Old education battle, but familiar face...

[phank]

From the National Center for Science Education, we now tune in on the standard evolution battle. Turns out that the Next Generation Science Standards take seriously the notion that nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution. They propose actually TEACHING evolution to high school students nationwide, something currently not done.

Opponents of good solid science are upset because such science doesn't give all credit to their god, and in teaching facts disrespects religious diversity. This anti-science effort is lead by a brand new organization with the typically dishonest name of the "Citizens for Objective Public Education" - a good name IF you only count creationists as citizens and only consider creationism to be objective. The precis tells us:

Citizens for Objective Public Education is not exactly a well-known or a well-established group; its vice president Anne Lassey told the Associated Press that it was founded only in March 2012. Lassey is the wife of Greg Lassey, who was one of the authors of the so-called minority report of the committee that revised Kansas's state science standards in 2005; the report systematically deprecated the scientific status of evolution. The group's president, Jorge Fernandez, is a self-proclaimed young-earth creationist, with publications to his credit in Journal of Creation and on the True.Origin Archive website. The letter claimed that Citizens for Objective Public Education represents "children, parents and taxpayers who share our views"; Lassey told the Associated Press that the group has members across the nation.

However, moving right along, we are told that

"The draft multistate standards and Kansas' existing standards reflect mainstream scientific views that evidence supporting evolution is overwhelming," the Associated Press noted, and NCSE's Joshua Rosenau agreed, saying that evolution is "the center of modern biology." Rosenau observed that the letter criticizing the NGSS included hackneyed criticisms of evolution from creationists, explaining, "This is a long-standing creationist strategy. You can muddy the waters around evolution and make it seem controversial."

Uh huh, no kidding.

Well, if science were a matter of majority ignorance, we'd still be back in Biblical times. And once again, we learn that the price of liberty is eternal vigilence. Like rust, creationism never sleeps.

[phank]

ANd a bit of an update here:

http://www.flascience.org/wp/?p=1591

[magellan004]

... Turns out that the Next Generation Science Standards take seriously the notion that nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.

That's a silly thing to say. Biology has been studied for centuries. The implication that scientists then made no sense is astonishing.


Magellan

[phank]

That's a silly thing to say. Biology has been studied for centuries. The implication that scientists then made no sense is astonishing.


Magellan

I didn't say that, a devout Christian biologist said that. Before the development of evolutionary theory, biology was just stamp collecting.

[USIncognito]

I would love to see a copy of the letter.

[Mandalorious]

I didn't know this thread was posted so I wound up posting a new one...scratch that, I'll just post here what I posted there and be done with it:

In a letter I just got from the National Center for Science Education, they talk about the Kansas "Next Generation Science
Standards" presentations that were held on June 12, 2012.

Here's some of what that letter talked about:

Uh huh. "doesn't respect religious diversity". What does "religious diversity" mean, anyway? Well, with a name like Citizens for Objective Public Education Inc it couldn't possibly be just a front for say, a christian young earth creationist group, could it? After all, as every creationist organization out there has to have their members swear by a Statement of Faith, there is no way that any of those people would be so dishonest as to pretend to be "objective", would they?



Yep. That's the leader of the group who's complaining about a lack of "religious diversity"! As for "ignoring evidence"? Please...has anyone truly forgotten Jorge's dishonest ignoring of evidence* himself?

Yep. They same guy who writes for the "Journal of Creation" which is published by Creation Ministries International (who has the statement of faith that I linked to earlier) is head of a group called Citizens for Objective Public Education. So, I guess they are that dishonest after all.

So when they can't back up their case by evidence, use politics instead!


*The original thread where that topic appeared seems to be gone now, so I posted the Talk Origin discussion of Jorge's article plus the newer thread that deals with it here.

I know I haven't posted here in a while (and my original name is gone) so I just went with an example that I knew of...I know that those who've been posting here since I left will have many, many more such examples of Jorge's behavior