Eleven Fla Counties forbid teaching of Evolution
- Thread starter futurebeachbum
- Start date
-
Trouble logging in? Send us a message with your username and/or email address for help.
oh. okay then. evolution=evil. well, that's an entirely different viewpoint!
I'm glad that my kids are grown (25M & 28F). The negleted/abandoned teens & children up & coming now are a dangerous lot. So desparate for love & attnetion they fall prey to anyone who will give them the attention they so desparatly need. My son is going to school for Phys Ed and I hear so many stories about the whackos on the fields. Oh thats the parents. oops.
My girl is an EMT for ambulance corp. I'm glad that alothough we were dirt poor, I was able to be home with them and go to all their events. I really feel at least one parent grandparent, aunt/uncle, someone who loves them to be there when they get home from school and keep up with the current events in their lives. We may thing their petty but in the kids mind its real, scarey or just plain important.
Its very very sad that nobody is there to raise them because the parents need to work for all the fancy yet (unecessary) things, cars & gadgets needed in their life. I drove an old used car, no cell phone nd I was so blessed that whatever they needed, like cleats, we were lucky enough to get the last pair in his size and they were on sale too.
Even now, I have a Trac Phone and I love it. Luckily I'm not a big phone talker so I load it up every couple of mo's for $32. I refuse to pay all those freakin federal excise taxes, etc. In fact I don't pay for anything that I deem unnecessary. I walk into town to the post office, bank, etc.
Sorry, I really got off subject here. I hope that I didn't offend anyone here with my opinions.
My girl is an EMT for ambulance corp. I'm glad that alothough we were dirt poor, I was able to be home with them and go to all their events. I really feel at least one parent grandparent, aunt/uncle, someone who loves them to be there when they get home from school and keep up with the current events in their lives. We may thing their petty but in the kids mind its real, scarey or just plain important.
Its very very sad that nobody is there to raise them because the parents need to work for all the fancy yet (unecessary) things, cars & gadgets needed in their life. I drove an old used car, no cell phone nd I was so blessed that whatever they needed, like cleats, we were lucky enough to get the last pair in his size and they were on sale too.
Even now, I have a Trac Phone and I love it. Luckily I'm not a big phone talker so I load it up every couple of mo's for $32. I refuse to pay all those freakin federal excise taxes, etc. In fact I don't pay for anything that I deem unnecessary. I walk into town to the post office, bank, etc.
Sorry, I really got off subject here. I hope that I didn't offend anyone here with my opinions.
sounds like some great kids mysty!
Thanks, yea they turned out great. The teen years were ruff. There were times I had to go out and find them in the middle fo the night. I'm sure their friends think I'm scarey because I've flipped a few times. whatever it took to keep them on the straight & narow....If I embarrassed them, they'd think twice about pulling those shennanigans again. :roll:
Recently when asked if I have granchildren I found myself responding 'I don't want any, I'm still exhausted from raising 2 teens'!
BTY I love your Heath avi. Too sad that a sexy creative guy left so soon. I guess it was his time. Did you see his daughter Matilda, she looks just like him.
Recently when asked if I have granchildren I found myself responding 'I don't want any, I'm still exhausted from raising 2 teens'!
BTY I love your Heath avi. Too sad that a sexy creative guy left so soon. I guess it was his time. Did you see his daughter Matilda, she looks just like him.
Last edited:
BTW has anyone seen 'Little Miss Sunshine' don't be discouraged by the title. It is a fab movie you'll both laugh and cry. I found myself laughing my azz off at the ending. In fact I've seen it 3 or 4 times or sometimes watch it from the middle it I happen to see it on (HBO). A great movie for those of us who have nerdy daughters competing with all the little beauty queens.
Another excellent column from by Carl Hiaasen, in the Miami Herald. He hits the nail on the head. (thanks Bdarg for sending this)
Good news/bad news: Florida voted to teach evolution, but it will be presented as a scientific theory.:roll:
Our reputation for flakiness is at stake
Posted on Sun, Feb. 17, 2008
Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
By CARL HIAASEN
In a move that could endanger Florida's flaky backwater reputation, the state Board of Education is poised to endorse the teaching of evolution as a science.
This is a dangerous idea -- not the presentation of Darwinism in schools, but the presentation of Florida as a place of progressive scientific thought.
Over the years the Legislature has worked tirelessly to keep our kids academically stuck in the mid-1950s. This has been achieved by overcrowding their classrooms, underpaying their teachers and letting their school buildings fall apart.
Florida's plucky refusal to embrace 21st century education is one reason that prestigious tech industries have avoided the state, allowing so many of our high-school graduates (and those who come close) to launch prosperous careers in the fast-food, bartending and service sectors of the economy.
By accepting evolution as a proven science, our top educators would be sending a loud message to the rest of the nation: Stop making fun of us.
Is that what we really want?
On Tuesday, , the Board of Education is scheduled to vote on a proposed set of new standards that describe evolution as the ''fundamental concept underlying all of biology'' and ``supported by multiple forms of scientific evidence.''
Certainly that's the position of every reputable academic group on the planet, including the National Academy of Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Science Teachers Association.
But forget the fossil record, OK? Forget DNA tracing. Forget the exhaustively documented diversification of species.
This battle is about pride and independence; about boldly going against the flow, in defiance of reason and all known facts.
In recent weeks, the Board of Education has been swamped by e-mails and letters from religious conservatives who advocate teaching creationism or intelligent design, and who believe evolution should be discussed strictly as a ``theory.''
For those who wish to see Florida standing still, if not sinking, this is a fantastic strategy. In fact, it could be expanded to revise other educational doctrines.
Let's start teaching gravity as a ''theory,'' too. And don't forget the solar system -- what proof do we really have, besides a bunch of fuzzy, fake-looking photos, that Mars really exists?
At a recent public hearing in Orlando, opponents of evolutionary teaching rose one by one to assail the proposed curriculum standards. Some had traveled all the way from the Panhandle, and were, like presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, exclusive believers in the Bible's version of creation.
According to The St. Petersburg Times, one speaker compared Charles Darwin, the father of evolutionary science, to Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin, well-known tyrants and mass murderers. Such loony gibberish is actually good for the anti-evolution crusade, providing the best evidence that the human species has not advanced one iota in the last 100,000 years.
With this in mind, several school boards in North Florida have passed resolutions opposing the teaching of evolution as fact. True, students in those same districts have produced some of the worst science scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, but who needs Newton or Copernicus when you've got the Corinthians?
The notion that humans descended from apes has never been popular among fundamentalists, but what of the apes themselves? Given the gory history of Homo sapiens on Earth, no self-respecting chimp or gorilla would claim a genetic connection to us.
The outcry against evolutionary instruction has been so heated that 40 members of the committee responsible for the new science standards felt compelled to sign a letter stating, ``There is no longer any valid scientific criticism of the theory of evolution.''
Caving in to groups that question the soundness of science, the letter warned, ``would not only seriously impede the education of our children but also create the image of a backward state, raising the risk of Florida's being snubbed by biotechnology companies and other science-based businesses.''
Nice try, pinheads, but there's no sin in being a slightly backward state with extremely modest expectations for its young people. That's been the guiding philosophy of our tightwad lawmakers for years, and the degree to which they've succeeded is illuminated annually in the FCAT charade.
If snubbing is to be done, Florida should be the snubber, not the snubee. Keep your elite biotech payrolls up North and out West -- we've got hundreds of thousands of low-paying, go-nowhere jobs that require little training and minimal education.
Should state officials vote this week to put evolution on the teaching agenda, it will be a small yet radical step out of Florida's backwarding-thinking past.
Resistance is not futile. We've worked hard to keep ourselves so far behind in education, and we must stay the course.
Good news/bad news: Florida voted to teach evolution, but it will be presented as a scientific theory.:roll:
Our reputation for flakiness is at stake
Posted on Sun, Feb. 17, 2008
Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
By CARL HIAASEN
In a move that could endanger Florida's flaky backwater reputation, the state Board of Education is poised to endorse the teaching of evolution as a science.
This is a dangerous idea -- not the presentation of Darwinism in schools, but the presentation of Florida as a place of progressive scientific thought.
Over the years the Legislature has worked tirelessly to keep our kids academically stuck in the mid-1950s. This has been achieved by overcrowding their classrooms, underpaying their teachers and letting their school buildings fall apart.
Florida's plucky refusal to embrace 21st century education is one reason that prestigious tech industries have avoided the state, allowing so many of our high-school graduates (and those who come close) to launch prosperous careers in the fast-food, bartending and service sectors of the economy.
By accepting evolution as a proven science, our top educators would be sending a loud message to the rest of the nation: Stop making fun of us.
Is that what we really want?
On Tuesday, , the Board of Education is scheduled to vote on a proposed set of new standards that describe evolution as the ''fundamental concept underlying all of biology'' and ``supported by multiple forms of scientific evidence.''
Certainly that's the position of every reputable academic group on the planet, including the National Academy of Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Science Teachers Association.
But forget the fossil record, OK? Forget DNA tracing. Forget the exhaustively documented diversification of species.
This battle is about pride and independence; about boldly going against the flow, in defiance of reason and all known facts.
In recent weeks, the Board of Education has been swamped by e-mails and letters from religious conservatives who advocate teaching creationism or intelligent design, and who believe evolution should be discussed strictly as a ``theory.''
For those who wish to see Florida standing still, if not sinking, this is a fantastic strategy. In fact, it could be expanded to revise other educational doctrines.
Let's start teaching gravity as a ''theory,'' too. And don't forget the solar system -- what proof do we really have, besides a bunch of fuzzy, fake-looking photos, that Mars really exists?
At a recent public hearing in Orlando, opponents of evolutionary teaching rose one by one to assail the proposed curriculum standards. Some had traveled all the way from the Panhandle, and were, like presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, exclusive believers in the Bible's version of creation.
According to The St. Petersburg Times, one speaker compared Charles Darwin, the father of evolutionary science, to Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin, well-known tyrants and mass murderers. Such loony gibberish is actually good for the anti-evolution crusade, providing the best evidence that the human species has not advanced one iota in the last 100,000 years.
With this in mind, several school boards in North Florida have passed resolutions opposing the teaching of evolution as fact. True, students in those same districts have produced some of the worst science scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, but who needs Newton or Copernicus when you've got the Corinthians?
The notion that humans descended from apes has never been popular among fundamentalists, but what of the apes themselves? Given the gory history of Homo sapiens on Earth, no self-respecting chimp or gorilla would claim a genetic connection to us.
The outcry against evolutionary instruction has been so heated that 40 members of the committee responsible for the new science standards felt compelled to sign a letter stating, ``There is no longer any valid scientific criticism of the theory of evolution.''
Caving in to groups that question the soundness of science, the letter warned, ``would not only seriously impede the education of our children but also create the image of a backward state, raising the risk of Florida's being snubbed by biotechnology companies and other science-based businesses.''
Nice try, pinheads, but there's no sin in being a slightly backward state with extremely modest expectations for its young people. That's been the guiding philosophy of our tightwad lawmakers for years, and the degree to which they've succeeded is illuminated annually in the FCAT charade.
If snubbing is to be done, Florida should be the snubber, not the snubee. Keep your elite biotech payrolls up North and out West -- we've got hundreds of thousands of low-paying, go-nowhere jobs that require little training and minimal education.
Should state officials vote this week to put evolution on the teaching agenda, it will be a small yet radical step out of Florida's backwarding-thinking past.
Resistance is not futile. We've worked hard to keep ourselves so far behind in education, and we must stay the course.
That is a great column! Thanks for posting it! 
That is a great column! Thanks for posting it!
I think we should start the local Carl Hiaasen fan club and maybe we could talk him into a visit to SoWal. He needs a sticker.
Maybe I could sell him a house here. There is plenty of good material for him, right here in SoWal.