Small victory at home

As I posted earlier I was supposed to go and testify at our local school board meeting yesterday about teaching Evolution to our school children. As it turned out there was a conflict in my schedule and I was unable to make it. Anyhow I spent two days writing what I believe is a very convincing speech about the importance of teaching evolution to the kids and then did not get to amaze them with my oratory gifts. So I thought that you gentle readers would like to give it a read and maybe even write a comment about the impact it might have had.

"I must admit that I am embarrassed that a meeting like this is still necessary in this day and age.

I have had quite a lot of fun ridiculing Kansas and their antiquated school curriculum. And then I wake up and read that Alaska, my home, the place of my birth, is sliding into the same pit of irrelevance.

I am going to forego any attempt at political correctness and just call them like I see them. This is really just an attempt to insinuate a particular belief system into our science curriculum. On the surface it is defined as an innocent call for alternate scientific theories being introduced alongside evolutionary biology. But letÂ’s not allow ourselves to be fooled. This is really an attack on a line of thought that certain believers think places their faith at risk.

These same individuals have no argument with Astrophysics, Archeology, Astronomy, Geology, Geography, and so on, and so on. The reason that Evolution gets separated from the pack is because it dares to suggest that we might not be divinely created. It dares to suggest that we, like all other life on our planet, emerged from a more primitive life form.

Now first there is some confusion over the term theory as it relates to science. A theory is not just a random thought that occurs to a scientist on his ride home from work. A theory is an idea or group of ideas that are suggested by scientific observation. The scientist then continues in the direction that is suggested by the theory, and if it is a good theory, then they keep finding evidence that fits or fleshes out that theory. Now it is a given that the initial theory will change some as the scientists gather more evidence and in the end it may appear somewhat different then when it began. However, if the initial theory is faulty then it will lead to a dead end and fall by the wayside like so many theories that have preceded it. If a theory is valid then it will be reinforced over and over until it is accepted as fact though it will always be referred to as a theory. This is the case with Evolution.


Now the idea that there are all of these other scientific theories which either question evolution or refute it all together is complete garbage! There are two ways to gain fame in the scientific community, either come up with a new theorem or effectively refute an existing theorem. Evolution is not disputed by any reputable scientists. Period!

Without Evolution how would we know that the flu evolves each year so that we have to develop a new vaccine to immunize ourselves against it. If Evolution was just poppycock then it would be a dead end and therefore be of no benefit to other scientific disciplines which it clearly has been. Paleontology, Anthropology, Botany, Microbiology, and many more would be so much less illuminated if not for the framework provided by Evolution.

I have heard from some proponents of Intelligent Design that scientists want to promote anti-religious thinking or that they are promoting their own religion of Humanism. That is really a transparent attempt to level the playing field so that fundamental religious beliefs can be discussed alongside scientific theory as being similar or even the same. For this argument to have any validity we would have to suggest that the scientific community as a whole would be working together to supplant religion and that they were shaping their conclusions in an attempt to do just that.

This could not be further from the truth. The facts are that evolutionary biologists come from all walks of life and from every continent on the planet. They have numerous cultural and religious differences and yet what brings them together is the search for truth. They do not allow their language barriers, religious beliefs, or political affiliations to interfere with their important work.

Just recently, in the last thirty years, paleontologists have considered that dinosaurs might be warm-blooded. And though there is ongoing debate about the subject, nobody is referring to the other as a heretic or non-believer. Science is not based on a belief; it is based on accumulated evidence. If the evidence suggests another direction, then watch the scientific community dutifully trot off to see where it leads. That is their job! There might be some who resist at first but as more and more evidence trickles in they will be forced to alter their thinking or become irrelevant.


I would like to close by mentioning what is probably the most famous example of fundamentalist religious belief interfering with scientific progress. He is now considered the father of modern science but in 1632 Galileo dared publish “Dialogue Concerning two Chief World Systems”. In this book he referred to the theory that Copernicus had postulated 90 years earlier, that the sun, and not the earth, was the center of the universe. For this statement Galileo, a lifetime Catholic whose two daughters became nuns, was vilified and put on trial by the Inquisition. He was ordered to retract his findings, which he did, and spent the remainder of his life under house arrest. It was a sad end to the life of this genius who contributed so much to our understanding of our universe.

How can we be standing here, in the twenty-first century, and still be allowing our ignorance to sabotage our progress. We owe it to our children to allow them access to the amazing discoveries that science has afforded us and the opportunity to continue on the path that was forged by the brilliant men and women who came before. "

By the way the school board unanimously decided to start teaching evolution, without quotation marks, in every science class in the school district. That makes me feel a little better.