Georgia Judge Orders Removal of Stickers from Textbooks (beliefs, evolution)

[The Voice of Reason]

News From NPR - this link is to an audio clip that played on National Public Radio:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...toryId=4282830

A federal judge in Georgia rules that a suburban school district must remove stickers from its science textbooks that describe evolution as a theory, not a fact.

Well? Was the judge right, or should the stickers have stayed in the textbooks, as the majority of the people wished?

TVOR

[No*s]

When the literalist interpretations of Genesis can be substantiated outside the classroom as evolution has, then it may be done, but not until then. The judge was wholly right. The schools aren't churches.

Besides, evolution can be both theory and fact (as many on this list have pointed out).

[Rex]

Well I guess the judge is right, if he would have allowed it then why not a sticker on the bible saying the same thing?

[The Voice of Reason]

I liked one of the arguments made by those that opposed the stickers:
They held that the Theory of Evolution was being "discriminated" against, because no sticker was placed in the books to differentiate on other scientific facts/theories.
Personally, I found that to be a very compelling argument against the claim by the ID proponents that said that they weren't targeting Evolution based on religious grounds. In effect, since they did not print and place stickers that say, gravity, or the water cycle were just "theories" and should not be accepted as fact, they were truly targeting evolution to salve their religious beliefs.

TVOR

[Faust]

I think that evolution and creationism could be taught in public schools only if a course on critical thought was made prerequisite.

In this case I believe the judge made the right decision based on the difference between education and indoctrination.
Faust.

[Jayhawker Soule]

Originally Posted by Faust

I think that evolution and creationism could be taught in public schools only if a course on critical thought was made prerequisite.

Why would such a prerequisite justify teaching religioun in a science class?

[Jayhawker Soule]

Originally Posted by Rex_Admin

Well I guess the judge is right, if he would have allowed it then why not a sticker on the bible saying the same thing?

Just because the Bible has no warrant to position itself as fact does not imply that it deserves to be viewed as a theory.

[No*s]

Faust, such a course should be required in High Schools anyway. I wish it were.

[painted wolf]

well... its nice to know someone has thier head together.
I wonder how long it will take for the ani-science crowd to strike again.
The never ending battle continues.

wa:do

[robtex]

Originally Posted by Faust

I think that evolution and creationism could be taught in public schools only if a course on critical thought was made prerequisite.

In this case I believe the judge made the right decision based on the difference between education and indoctrination.
Faust.

The problem though Faust is creationism is not a scientific theory but is instead a religious proposition. It does not have the credentials to become a science theory as proposed by the scientific meathod which evolution does.

Critical thought aside teaching creationism, espcially under the guise of "scientific theory", is a bible study class with a different name.

That would be like a history class having a chapter on Adam and Eve. If Christians want to present theories within their own circles that postulate the orgin of man and beast so be it..but the reasonable place for it is the church not the public school.

TVOR in repsonse your original question the sticker is silly. It is a given that a that the creation of life on earth is a theory. But is the best darn theory we have to date as presented by biologist from past and present. If there was a disclaimer in the form of a sticker for every science theory on the cover and pages of high school book it wouldn't leave much room to read the pages.

The fundies and their agendas are sad to say the least. If Christians want to put their theroy of the orgin of life on the same pedestal that evolution has earned than maybe they should step-up to the plate and assert the same rigor that gave evolution its strength in the scientifc community instead of going with the eversopopular "cause it says so in the Bible." presentation.