debate over the teaching of evolution.
Conservative Republicans began Tuesday with a 6-4 board majority. However, one of their incumbents lost, and a pro-evolution moderate won the GOP nomination for a seat held by a retiring conservative.
[…]
Morris, a former teacher, has described evolution as “an age-old fairy tale” and “a nice bedtime story” unsupported by science. She also had drawn criticism for her outspokenness on teaching children of immigrants and sex education.
I’m glad that the left has finally found a body they can win a majority in.
you mean there’s intelligent life evolving in Kansas?
This whole Evolution “Theory” against the “Science” of Creationists or Intelligent Design would be ridiculous if there were less people falling for it.
Deriving all your knowledge from a collection of writings from about 2000 years ago without questioning it is more than just stupid.
Try here. [editor — pls use tinyurl for long addresses]
pj
It’s a pretty sad state when the Catholic Church is more scientifically accepting than a secular school system. I’m glad to see moderates take the field in that election.
Another day, another buck-tooth inbred in Yokel-ville.
Kansas will never be “in the same country” as California. The “inbred Yokel-ville” and “intelligent life” comments shows why this is a good thing. I agree with most of the stuff on this blog. I’m certainly not a conservative republican type. But for God’s sake – stop slamming the central states. People from the midwest aren’t all idiots and religious fanatics.
#1: Are you saying that the Right is a know-nothing group that bases all of its “science” on a 2000 year old book? Give them more credit than that. The Bible may be a good source of wisdom, but the people who wrote it knew nothing of science.
Floyd, relax. They’re liberals, they’re reactionary, and their side won a school board election. They’re excited.
The skepticism which prevails today results from a desire on the part of people to get rid of the idea of God. This gives people the idea that they are rid of the restraints that God places around them!
Ps:14:1: The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.
Liberals did not win the election. Moderate Republicans won the election. I have no idea why people think they are liberals.
Personally, I live in Kentucky….I’m used to the jokes. The reactionary attacks from the so-called wise from California generally cause me to chuckle. After all, catering to special interests and labor unions has caused that state to go bankrupt in the recent years. Who are they to lecture?
8 …a desire on the part of people to get rid of the idea of God.
The “idea” of God doesn’t bother me, it is the fact of all the contradictory religious writings that bothers me.
You can quote the Bible, Qu’ran, Torah, Book of Mormon, anything you like… one has no more relevance to me than any of the others.
Mr. Voice, thus the grounds for you to live your life as Mike wants to prevail. It is this mis-understanding that most will come to realize on Judgement Day. This is completely your choice, which God has allowed all of us to have.
Higghawker
You are more than welcome to believe in a judgement day and your deity du jour. However, do not mistakenly think that your belief is science. Religion does not belong in a science class
> This is completely your choice, which God has allowed all of us to have.
If this is what you think about your deity I do not think much of him. You are leading us to believe he intentionally designed humans with faults and presumably by omniscience knows exactly where those faults will lead and yet still plans on persecuting his creations on “judgement day” when they do exactly what he designed them to do. The way you portray your deity he sounds like something of a sadist.
11. I dont have a problem with religion myself. I do have a problem with teaching religion as science in public schools.
Also, I would note that a remarkable number of religious people live life “as they want” – regardless of the strictures of their religion – then simply respond that they are “not perfect, just saved.”
son of a preacher-man Ken Lay springs to mind. Religious belief is no barrier to a selfish lifestyle.
Moderate Republicans won the election. I have no idea why people think they are liberals.
Because the liberal side of the argument is to teach evolution, not creationism.
I didn’t say Democrats won.
I must admit it’s always useful to have a True Believer like Higghawker wander through to illustrate just how backwards all this religion crap can be.
On the other hand, we have the political True Believers who think that, Enron, for example, had nothing to do with California’s problems.
And James — well, his belief systems require constant self-justification. Other than that, he appears to be a reasonable geek. Dealing with reality when you have to — can do that do you. 🙂
14. James, there are plenty of dyed-in-the-wool conservative Republicans who believe in Evolution. George Will is one, for example. This debate does not break down on neat liberal/conservative lines.
“Because the liberal side of the argument is to teach evolution, not creationism.”
I would argue that it is not a liberal vs conservative argument. I am a conservative, and yet think evolution should be taught in science classes. This is a science vs religion argument (although you can be both religious and accepting of evolution as is the case of the Catholic Church.) School curriculum does not necessarily reflect the beliefs of either the conservative or the liberal. If this were an argument for the chokehold of the NEA or of governmental controls of schools it would be liberal vs conservative. However, that’s not what we have here.
Your original statement was the “left has finally found a body they can win an majority in.” This automatically implies a Democrat vs Republican mindset in our first-past-the-post system of electorate in the U.S.
11 It is this mis-understanding that most will come to realize on Judgement Day.
You would prefer that I embrace a religion which sees vast numbers of people in the world as “chaff”, to be seperated from the “wheat” of true believers?
18 “You would prefer that I embrace a religion which sees vast numbers of people in the world as “chaff”, to be seperated from the “wheat” of true believers?”
You would prefer I see myself, and everyone else no better than kiddie rapists or murderers?
There is a line between good and evil, moral and immoral. It is up to you to decide where that line lies. But make no mistake….that line exists.
19. But that is the interesting part – the mother rapers and father stabbers are not only as good as you, they are actually better … if they have accepted Jesus Christ as their Personal Savior and you have not, you go to hell and they go to heaven.
James, What do you have against liberals?
James, there are plenty of dyed-in-the-wool conservative Republicans who believe in Evolution. George Will is one, for example. This debate does not break down on neat liberal/conservative lines.
I would argue that it is not a liberal vs conservative argument.
I’m mocking liberals viewing this as a victory, when in fact one group of Republicans defeated another group of Republicans. I agree that the argument is not a straight liberal vs. conservative rift, nor have I said it is.
What I did say was that the liberal side of the argument prevailed. If the moderate side prevailed they’d be teaching both ideas on existance.
Your original statement was the “left has finally found a body they can win an majority in.” This automatically implies a Democrat vs Republican mindset in our first-past-the-post system of electorate in the U.S.
To my first statement, but not the next. The term liberal means many things…
James, What do you have against liberals?
…, but does not always mean Republican vs. Democrat, which few of you seem to grasp.
19 There is a line between good and evil, moral and immoral. It is up to you to decide where that line lies. But make no mistake….that line exists.
Noted.
You would prefer I see myself, and everyone else no better than kiddie rapists or murderers?
Nope.
I’m just skeptical that vast numbers of good, moral people throughout the world will be consigned to burn in eternal hellfire just because they haven’t accepted God in the way Higghawker believes they should.
You can be as skeptical as you want. If the bible is true, then it is fact regardless of your beliefs. If that turns you off of that religion then please, pick whatever religion (or lack thereof) you wish. That just means you are either right or wrong, and the “true believers” are either right or wrong. Since neither stance can be proven until/unless the Judgement Day comes……arguing over it now is a waste of breath.
Your skepticism notwithstanding, a religion cannot in good faith change it’s precepts for the comfort of those outside of it.
24 …arguing over it now is a waste of breath.
Agreed.
I have no expectation of changing a believer’s mind.
A believer should have no expectation of changing mine.
James, the 50% line is not always in the middle of the moderates. Sometimes one side is just plain wrong. Interms of ID as science, this maxim applies.
The way I always end a religous discussion is:
There are way too many religions in this world, all with similar stories and morals, to simply pick one at random and hope that you picked the correct one. Most of the time it is chosen by our parents and their parents and it is simply brainwashed into you from birth. Otherwise, we should all focus on science and discovering ways to make the world a better place and all helping each other in this one effort and put aside any differences we have. In the end, it doesn’t matter what religious book or beliefs you chose to think is the correct one, just that you did the best you could to help your fellow humans.
> the bible is true, then it is fact regardless of your beliefs.
Declaring the Bible to be true or false has no meaning without specific context. Further, it would be clearer to state whether the Bible is accurate or inaccurate. Parts of the Bible relay historical, verifiable events and whereas other parts are superstitious fiction. The Bible is wholly ill-equipped to counter science in matters relating to physical phenomena such as the origin of species. As such, religion does not belong in the science class anymore than teaching French literature belongs in a math class.
Regardless, it should also be noted that the opposite of your statement is also true. Where the Bible is inaccurate, it is inaccurate regardless of your beliefs.
Don’t forget, there’s a big difference between religions and a belief in a god/gods.
Religions were govenmental constructs created to keep the populous in line and get them to do things like go to war, pay taxes and so on, or, such as in the case of Christianity, one of number of Jewish sects (which split much like Protestants split from Catholisism and then between themselves) that opposed Roman rule. Organized religions used a belief in a god/gods as their tool toward their ends. Study the psychology behind religious practices to see how this works. What we have today are the remnents of times when those religions were the government or at govenment’s right hand (where the concept of sitting at the right hand of God came from — sitting to the right of the king was the favored position).
This is all separate from a belief in a diety which is a personal belief that is easy to exploit which is what religions and rulers did in past times. Or ultra-right wing Republicans, the Taliban, Osama and so on do today.
James, the 50% line is not always in the middle of the moderates. Sometimes one side is just plain wrong. Interms of ID as science, this maxim applies.
No argument from me on this one, but it’s important to know what the “liberal”, “moderate”, and “conservative” viewpoints on each issue are.