Evolution Case Opens in Georgia Court

[wildflower]

By KRISTIN WYATT, Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA - A warning sticker in suburban Atlanta science textbooks that says evolution is "a theory, not a fact" was challenged in court Monday as an unlawful promotion of religion.

The disclaimer was adopted by Cobb County school officials in 2002 after hundreds of parents signed a petition criticizing the textbooks for treating evolution as fact without discussing alternate theories, including creationism.

"The religious views of some that contradict science cannot dictate curriculum," American Civil Liberties Union (news - web sites) attorney Maggie Garrett argued Monday before U.S. District Judge Clarence Cooper. The trial is expected to last several days.

But a lawyer for Cobb County schools, Linwood Gunn, held up a copy of a textbook's table of contents Monday that showed dozens of pages about evolution.

more at

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041108/ap_on_re_us/evolution_debate

[Burma Jones]

1. You know, Gravity is a theory as well........

If only these numbskulls knew what theory meant...........

[Huckebein the Raven]

2. Yeah and when you explain it to them, watch their eyes

glaze over.

[Arianrhod]

6. They know.

They don't care.

[SoCalDem]

8. You silly person, "everyone " knows that gravity is

magic:)

[0007]

19. Gravity is a myth......the world indeed sucks

I hope the young lady emad aisat sana doesn't mind me using her words of wisdom.

[progdonkey]

24. actually, Gravity is a Law...

(allow me to put on my nerd glasses...)

That is, we know that Gravity exists and can be measured and predicted precisely; the theoretical aspect deals with the origin of Gravity and its effects. Laws generally cover simple actions and forces, whereas theories cover much more complex interactions of different forces.

Plate Tectonics, for instance, is a theory. If someone throws "Evolution's just a theory" in your face, just ask them what causes earthquakes.

Still, I completely agree with your point. :-)

[DrWeird]

30. Theory, actually.

The laws of gravity are subsets of the theory of gravity, provided the theory is true.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

43. So why don't se drop them on their heads and demonstrate the scientific

probability of the THEORY of gravity ? :D

[Shakespeare]

3. Didn't we already have the Scopes monkey trial?

Un-freaking-believable.

[struggle4progress]

20. Yes but Scopes lost. eom

[Shakespeare]

22. Wasn't my point, but yes, I know that. n/t

[sister moon]

4. When being critical of these people and their ability to reason,

please remember we are talking about persons who believe with every fiber of their being that there is an invisible man in the sky that is keeping track of everything they do and he is prepared to send them to a place of burning and misery for ever and ever. But he loves them.

[pinerow]

14. So effin what...who says one has to be kind to the ignorant...that

is one reason the election was lost...

[DBoon]

21. They will go to hell immediately

If they have the slightest doubt about the biblical account of creation.

They have taught themselves to be impervious to reason as a way to ensure their immortal souls will go to heaven in the afterlife.

[VegasWolf]

28. Well said, sister. He loves them even while firing off their firey

asses to hell for eating meat on Friday.

[Mz Pip]

40. Is this a theory

or a fact? <sarcasm>

These people make me nuts. I don't care what they believe. They can take "Alice in Wonderland" literally for all I care. Just don't try to make tea parties part of public policy. :crazy:

MzPip
:dem:

[RebelOne]

5. I work in the same county as these morons.

[CottonBear]

11. Didn't Cobb County ban gay Olympians in 1996?

I live in a college town but I work in the white suburbs which are filled with these yahoos. The scary part is that many of them are college educated and upper middle class. WTF happened to their brains?

[CottonBear]

7. I wonder if they believe in germ theory? If not, then they have no need

for handwashing or antibiotics. Or for that fact modern medicine and drugs. They could have "faith-based healing hospitals."

These idiots have managed to make GA look even worse than it already does. Someone has pointed out that practically every section of every science textbook would need a "theory not a fact" warning since science is based on observation, analysis, evidence and theory to propose facts.

[Liberal Veteran]

10. Why should they...everyone knows illness is the result of evil spirits...

....and that reading the bible and prayer is sovereign against all disease.

[peterh]

32. And if that don’t work….

Ya book a session with Benny Hinn…:crazy:

[bobaloo2]

9. Fair and balanced,

another sticker "The bible is a theory, not a fact."

[Claire Beth]

13. Ain't it the truth! n/t

[Joe Turner]

37. The Bible is a work of Fiction, Not Fact

I can't tell you how many people I know who have lost a good part of their ability to reason because they joined a fundamentalist christian "bible thumping" denomination.

It's scary. One friend in particular who used to be very much a man of science told me recently that he no longer believes in evolution. That new discoveries support creationism. I could not believe my ears. When I asked about these "new discoveries" he just reguritated that standard Creationist Clap Trap that life on earth has only been in existence for thousands of years...not billions.

The odd thing is, he knows I'm right but can't face up to it because it would conflict with the bible.

[RaleighNCDUer]

45. Actually a mixture of myth, history and allegory, with some pretty

poetry thrown in. Still, not fact.

How many true believers does it take to turn a cult into a religion? I abandoned all belief in religion when I started studying cults, and realized I couldn't tell the difference, except in # of believers.

[The Spirit of JFK]

12. So some book written eons ago trumps decades of Science?

Please forgive me forgive me for referring to the Bible as "some book"...

Most people don't understand the concept of evolution...they think science is saying we used to be apes which, of course, it really doesn't.

Of course, there is a less than 2% difference in DNA bwteen humans and one of the apes...but I digress.

[RaleighNCDUer]

46. .6% difference between us and bonobos, I believe it is. 2% is fairly wide

divergence.

[arwalden]

15. LOL... Those Crazy Christians*... Always Up To Something.

*NOT of the Jimmy Carter type or the progressive liberal types like the ones here on DU. I'm referring specifically to the fundamentalist, born-again, myopic, hateful zealots, Bush-supporters, queer bashers, anti-choice, literal inerrant inspired word-of-god types, speakinging in tongues and handling snake types, Robertson fans, Falwell fans, TBN fans, etc etc.

-- Allen

[pinerow]

17. let us know what you really think...

don't hold back...

[Toby109]

16. A New Low

On Wednesday I was ashamed to be an American. I don't know what's worse; my native state voting bush or attempting this perverse assault on science and reason. I guess one follows the other.

A good book on the Scopes Trial is "Summer for the Gods" by Edward Larson. Might be time for a re-read.

[Dogmudgeon]

18. Here's one for Ancient Civ textbooks

"NOTE: The historical existence of Jesus Christ has not been established."

They'll love that one.

--bkl

[iam]

23. A good question to ask any hysterical religious supernaturalist,

If the biblical story of genesis is true, why do men have nipples?

[daleo]

25. They were put there to test our faith

Or put there by Satan.

When in doubt, pick one or the other of these all purpose responses.

[VegasWolf]

41. No, they were put there so that gays would have toys!

[DireStrike]

26. "Christianity is a theory, not a fact"

[Ganja Ninja]

27. Exactly! Where's the proof Jesus ever existed?

There's a lot more physical proof for evolution than there is that Christ was ever alive.

[VegasWolf]

29. Christianity is a "belief" not a theory. Jesus was voted a deity

at the Council of Nicea about 300 AD and he won by a narrow margin.

Hum, I wonder if they used "voting machines"? If they try
that same stunt now, awol could be declared a deity.

They've already got three dieties, namely the Father, Son ,and poor
Holy Spirit who never gets his name mentioned. Why not
four? Xtians hate it when you call them polytheists, but
that's exactly what the Islamics think they are.

[lawladyprof]

35. Not to mention angels--eom

[Sin]

48. yea :)

see what would happen if we asked to put that on all of there bibles.
hehe

[theorist]

31. Shows how much they know. Evolution is a fact.

It's the mechanism that is theoretical. If you culture bacteria and put the dish under a strong UV lamp, some will survive. The ones that do survive produce more surviving bacteria.

That is the gist of Darwin's Theory of Natural Selection, which is an explanation as to how gene frequencies change. It cannot explain all changes in gene frequencies (which are empirically observable events), and that is where other theories come into play.

Don't let anyone tell you that evolution is a theory. It is a scientific fact. When they come back with the "my grandpa ain't no monkey" argument, tell them, "Of course, but your grandfather necessarily has a common ancestor with that monkey."

[VegasWolf]

33. I thought that you were supposed to tell them, "Prove it!".

[theorist]

34. That would work.

But then we'd have to start counting chromosomes and things would get pretty ugly. :)

[Blue_Tires]

36. the bible is theory, not fact

[DrWeird]

38. Well, it does, in fact, exist.

But if you're talking about the stories therein, they're poorly written and plagiarized fables that have been proven false. So they don't even qualify as hypotheses, let alone theories.

[Dulcinea]

39. The mouth-breathers are at it again.

*sigh*

[SkepticalThomas]

42. Fundies + Bush =

Up your donations to the ACLU.

[jpgray]

44. Okay, let's also include alternatives to the theory of gravity.

It's just a theory!

:crazy:

[slackmaster]

47. The only alternative to gravity is COMEDY!

:dunce:

BTW I thought the evolution thing was settled in 1924.

:crazy: