A Creationist Decided to Answer My 10 Questions and the Results are Hilarious

Let me go ahead and explain what you’re about to read. I wrote an article titled 10 Questions Everyone Who Believes in Science Should Ask a Creationist, which simply featured 10 questions I think people should present to creationists to see if they have a response that makes any sense.

Well, somebody I presume to be a creationist decided to answer my questions. Here are the unedited results:

1) Do you understand the difference between science and faith?

Right back at you! It takes more faith to believe in evolution, and may scientists even use the term faith to describe their believe in “missing links”. The real question is “Where you there?” Did you observe the beginning of creation? I thought that was necessary for science apparently not . . . especially when science needs to take a “leap of faith!”

2) If Noah really lived for 900 years, do you realize that means he lived for nearly 1/6 of the time you claim the world has existed?

If the dinosaurs lived for billions of years as you suggest, isn’t it interesting that they existed for 1/6 of your age of the earth? What kind of science can prove either? It takes faith to believe both. I see you’re still struggling with that “faith” thing!

3) If God could create the Earth in 6 days, why couldn’t he have just given Noah an ark instead of making him build one?

Homocon Kevin DuJan And His Creationist Sidekick Are Being Sued

Demented homocon horcrux Kevin DuJan and creationist loon Megan Fox are being sued for defamation by a Chicago-area library staffer. Via Raw Story: 

Fox, a blogger for PJ Media and YouTube commentator, has aggressively campaigned for more than a year to change library policies in Orland Park after she and an associate claimed they saw men viewing porn at the public library. She and Kevin DuJan — who promotes conspiracy theories about President Barack Obama’s birthplace, drug use, and sexual history — have filed hundreds of Freedom of Information Act requests on library policies and employees. They have also filed at least 34 complaints with the Illinois attorney general alleging transparency law violations by library staffers. Fox and DuJan have written numerous blog and social media posts and posted videos of themselves hounding library employees for information. All of this has cost the suburban Chicago library more than $125,000 in legal fees and keeps two library employees busy for about 35 hours a week, according to spokeswoman Bridget Bittman – a primary target for criticism by the conservative pair. Fox apparently found a photo online through a Google image search of Bittman holding a bottle of Champagne, which she posted on her own Facebook page and suggested that she drank alcohol while engaged in work duties at the library. The conservative activist also posted a video in July on her YouTube channel alleging that police had accused Bittman of disorderly conduct and breach of peace, and other claims the library employee described as false. The suit claims DuJan filed a complaint against Bittman related to those charges, but police found no evidence to support his claims.

The suit claims "violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and the Stored Communications Act" and seeks compensatory and punitive damages from Fox, DuJan, and their fellow nutjobs.

Beautiful Irony: Noah’s Ark Theme Park Loses $18 Million in Tax Breaks Unless They Hire Atheists!

Seems Answers in Genesis hasn’t found many Answers in Kentucky…at least as far as tax credits are concerned. While religious institutions have long been taking advantage of tax exemption to make money, the $170 million Ark Encounter theme park planned for construction in Kentucky may not get the tax breaks its founders are used to. Unless they’re willing to hire non-Christians.

The $18 million in tax incentives offered to AIG (the eternal insurance company) for building the Ark Experience have been controversial from the day the Kentucky Tourism Department gave preliminary approval for them in July. These kind of tax breaks are pretty typical for those looking to build attractions, on the basis that they make for jobs and tourism dollars. Such sites are rewarded a 25 percent sales tax rebate.

However, that tax credit has since been put on hold…because of a job application.

The application for a computer design artist was found on AIG’s site and sent along to the state by Americans United for the Separation of Church and state. The application for The Ark Experience was pretty standard, except for two little requirements:

A letter of “Salvation Testimony,” and a “Creation Belief Statement.”

Tourism Arts and Heritage Cabinet Secretary Bob Stewart said that such a job posting would violate Kentucky’s state and federal hiring laws.

“Therefore we are not prepared to move forward with consideration of the application for final approval without the assurance of Ark Encounter LLC that it will not discriminate in any way on the basis of religion in hiring for the project and will revise its postings accordingly.” 

A couple days later, Ark Encounter attorney James Parsons lied backpedaled by saying the posting was for AIG, not The Ark Encounter. Stewart called him out on it though, stating that the application was explicitly for the Ark Encounter. Ouch. Stewart gave AIG an out, though. The department will require

“…express written assurance from Ark Encounter that it will not discriminate in any way on the basis of religion in hiring for the project.”

They also required AIG revise all job postings to comply.

Answers in Genesis hasn’t responded as yet, but they’re expected to. Like most religious fundamentalists, profit for Ken Ham comes well before principle; expect Satan leading the Noah’s Ark tour soon.

Creationist student challenges her anthropology professor, epic smackdown ensues

We all know the old creationist adage which claims evolution is simply just another “theory,” disqualifying it from being reliable as factual evidence.

Probably the most frustrating aspect of this argument is that it reveals the creationist’s lack of understanding of what the word “theory” actually means when applied to science – or most things in the real world for that matter.

It’s that misunderstanding that reveals itself in the video below when a student questions her professor, asking, “Why should we base the validity of all of our life’s beliefs on a theory?”

Needless to say, he was ready with an answer. Think he got through to her?

Watch:

On the same day that the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority gave its preliminary approval for $18 million in tax incentives for the proposed Ark Encounter theme park, its backers at Answers In Genesis posted a help wanted ad which makes it very clear that non-Christians need not apply. And many actual Christians shouldn't either. From an op-ed in the Lexington Herald-Leader:

When Ark Encounter was originally approved for much larger tax incentives they were required not to discriminate in hiring. However, it is apparent that Ark Encounter is likely to discriminate against non-Christians. Moreover, Catholics, mainstream Protestant Christians and some conservative Christians who have different doctrinal beliefs are also unlikely to be hired. The ad has specific religious requirements for employment. These include a salvation testimony, a "creation belief statement" and a requirement that applicants agree with the organization's "statement of faith." This required statement includes articles that imply that fundamentalist Christianity is the only acceptable religion and that denigrate non-Christians, non-fundamentalist Christians, and homosexuals (regardless of their theological views). The governor, tourism secretary, and various Grant County officials claim the granting of tax incentives is about jobs for the area. However, even in such a religiously conservative area as Grant County and Williamstown, many people will not be eligible for employment. I suspect that even [Gov. Steve] Beshear would not be eligible for a minimum-wage position selling corn dogs.

The author of the above-linked piece is the president of the Kentucky Paleontological Society.

South Carolina Legislator Wants To Force Students To Learn Creationism

Well, it’s happened again. The great state of South Carolina has demonstrated that when it comes to ignorance of science, its legislators take a back seat to no one. They must have been jealous of Kansas, Louisiana, and Texas.

Last week, SC legislator Mike Fair, a Republican, proposed a new standard for teaching high school biology that encourages teachers to teach alternatives to evolution, by which he means creationism. He’s been working on this for months; last spring he tried to pass a law that would have required students and teachers to construct arguments against evolution. After failing to get that through his committee, he has proposed a new law that says:

“evolution is continually open to and subject to experimental and observational testing.”

Except of course that’s not what he really means.

Let’s be clear: Mike Fair doesn’t want evolution to be taught in public schools. Instead, he wants to force students, using the power of government, to adopt his conservative Christian views, which teaches that God created all living things just as they are today, about 6000 years ago (or 4000 years, depending on who you ask).

The 1925 Scopes trial on the teaching of evolution, showing William
 Jennings Bryan and Clarence Darrow.
(Photo credit: Smithsonian Institution)

Fair has a history of trying to dumb down the teaching of science. Back in February, he blocked the state education oversight committee from using the phrase “natural selection” in the state science standards. Speaking to the (SC) Post and Courier, Fair said

“To teach that natural selection is the answer to origins is wrong. I don’t think it should be taught as fact.” [Mike Fair, S.C. legislator]

Ignorant barely begins to describe this statement. Mike Fair clearly doesn’t have the faintest grasp of biology or genetics. He’s the last person that anyone should want to weigh in on science standards. His behavior goes far beyond mere ignorance, though: not only is he wrong, but he wants to use the power of the state to impose his religious views, under the guise of science, on every student in South Carolina’s schools. No wonder South Carolina is perennially ranked near the bottom of the country in public education.

I have a confession to make. I grew up in South Carolina and went through the public schools there, from kindergarten right through high school. I met lots of guys like Mike Fair: popular, plays on the football team, student body president. These guys are usually bullies (we’ve all seen the movie), and that’s just what Fair is demonstrating now: he wants to bully every teacher, and every child, into listening to his ignorant views of science. I’ve no doubt that if Fair could require prayer in every school — Christian prayer, that is — he’d do that too. I grew up surrounded by this kind of nonsense, but I didn’t speak up then because I would have been ostracized. Well, I’m speaking up now.

Fair and his colleagues in the Republican-dominated S.C. House of Representatives argue that no, they aren’t forcing teachers to teach creationism — they just want to teach the controversy. Equally appalling is the position of the S.C. Superintendent of Education, Mick Zais, who agreed with this sentiment, saying:

“We ought to teach both sides and let students draw their own conclusions.”

No, you shouldn’t. There is no scientific controversy about evolution. Evolutionary theory is based on an enormous edifice of facts, with literally tens of thousands of scientific papers providing evidence to support it. There is no competing theory out there.

“A growing concern is the immigration of people who are accustomed to their religion and their civil laws being inextricably connected. For those newcomers to our state, this bill will be helpful to them as they are assimilated into our culture maintaining complete freedom to worship as they please.”Ironically, three years ago Fair introduced a bill to prevent the imposition of Islamic-based Sharia law in South Carolina. He justified this by saying

Reading this sent my irony meter way into the red zone. Let me see if I understand: Mike Fair doesn’t want religion and civil laws to be “inextricably connected” — but he does want to require that public, state-funded schools teach his religious view of the creation myth. I guess what he meant to say is that it’s okay to mix religious fundamentalism and civil law, as long as it’s Mike Fair’s brand of Christian fundamentalism.

South Carolina doesn’t even need its own set of science standards, nor does Texas, Louisiana, or Kansas. The laws of science don’t change when you cross state lines or national borders. Allowing politicians to set science standards is a recipe for disaster, and is one reason why the U.S. continues to lag the rest of the world in science education—as South Carolina has once again demonstrated.

Creationists Lobbying For Taxpayer Funds To Pay For 'Historically Themed' Noah's Ark Park

Ken Ham's name might sound familiar -- he recently appeared with Bill Nye "the Science Guy" to debate evolution and creationism. He's a man with a mission, having successfully built the Creation Museum in Kentucky, a state with a high proportion of Southern Baptists and Evangelicals.

Now, Ham is desperately trying to convince the State of Kentucky to approve his request to use taxpayer money to fund his latest escapade -- a Noah's Ark museum and park called Ark Encounter. The bill for the Taxpayers of the Bluegrass State would come to about $73 million. But Ham has convinced the powers that be -- yes, the governor supports the project -- that it would pay for itself with the additional tax revenue it would generate.

The project would be funded by the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority, which meets tomorrow to vote on the plan. Ham already got the state to approve $173 million in state funding three years ago but withdrew his request when he was having funding challenges on his side.

Mike Zovath, Ark Encounter's project coordinator says they "expect" to get funding approval from the state "because the project fits all the criteria for the tourism act."

Apparently, historical accuracy isn't one of the criteria, although Ham insists the ark will be 510 feet long, supposedly exactly as described in the Bible -- making it the "largest timber-frame structure in the USA."

"Answers in Genesis embraces a literal interpretation of the book of Genesis and a belief that the Earth is only 6,000 years old — a view that runs counter to science," the Courier-Journal reports. "As a result, the Noah's Ark theme park has drawn criticism that the state incentives, as well as a $10.25 million project put into the state road construction plan to improve the state road between I-75 and the park, violate the constitutional requirement of separation of church and state."

UK Bans Teaching Creationism in State-Funded Schools

Lo! Creationism cannot be taught as scientific fact in any state-funded school in the UK. That goes for all free schools as well as any existing and future academies. 

"It is already the case that all state schools, including academies, are prohibited from teaching creationism as scientific fact. That has not changed," says a Department of Education spokesperson. So what’s new exactly?

Academies are state-maintained but independently-run schools with some outside sponsorship. The Academies Act 2010 made it possible for all schools -- such as church schools -- to become an academy. This month, the government added new clauses to the funding agreements between the Secretary of State and any church school converting to an academy.

In what’s being hailed as a secular triumph, these clauses not only require that students at academies be taught evolution, but they also prevent teaching creationism as scientific fact. 

The clauses define creationism as “any doctrine or theory which holds that natural biological processes cannot account for the history, diversity, and complexity of life on earth and therefore rejects the scientific theory of evolution.” 

And furthermore, it goes on to say creationism is rejected by most mainstream churches, religious traditions, and the scientific community -- that it doesn’t agree with the scientific consensus or the very large body of established scientific evidence. 

Here are the exact words from the “Church of England and Catholic single academy model supplemental agreement,” which you can download as a Word document. 

… the requirement on every academy and free school to provide a broad and balanced curriculum, in any case prevents the teaching of creationism as evidence based theory in any academy or free school.

And just to clarify, free schools are funded by the government, but they’re set up by parents and independent groups; they’re like charter schools in the U.S.

But all of that isn’t to say creationism can’t be taught in schools. The clauses don’t prevent the discussion of beliefs about the origins of our planet and living things, just as long as it’s not presented as a valid alternative to established scientific theory. 

All the documents to help church schools convert to academies can be found here.

GOP Education Candidate Wants to Teach ‘Scientific Theory of Intelligent Design’ to Children

Sharon Few, a Republican who hopes to become the top education official in the State of South Carolina, wants to have a form of creationism taught in schools.

Few, one of eight Republicans campaigning for the Superintendent of Education, said during a primary debate on Tuesday that she believed “intelligent design” — that is, creationism in a clown suit — should be taught along with evolutionary theory. No word on whether she thinks that we should teach the Earth is flat and whether or not we should teach the stork theory of sex ed (which would actually be an improvement). During the debate, Few said:

In regard to the evolution issue, I have to say that that is one of the problems with our education system today, and it is one of the problems that has been brought to light through the problems with the Common Core standards. Children are not receiving an objective education.” 

“There is plenty of science and research behind the theory of intelligent design, and yet it is not allowed in the classroom. There is no reason why the scientific theory of intelligent design should not be taught in the classroom alongside the theory of evolution, and that way children would receive an objective education and they could also — for Christian children — could point to their God though the theory of intelligent design. Children need to have an objective education.

She needs to look up the definition of “objective” — “objective” does not mean “whatever I agree with.”

You can watch Few in the video below.

GOP State Senate Candidate Pushes for Montana Schools to Teach Creationism

Montana front-runner and Republican senatorial candidate Steven Daines has some very strange ideas about how “education” works. While sitting down for a radio show interview, in 2012 he stated that he supported the teaching of pseudoscientific garbage in schools.

Montana’s GOP senatorial front-runner Steven Daines has some very strange ideas about how ‘education’ works, as he pushes for creationism in schools. Image: cc 2008 by Tkgd2007 and modified by Elisabeth Parker (2012).

According to Mother Jones:

In a little-noticed 2012 interview, Rep. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), the front-runner in Montana’s open 2014 Senate race, expressed support for teaching creationism in public schools.

In an interview that aired on November 2, 2012, Sally Mauk, news director for Montana Public Radio, asked Daines, who was then running for Montana’s lone House seat, whether public schools should teach creationism. Daines responded, “What the schools should teach is, as it relates to biology and science is that they have, um, there’s evolution theory, there’s creation theory, and so forth. I think we should teach students to think critically, and teach students that there are evolutionary theories, there’s intelligent-design theories, and allow the students to make up their minds. But I think those kinds of decisions should be decided at the local school board level.” He added, “Personally I’d like to teach my kids both sides of the equation there and let them come up to their own conclusion on it.”​

He added that he would “teach his kids both sides of the story.” You can listen to that audio below:

This isn’t the first time Daines had dabbled in creationism, either. He has spoken at the Creationist Museum in Kentucky, and has had individuals associated with his campaign who were involved in creationism, such as Greg Gianforte, whose foundation helped to fund a $1.5 million creationist dinosaur museum in Glendive, Montana. This is a “museum” that contends “the wonders of God’s creation are prostituted for evolutionism.”

As Mother Jones points out, this “teach the controversy” approach won’t hurt the Republican frontrunner in the polls. A recent Pew research poll showed that 33% of Americans don’t “believe” in evolution, of the roughly 60% that do, about half think that evolution was guided by a supreme being (so we’re not a wolfing species, we’ve got a patron species after all — kudos to anyone who gets that reference, by the way). it just goes to further highlight Asimov’s now-famous quote:

There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.

Creationist Battle With Neil deGrasse Tyson of Cosmos Is Humiliating For America

Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a premise to be true. Belief is closely related to faith that is confidence in a person, deity, or religious dogmata absent of facts. Faith is often a synonym for hope, and hope is relevant to any discussion of religion because without a shred of proof a religion’s dogma is true, its adherents can only hope they are not being deceived by teachings with no basis in fact. Young children believe a kindly senior citizen from the North Pole who makes an overnight visit to every child on Earth, and even as they start suspecting Santa Claus is a myth they still hold out hope he is real. Obviously hope, belief, and faith are no substitutes for facts, and yet there is a large segment of Americans that contend without reservation their religious beliefs are immutable and unquestionable truths uttered from their deity’s lips.

The ongoing, and one-sided, battle between creationist Ken Ham of “Answers in Genesis” notoriety and highly-regarded astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson of Fox’s Cosmos is humiliating for America because Ham typifies the right wing evangelical Christian ignorance founded on ancient mythology. Dr. Tyson is not involved in Ham’s battle because one thing he likely learned early in life is that it is futile for a scientist to dialogue with religious fanatics who base their arguments on factless faith. Each episode of the scientific series brings a new charge from Ken Ham, and it is apparent that his primary target is not Neil deGrasse Tyson or Cosmos, but science itself.

Judge Issues Order Against Christianist Indoctrination in Louisiana School

For years, Louisiana has maintained one of the most subversive creationist laws in the country. In lieu of mandating that teachers offer creationism or intelligent design in the public classroom – both of which have been struck down in courts as scientific fact – Louisiana has allowed teachers to augment their lessons with “supplemental material,” circumventing established law and slipping religious tracts into public schools.

The state, and GOP Governor Bobby Jindal, has defended this law by noting that it not only doesn’t contradict prior rulings, but that it’s never actually been challenged in court. If the law were so preposterous, officials say, why has no one come forth to point this out in court? Why do parents and children seem so happy with it?

And, to be fair, many do. Creationism has a massive following in Louisiana – a strong majority noted that they prefer to have Christian folklore taught as fact in the classroom. But a court order this month may, finally, stem the tide of un-scientific education in Louisiana’s classrooms.

A federal judge has ruled that officials at Louisiana’s Negreet High School had been indoctrinating students with Christianism, and that they must promptly cease and desist. The ruling came in the form of a “consent decree,” and, per the ACLU’s release, ends the lawsuit filed on behalf of one of the school’s former students, a Buddhist child identified as C.C.

According to C.C. and his family, the school not only subjected students to Christian iconography in school, but even went so far as to implement Christian rhetoric in testing. As The Daily Beast wrote when the lawsuit was initially filed in January:

[I]f you aren’t religious, or if you aren’t a Christian, don’t worry. … Just ask the superintendent of schools in the parish, Sara Ebarb, who has said, “[t]his is the Bible Belt” and who asked the parents of a Buddhist student recently if he “has to be raised Buddhist” or if he could “change” his faith and suggested to them that he should transfer to a school where “there are more Asians.” Religious objectors, Ebarb has said, should simply accept the pervasive of official Christianity in Sabine Parish public schools. Easy-peasy, folks, just convert!

One of the more notable pieces of evidence came on one of C.C.’s tests, in which the teacher asked children to fill in a bizarre, caps-locked quote: ““ISN’T IT AMAZING WHAT THE _______ HAS MADE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.” (The correct answer is “Lord,” though more exclamation points may earn credit, also.)

As it is, the state is still assessing the fallout from the ruling, which also forces the school board to offer First Amendment training for school staff. But the biggest fallout may come from the precedent the lawsuit has set. Finally, a family has challenged the state’s claims that its “supplemental materials” legislation has brought not further scientific education, but religious indoctrination. While the law remains on the books, the ruling bolsters the opposition’s arguments that Louisiana has helped creationist back its way into the classroom.

Creationists Demand Airtime on ‘Cosmos’ for the Sake of Scientific Balance

Answers in Genesis, the Ken Ham-led ministry dedicated to creationism, hasn’t been too thrilled about Neil deGrasse Tyson’s revival of the TV series Cosmos. After all, the show is centered on a scientifically backed exploration of the origin of life and our place in the universe and hasn’t once featured a creationist perspective! 

Right Wing Watch reports that Danny Faulkner of Answers in Genesis and the Creation Museum appeared on The Janet Mefferd Show on Thursday to criticize Cosmos, saying “creationists aren’t even on the radar screen for them, they wouldn’t even consider us plausible at all.”

Added Mefferd:

“Boy, but when you have so many scientists who simply do not accept Darwinian evolution it seems to me that that might be something to throw in there, you know, the old, ‘some scientists say this, others disagree and think this,’ but that’s not even allowed.”

Keep Religion Out Of Science Education And Debates

A few years ago, Texas was the center of a nutty battle over rewriting science and history to include a clearly Christian worldview in its textbooks intended for public school students. Although the state’s textbook reviewers requested that publishers include creationism–yes, you read that right–in its science curriculum, ultimately, publishers declined to do so. Chagrined creationists bemoaned this steadfast adherence to including only science in science textbooks for our nation’s schoolchildren. According to the Dallas News:

Stephen Meyer, a Discovery Institute scholar who has advised the Texas board, said the new books “will leave students in the dark about contemporary mainstream scientific controversies over Darwinian evolution. Unfortunately, because Texas is a major purchaser of textbooks, the board’s action may have an adverse impact on science education across America for years to come,” he said.

The Discovery Institute is a creationist front group that uses marketing and faux scientific controversies (“teach the controversy“) to try to force the (Christian) creationist worldview into public school education. Their infamous “wedge strategy” seems to have failed on the textbook front for now, but that hasn’t stopped creationist activists from sabotaging science through other methods. Their latest choice of Trojan Horse is public charter schools.

In an alarming revelation, as Zack Kopplin writes at Slate, public charter schools in Texas and Arkansas are doing an end-run around that whole “separation of church and state” thing and implementing a creationist-backed ‘science curriculum’, all using taxpayer dollars. The company responsible, ResponsiveEd, has a deep relationship with creationism. According to Jonny Scaramanga, writing at Salon:

It emerged that ResponsiveEd was founded by Donald R. Howard, former owner of ACE (Accelerated Christian Education). ACE is a fundamentalist curriculum that teaches young-Earth creationism as fact. Last year it hit headlines because one of its high school science books taught that the Loch Ness Monster was real, and that this was evidence against evolution.

Lest anyone fail to understand that this kind of willful instruction in fantasy is harmful, ResponsiveEd even incorporates misinformation that steps directly into the public health domain. According to Kopplin:

Responsive Ed’s butchering of evolution isn’t the only part of its science curriculum that deserves an F; it also misinforms students about vaccines and mauls the scientific method. The only study linking vaccines to autism was exposed as a fraud and has been retracted, and the relationship has been studied exhaustively and found to be nonexistent. But a Responsive Ed workbook teaches, “We do not know for sure whether vaccines increase a child’s chance of getting autism, but we can conclude that more research needs to be done.”

Fifteen years of damage done, and this charter school network is teaching children at dozens of schools in Texas and Arkansas that the jury is still out on vaccines and autism, indoctrinating a new generation in the misinformation and fear surrounding both. The thread that connects government mistrust, vaccine resistance, fear, and religion is a tangled one, but it’s also very real. Teaching students to rely on belief rather than on evidence and results from testable hypotheses does them–and public health–no favors.

And it’s not only children attending publicly funded charter schools in Texas and Arkansas getting the short end of this educational stick. Your taxpayer dollars are paying for a lot of schoolchildren to learn creationist dogma. And they’re scattered all over the country.

I’ve taught students in my university classes who come from educational backgrounds like this. Students who don’t “believe” in evolution, having been taught that somehow, learning about the processes of nature is a threat to their religious beliefs. This mal-education sets them back academically and leaves them playing catch-up with some fundamentals of the field. That’s a failure of our system, one that is reflected in the public’s perception of how we do science and how to interpret it. Casting religion and science as a matter of public debate and spectacle doesn’t help reduce the perception of some that science exists solely as a challenge to their faith and therefore as something to resist or find inherently offensive.

In reality, obviously, science is something we should all embrace. We study the natural world so that we can understand it and often, use it to our presumed advantage. Tracing the path of this understanding nourishes important analysis and critical thinking skills, grounded in an evidence base and the concept of testable hypotheses, questions you can ask that experimental results can answer. Treating what lies beyond the natural world as having a place at the table in science education is just as false as casting the two as head-to-head adversaries.

In our multicultural democracy, no one conception of faith, spirituality, or belief has right-of-way in taxpayer-funded education. And when our students learn about how the natural world works, the only concepts that should have the right-of-way are evidence-based findings, established theories and laws, and testable hypotheses. If people don’t learn that testability and evidence are essential features of science, they won’t understand whether it’s science they’re being sold because they won’t have a good understanding of what science is.

Bill Nye Embarrasses Creationist Ken Ham in Epic Debate of Science vs. Creationism

When I first heard this debate was going to happen, I couldn’t wait.  I never thought as a child that somehow “Bill Nye the Science Guy,” who I watched on Saturday mornings, would one day become a leading figure in the political battle of science vs. delusion.

Keep in mind that I am a Christian, so I don’t discount everything in the Bible.  Though I’ve made it clear that I don’t put a whole lot of stock in the Bible as it’s obvious (to me at least) that much of it has been rewritten – and poorly translated – over centuries.

The dawn of the tea party brought about the attempted hijacking of the GOP by radicals, and science that had never really been up for debate previously (besides between people who were borderline insane) because it had always been accepted as scientific fact,  suddenly became a “debatable topic.”

Not because the science changed, but because insane people were suddenly given a voice in mainstream politics thanks to the tea party.

All of a sudden these people began pushing the ridiculous idea that climate change was a “global hoax” perpetrated by over 95% of the world’s scientists and that evolution didn’t belong in the classroom.  And if we were going to teach evolution in the classroom, creationism should be taught along side of it as another “scientific theory.”

Except, there’s just one problem with that.  Creationism isn’t a scientific theory! 

Which is what led to this debate.  Over the last several years, Bill Nye has been quite public with his assertion that it’s insane how certain people want faith-based beliefs to be taught alongside proven science in our schools.

Creationism again stalks the classroom

In a sane world, the ringing denunciation of intelligent design and creationist "science" delivered by a federal judge in 2005 would have eradicated these concepts from the schoolroom.

District Judge John E. Jones III of Harrisburg, Pa., ruled then that "intelligent design" is not science, "cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents," and therefore is unconstitutional as a subject to be taught in a public school.

Yet the creationists keep at it. A recent report, written for Slate.com by the indefatigable and implausibly youthful Zack Kopplin, involves a network of charter schools with an enrollment of 17,000 students in Texas, Arkansas, and Indiana and an incredible haul of $82.6 million a year in state, local and federal funds. 

As Kopplin reports, the biology workbook assigned to students in the schools operated by Responsive Education Solutions is shot through with creationist propaganda. Among its assertions: "Evolution — which is, after all, an unproved theory — has been treated as fact. It has reached the level of dogma, widely accepted, but unproven and changing school of thought that is treated as though it were fact."

Its section on "The Origin of Life" asserts: "There are only two ways that life could have begun: "1 - Spontaneous generation - random chemical processes formed the first cell. 2 - Supernatural intervention created the first cell."

As for the first living cell, the text blithers on, scientists "can only hypothesize what it might have been like." Thus it craftily attempts to undermine the scientific method. On the other hand, it says, "for many, supernatural creation (either by God or some other supernatural power) of the first cell is a more plausible explanation."

Christian Fundamentalists Turn Their Backs On Pat Robertson For Having A Moment Of Sanity (VIDEO)

Pat Robertson is considered one of the evangelists responsible for the rise of Christian right-wing fundamentalism. In fact, Robertson is so far to the right that even Barry Goldwater hated him. For decades, when it came to Christian extremism, nobody beat Pat Robertson. He’s been a leader of a movement that now threatens the Constitution and our system of government with religious tyranny. But now, Robertson is getting a taste of his own medicine.

Remember when Pat Robertson admitted that Earth is older than 6,000 years?

The civil war between conservatives seems to now be raging within the Christian Right. And 700 Club host Pat Robertson is the first to be attacked as not Christian enough. It all goes back to November 2012 when Robertson dismissed the notion that Earth is only 6,000 years old. In a rare moment of sanity, Robertson told a female viewer that dinosaurs pre-date humans and that she should not deny science.

“You go back in time, you’ve got radiocarbon dating. You got all these things and you’ve got the carcasses of dinosaurs frozen in time out in the Dakotas… There was a time when these giant reptiles were on the Earth and it was before the time of the Bible. So, don’t try and cover it up and make like everything was 6,000 years. That’s not the Bible.”

Robertson was directly criticizing an estimated age of Earth that was claimed by Archbishop James Ussher around 400 years ago. Creationist’s have used this claim as the basis for their denial of the planet being billions of years old ever since.

Creationist Christian extremists attacked Pat Robertson for stating a fact.

This sane moment from Robertson, a college educated man, is precisely what drove creationist Christians to attack Robertson this week. ‘Creation Today’ hosts Eric Hovind and Paul Taylor criticized Robertson for not believing as they do and questioned the televangelist’s loyalty to the Bible.

“Of course the Bible does cover dinosaurs,” Taylor declared. “We have talked about that on this show several times.”

Taylor continued to assault Robertson:

“Pat Robertson is claiming, then, that 6,000 years comes from Ussher’s book and not the Bible. The point is, where did Ussher get his figure of 6,000 years? Now, then, Pat Robertson, are you claiming the Bible is not [divinely] inspired when the Bible clearly tells us that the world is 6,000 years old?”

Here’s the video via Creation Today.

Science proves that the Earth is billions of years old.

As much as it pains me to defend Pat Robertson, I’ll gladly do so this time. The fact is, nowhere in the Bible does it say how old Earth is. Creationists believe it is 6,000 years old because of a calculation written in the book of an Archbishop who was a fallible human being like the rest of us. In reality, Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old. We know this because of radiometric dating, which is used to measure radioactive decay in materials such as rocks. As it turns out, when this test was used on zircon crystals in Australia, it was discovered the oldest minerals on the planet. Furthermore, when minerals from meteorites were tested, that material turned out to be 4.5 billion years old. In short, Robertson is right about Earth NOT being 6,000 years old. He also right about dinosaurs not roaming the Earth with humans. Science has proven that dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago, long before the first humans arrived.

Pat Robertson just learned that karma is a real b****.

Even though Robertson is correct, it is hilarious that Christian extremists are turning their backs on him. For decades, Robertson has made a career out of attacking people for not believing as he does and now the tables have turned. It’s rare to see Christian extremists attack one of their own. But this is a perfect example of how conservatives are willing to eat their own for defending facts. It is simply amazing how one moment of sanity caused conservative Christian heads to explode. At this moment, a civil war is raging between Republicans and the Tea Party. Now, it looks like a war is brewing between members of the Christian Right as well. And that should make every sane American smile with glee.

Texas activists seek 'a final blow' against evolution

Pro-science activists rally before a Texas Board of Education hearing yesterday.

It's only been nine decades since the Skopes Monkey Trial; I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised that Texas is weighing whether to bring creationism into public school science classes.

As we discussed over the weekend, Texas' Board of Education is in the process of reviewing new biology textbooks, which at face value, wouldn't be especially noteworthy. The problem, however, is that the state board appointed a variety of creationists to conduct the review, and they "very firmly" believe that "'creation science' based on Biblical principles should be incorporated into every Biology book that is up for adoption."

The first public hearing on the science curriculum was yesterday, and the debate is off to a lively start.

A past Texas State Board of Education chairman and outspoken creationist urged his former colleagues on Tuesday to approve high school biology textbooks he said would "strike a final blow to the teaching of evolution."

Appearing at a board hearing on new instructional materials, Don McLeroy, a Bryan dentist who lost his seat on the SBOE in the 2010 Republican primary, told board members that the science textbooks currently under consideration contained many "hidden gems just waiting to be mined by inquisitive students" that proved there was no evidence for evolution.

Oh my.

It's worth emphasizing that McLeroy was not necessarily representative of those who attended the public hearing yesterday. Miranda Blue noted that "most of those who showed up to testify at the hearing supported teaching evolution," a point bolstered by the Texas Freedom Network's live-blog of the meeting.

Still, the larger concern is about the anti-science voices who'll make the policy decision, more so than the pro-science voices urging them to do the right thing.

The Dallas Morning News added, "Board members are scheduled to adopt new textbooks and digital books in November. School districts are not required to buy the adopted books. But most do because they cover most of the state's required curriculum -- and students are tested on those required skills and knowledge."

It's never encouraging when these fights pop up, but let's not forget that if Texas continues on this path, lawsuits are inevitable, and the creationists are unlikely to prevail. The U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled that creationist pseudo-science is legally impermissible in public school science classes because it violates the separation of church and state.

Louisiana Wastes Tax Money on Creationist School

The Louisiana Department of Education should never have approved New Living Word School in Ruston to take voucher students transferring from public schools. The 122 students attending the church-affiliated school when the state approved it in 2012 for the voucher program were getting most of their instruction via DVD, the principal told the News-Star in Monroe. The school lacked teachers and facilities to handle an influx of new students but was proceeding "on faith," he said at the time.
Even so, the department approved New Living Word for 300 voucher students when Gov. Bobby Jindal persuaded lawmakers last year to offer the program statewide. The actual number at the school ended up being fewer than 100 for 2012-13 -- but that almost doubled the size of the school. And it was still a lot of taxpayer money going to a campus that was so woefully unprepared.
New Living Word didn't last long, though. As of June 28, the school was out of the Louisiana Scholarship Program.
But it wasn't the questionable academic setup that was its demise. State Superintendent John White removed it from the voucher program because of reported financial improprieties.
An audit by Postlethwaite & Netterville found the school violated state rules by charging more in tuition and fees for voucher students than for students paying their own way, according to a Department of Education statement. The non-voucher students were getting the benefit of in-kind services that the school used to reduce their tuition costs, the auditors found. That is not allowed under state law.
The school principal denied the accusations in the audit and told the News-Star that New Living Word has been made a scapegoat by the state.
Mr. White argues otherwise. The state will have "zero tolerance for fiscal mismanagement of taxpayer dollars," he said in the department's statement. That is as it should be.
But it is still puzzling why the department didn't do more due diligence before approving the school to take voucher students.
In fact, the process last year for choosing schools for voucher students was backwards. The Department of Education OK'd a list of private and religious schools statewide to take low-income public school students whose schools were graded C, D or F by the state. After that list was compiled, the state came up with academic and other standards for the voucher program.
In 2011, vouchers were used only in Orleans Parish in a pilot program. Even then, there were signs of academic weaknesses in some of the schools. It was no surprise, then, when the 2012-13 academic results for voucher students statewide were unimpressive.
LEAP scores for third- through eighth-graders released in May showed that only 40 percent of voucher students scored at or above grade level. That compares with a statewide average of 69 percent for all students.
Seven schools in Jefferson and Orleans parishes posted such poor results that they are being barred from accepting new voucher students this fall, although they can keep those they already have.
New Living Word's iLEAP scores for third-, fifth- and sixth-graders were substantially lower than their counterparts in Lincoln Parish public schools and the state as a whole, according to the Department of Education report.
Those poor results wouldn't have triggered the school being removed from the voucher program this year, though. A school has to post three years of poor LEAP results before getting sanctioned.
But the audit results accelerated the process. The roughly 150 voucher students that had been enrolled at New Living Word for the fall semester are being immediately transferred to other schools.
That is an inconvenience for those families, but it is better to move the children. If the state had applied acceptable standards to the school last year, the voucher students never would have been there.
Now the state is left trying to get back more than $375,000 in tax dollars that New Living Word overcharged for students in the voucher program. And the public has to wonder why the state didn't guard its money more carefully from the beginning.

Yep you found the stupid part.