How sweet: this octopus got a Mr Potato Head for Christmas, and now he won’t let anyone take it away.
Hasbro really must come out with a new line of Mr Potato Head features that includes beaks and suckers and tentacles, and then they’ll have the cephalopod market completely locked up.
My apologies for reopening old wounds, but if you want to know what Paul really thinks, just take a look at his newsletters.
Texas has been considering this application from the Institute for Creation Science for approval to offer a degree in “science” “education” (a double misnomer!). Now there’s an excellent idea afloat by the Texas commissioner of higher education — go ahead, give ’em a degree, only call it “creation studies”. Perfect! It removes the problem of false labeling, and allowing people who aren’t actually qualified to teach science get jobs in the public school system. And it actually gives the graduates of programs in creation studies an edge in acquiring high paying jobs in the Baptist Sunday School sector. Everyone wins!
Jason Wiles delivers a lovely smackdown of Huckabee’s position on evolution. First, he hits him hard on his record as governor of Arkansas.
During Huckabee’s tenure as Governor, evolution education in Arkansas languished in an environment of general hostility and insufficiency. Two anti-evolution bills were introduced in the state’s House of Representatives; textbooks in the Beebe, Arkansas public high school carried disclaimer stickers denigrating evolution; the state’s science curriculum earned a grade of “D” overall and an abysmal “zero” for its treatment of evolution; a creationist “museum” enjoyed state-funded advertising; and evolution was systematically and broadly squeezed out of schools and other educational institutions across the state. Huckabee did nothing to deter any of this – in fact, some of his public statements might indicate his tacit support.
Then he pops him one on what Huckabee has said about evolution — the man is a misinformed moron. Here’s part of an interview with a student…a student who is smarter and better educated than the governor.
Student: Many schools in Arkansas are failing to teach students about evolution according to the educational standards of our state. Since it is against these standards to teach creationism, how would you go about helping our state educate students more sufficiently for this?
Huckabee: Are you saying some students are not getting exposure to the various theories of creation?
Student (stunned): No, of evol … well, of evolution specifically. It’s a biological study that should be educated [taught], but is generally not.
Moderator: Schools are dodging Darwinism? Is that what you … ?
Student: Yes.
Huckabee: I’m not familiar that they’re dodging it. Maybe they are. But I think schools also ought to be fair to all views. Because, frankly, Darwinism is not an established scientific fact. It is a theory of evolution, that’s why it’s called the theory of evolution.
I’d like to think this gibbering sphincter is going to crash and burn in the primaries and doesn’t have a chance of getting elected to the presidency, but remember, he won the gubernatorial election in one state…and the electorate of conservative ignoramuses is nationwide.
This is getting weirder all the time: the Miami Herald claims that 12 Florida counties have passed anti-evolution resolutions in their school boards. They all sound awfully similar, too, as if…
…as if there is intelligent design behind this campaign.
…as if there is some money backing this effort.
…as if someone has specifically targeted Florida as a good venue for the next evolution-creation trial, and is sowing the seeds.
So, anyone out there on a Florida school board, or knows someone who is? Have you got any information on the source of the anti-evolution boilerplate that’s being disseminated in your state? Let me know!
Next time you have to bring treats to a school board meeting, or need something sacramental for your church, if you’re just looking for something fun to do with the kids, here’s what you can do:
It’s a completely edible FSM, and it sounds like it would be sweet, too.
Would you believe someone has received a copy of Harun Yahya’s epic tome, Atlas of Creation, and doesn’t want it? Weird, huh?
Let’s imagine, though, that someone for some bizarre reason wants one. Here’s your chance: write a comment here that testifies to your deep and unholy desire to possess a copy, and the current possessor of a copy will judge them and decide to whom he will impart this strange book of lunacy. All you have to do is pay the cost of shipping it to where ever you are.
Here’s the way it works. Leave a comment here using a valid email address. The current owner will pick one of you as the lucky recipient, and will contact me; I’ll give him your email address (he and I will be the only ones to see that), and then the two of you can negotiate the cost of sending it.
Easy. Just be aware that if you comment in this thread and say anything, you may win a copy of the book. I’ll be curious to see if this thread goes instantly dead, or becomes amusingly entertaining.
Some states manage to pull their collective heads out of their butts and and do the right thing. There’s good news from South Carolina:
Today, in a stunning reversal of votes, the State Board of Education approved the Miller/Levine Biology Textbook that was under scrutiny. The vote went from 9-7 (vote in December) in favor of dropping the Miller/Levine textbook to 10-6 in favor of keeping the textbook on the list. This is a major victory for science education in the palmetto state. Dr. Miller, along with approximately 20 SCSE members were on hand to offer advise, critiques and personal testimony in favor the Miller/Levine Biology text.
You go, South Carolina! Now all you have to do is get those 6 idiots who voted against evolution off the school board — you’re 62% of the way to joining the 20th century!
Answers in Genesis, fresh from their success at aping real science with their fake “Museum,” has a new dishonest enterprise in the works: they’re starting a fake science journal, the Answers Research Journal, which will publish “cutting-edge research that demonstrates the validity of the young-earth model, the global Flood, the non-evolutionary origin of’created kinds,’ and other evidences that are consistent with the biblical account of origins.” Isn’t it sweet how they declare up front exactly which answers they’ll accept?
I hope they’re planning to have a very tight review process. They’re going to face some Sokal-like challenges, as one person has already announced a competition to get a crank paper published.
Keeping in mind that this is the organization responsible for the disgraceful Creation Museum, I am issuing a challenge to the skeptical community and to those of you interested in maintaining high standards in American science education. The first biologist, historian, anthropologist, archaeologist, or astronomer who can get a crank paper published in the Answers Research Journal and reveals their hoax on this site will win…a very special award to be determined later!
Silly person. Don’t you know that everything published in that journal will be a crank paper?
Attempting to infect Spain
America should be ashamed: now our resident idiots are exporting creationism to Spain (Google translation). They’re staging a conference, Lo Que Darwin no Sabía (What Darwin Didn’t Know).
My apologies to the land of Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Miguel Servet, Joan Oró, and José Celestino Bruno Mutis. We aren’t all morons over here in the US, I assure you.
