Via the Dallas Morning News (hat tip to Pharyngula):
AUSTIN – The second most powerful member of the Texas House has circulated a Georgia lawmaker's call for a broad assault on teaching of evolution.House Appropriations Committee Chairman Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, used House operations Tuesday to deliver a memo from Georgia state Rep. Ben Bridges.
The memo assails what it calls "the evolution monopoly in the schools."
Nothing so unusual, yet, but here comes the wacky part:
Mr. Bridges' memo claims that teaching evolution amounts to indoctrinating students in an ancient Jewish sect's beliefs."Indisputable evidence – long hidden but now available to everyone – demonstrates conclusively that so-called 'secular evolution science' is the Big Bang, 15-billion-year, alternate 'creation scenario' of the Pharisee Religion," writes Mr. Bridges, a Republican from Cleveland, Ga. He has argued against teaching of evolution in Georgia schools for several years.
He then refers to a Web site, www.fixedearth.com, that contains a model bill for state Legislatures to pass to attack instruction on evolution as an unconstitutional establishment of religion.
That's right - the memo calls evolution an ancient Jewish sect, and then, for it's model legislation, it uses a website that claims that the Earth is the fixed center of the universe, and that everything, including the Sun, revolves around the Earth.
To be fair to Chisum, he said he was doing this as "a courtesy to a member of the Georgia legislature" and that he didn't necessarily agree with everything it said, but still...
Posted by Fatboy at February 14, 2007 02:38 PMDear Mr. Chisum,
Your ideas are certainly, and demonstrably, false. Part of science is understanding that you might not know everything that's happening, and you might see this as a weakness, but that doesn't mean we can't tell you what isn't happening, and a geocentric universe created by an omnipotent being just isn't happening. Stop wasting everyone's time.
Sincerely,
America
Posted by: Chris at February 14, 2007 03:08 PMWell, Chisum apologized, sort of:
AUSTIN – House Appropriations Chairman Warren Chisum said Wednesday that he's "willing to apologize" for giving colleagues a document that contains what the Anti-Defamation League called "outrageous anti-Semitic material.""The stuff that causes conflicts between religious beliefs, you know, I'd never be a party to that," Mr. Chisum said. "I'm willing to apologize if I've offended anyone."
Mr. Chisum's comments came after he learned that the Anti-Defamation League, which works against anti-Semitism and other forms of hate, was demanding "a repudiation and apology" in a letter to his office. He said he hadn't seen the letter late Wednesday.
So, he's sorry for the anti-Semitism, but not the goofy ass geocentric ideas. And he's only sorry after he got called on it by the Anti-Defamation League. And, he's only "willing to apologize." Why not just come out and actually apologize?
Sorry for ranting over this, but it's the state I live in. I can't believe I moved here voluntarily.
Posted by: Fatboy at February 16, 2007 10:20 AM