I can’t believe we elected any of these hypocritical loons to office anywhere. Look at the shenanigans in Dayton, Ohio.
Kelly Kohls, who was elected in Springboro on a platform of fiscal responsibility two years ago, requested last week the district’s curriculum director look into ways of providing “supplemental” instruction dealing with creationism. Fellow member, Scott Anderson, who was elected with Kohls when the district was struggling financially, supports his colleague’s idea.
“Creationism is a significant part of the history of this country,” Kohls said. “It is an absolutely valid theory and to omit it means we are omitting part of the history of this country.”
That’s not true. It is neither a significant part of our history nor is it a valid “theory” — it doesn’t even deserve the label of theory, since it doesn’t integrate a large number of scientific hypotheses and observations. It doesn’t even deserve to be called a hypothesis, since it’s made in direct contradiction to the evidence. It might best be called a myth, nothing more.
One other fine piece of hypocrisy: she and many Teabaggers are getting elected on promises of fiscal conservativism. Clearly, they didn’t mean it: peddling creationism in the public schools means they’re going down the Dover path, and we all saw how much that cost the school district. This should be seen as a ploy to destroy public education.
Also, how’s this for irony? Kohls filed for bankruptcy. They own a house valued at $450,000 (in Ohio? What kind of mansion did they splurge on?), on which they owe… $829,000. Yeah, she’s a smart money manager.
Creationism is a significant part of the history of this country
Hooray for idiocy. Besides, even if it were, so the fuck what? Slavery is a significant part of the history of the USA, but I don’t see any teabaggers advocating slavery (in public at least, he says with his tongue partially in his cheek). It makes me so glad that I live in a country where this sort of shit isn’t taken seriously by a significant portion of the population.
From the article:
Head, meet desk.
I would disagree with your assessment there. The concept of creationism in its modern incarnation and, especially, the way that creationism has been used as a weapon against progressives, liberals, public education and rational politics is an important part of the history of the United States in the late 19c and all of the 20c. From the invention of moder fundamentalist literalist Christianity to the ‘culture wars’ of the 1980s to today, the concept of evolution has been used as a way to divide the American electorate while at the same time pushing poor and middle-class Christians to vote against their economic self interest. The creation/evolution divide is not as important as the abortion divide, but it has been around longer and, I would argue, was the template with which the anti-choice political and social battle lines were drawn.
Obviously, I do not argue that creationism should be taught in public schools. The only way I can see it being taught legally would be to include it in a history course, not a science course. Somehow, though, I doubt that is what Kohls and her ilk are pushing.
Just when I thought I wasn’t eating enough fibre I read this article….problem solved!
The other way to keep this fibre problem at bay is to keep a copy of Creation Magazine in the bathroom.
Financially bankrupt and morally bankrupt!
I’m starting to think the school board members should be financially liable for the court costs in these cases.
From the same article:
See? If it weren’t for all the evil atheists keeping God out of government, the fiscal crisis would never have happened.
Yeah, so let’s have some supplemental material for history classes on it, dealing honestly with the erstwhile dominance and later scientific deconstruction of the idea. I’m sure that’s what Ms. Kohl must have meant.
the tea party absolutely must be taken seriously, as adversaries. recent events have proven that they’re strong enough to influence public policy, despite being a bunch of loons. people are supporting them and voting for them.
please call them out, everyone, as pz does here.
I also agree with Kohls. Creationism is a significant part of our history. It should be taught in schools. I would love to hear my daughter come home from school and tell me, “Today, we learned that people used to think some really stupid stuff!”
I agree with Helen Sotiriadis. The recent capitulation re: the debt ceiling by Obama and Company to Tea Party types demonstrates the danger of ignoring the ignorant.
Aww, nuts! This is local. I thought the worst I had around here was the silly Sinking Jesus statue that burned down. (If it happened to anything else, it would be a sign from God; if it happened to their Jesus statue, it was an electrical fault!) Well, then there’s also a church on every corner around here. Sometimes two on the same corner.
Uhg.
Well they should be taken seriously as a threat, but not seriously as thinkers.
Figures. Really does look to me like this ‘god’ feller has much the same business model as do Starbucks and Walmart.
Whoa, these guys are way off message. Don’t they know that you’re not supposed to say “creationism” or “God” or “Christian” when discussing these things in public. You’re supposed to pretend this is all about science! They suck at lying for Jesus.
As much as I wish I could, I can’t really avoid paying attention to what the Teabaggers are doing because I’m afraid they can get into positions of power and cause damage with their lack of a coherent platform. Though I suppose that’s not quite the same as taking them seriously.
Of course, it doesn’t help that all the noise they make does a good job of distracting people from the fact that the US is going down the tubes on the civil rights front (torture, secret prisons, indefinite detentions, abuse of state secrets privilege, etcetera). I’d rather hear a movement get vocal about that stuff than Teabagger insanity.
We should take the Tea Party seriously because some of them are even dumber than THAT, and they still vote.
The one thing I like about Teabaggers is that they are true believers, and so they are terribly bad at hiding their idiocy. Compare to traditional conservatives that will happily hide their creationism in “teaching the controversy” and they talk about saving the economy, not liking the option of defaulting the nation.
They keep their BS out in front, where you can see it.
That explains why Kohls is filing for bankruptcy.
Why would you wipe with Creation Magazine? It’s one of the world’s premier comedy publications, along with The Onion and the Landover Baptist webpage.
Oops, I think I might have misunderstood Mike’s comment.
Where are you, “delete comment” button?
So many of you love the term “teabagger.” Would not that make you all “teabagees?”
Not a teabagger myself.
Well Eric, we’d call them fuckheads but we’re just being polite.
Never underestimate the power of large groups of stupid people.
So teach it in History classes. Today, class, we are going to learn about some totally useless shit people used to believe, which even influenced the government’s public policy in the 21st century!
I hope the “tea party” fiscal fools fade soon.
It would be a sad irony, for the great American Experiment to start, and fall, in the name of two completely different tea parties.
Eric,
Uh, I assumed the teabaggers were also the teabagees, since I want nothing to do with their shit.
I’m really encouraged by the Tea Party.
They will screw up the United States’ educational system so badly that Canada will be much more competitive with our Southern neighbours. Happiness!!
Americans, welcome your new Canadian overlords!! Mwahahahahaha!!!
There are brain-dead politicians and voters everywhere, it just seems that certain parts of the U.S.A. have a much higher concentration than normal.
I, for one, welcome our Canadian overlords.
…Does this mean I can haz healthcare like a grownup country?
BTW, The reason Eric Atkinson had not been able to respond is that
the admin fucker has my log in going to trash.
Whatever.
ditto. Especially since, apparently, the state I live in has turned out to never have been a US state, actually. So, maybe, we could become a Canadian province, instead?.
Canada, interested in a bunch of flooded cornfields with nukes buried under them?