A majority of the Pinellas County, Florida, School Board supports the inclusion of Intelligent Design in the science curriculum, reports the St. Petersburg Times.
Four members of the school board, including the chairperson and vice-chairperson, have made statements in support of Intelligent Design.
“The entire theory of evolution is not scientific fact. Intelligent design balances it out.” — Nancy Bostock, Chairperson
“I’d probably ideally like to keep it all [evolution and Intelligent Design] out of the classroom. If it’s going to create this much controversy, how important is it?” — Peggy O’Shea, Vice Chairperson
“I think that students should be given the opportunity to view all theories on how man evolved and let their science background and their religious background take over as to which one they believe in.” — Jane Gallucci, Member
“To teach one [evolution] as if nothing else existed, I think we’re doing our students a disservice.” — Carol Cook, Member
You can read the news article here.
The PCSB website states: “The public is encouraged to contact the School Board members on any issue.”
I suggest we contact the school board and let them know there are more than two theories of our origins. Pastafarianism is built on similar tenets as Intelligent Design, and has much greater support from the academic community. If you decide to write, please be respectful.
Contact Info:
Office: (727) 588-6300
E-mail: Board@pcsb.org
Individual E-mail addresses:
Nancy Bostock: bostockn@pcsb.org
Peggy O’Shea: osheap@pcsb.org
Jane Gallucci: galluccij@pcsb.org
Carol Cook: cookc@pcsb.org
Ironically, our children will not be entirely sheltered from the fact that there is controversy on this issue. Kids are curious. It will become a hobby for our kids to seek out evolutionary studies and think for themselves at some age of reasoning. Feed the controversy!
I just sent this to the individual geniuses and the whole Pinellas School Board. Again, thanks for the e-mail info!
I personally don’t believe in Heaven or Hell. However if you want to cling to the belief in an afterlife, a better way to look at it is that THOSE WHO EMBRACED HONESTY WILL BE REWARDED WITH HEAVEN WHILE THOSE WHO PROMOTED SUPERSTITIOUS LIES THAT GO AGAINST ALL LOGIC AND EVIDENCE WILL BE PUNISHED WITH HELL.
Scientific investigation not only fails to prove religion right, it exposes as fallacious what is written as truth in “Holy Books”. I believe that this is your objection to teaching evolution. The real question is; Why? You are bringing woe upon yourself when you promote authority over truth, instead of truth over authority.
Darwin’s discovery of evolution completely rules out the possibility that man came from some dirt that a God used to make an image of Himself out of, and that woman came from a rib of this dirt-man.
Compare the amount of interlocking data from every applicable scientific field including geology, physics, and even molecular biology, all having observational experiments done, that test and prove the hypotheses of evolution occurring, with the DISCREDITED FAIRY TALE - A BIG INVISIBLE MONSTER THAT NOBODY HAS EVER SEEN OR HEARD DID IT.
Adapted from various posts on Church Of The Flying Spaghetti Monster website. Edited and with additions from Fizzmick PaChee
Reverently,
Fizzmick PaChee
E-mail fizzmickpachee@gmail.com
Here’s my letter. I sent to Ms. Bostock who was quoted…“The entire theory of evolution is not scientific fact. Intelligent design balances it out.” I took this idea of “balancing it out” and ran with it.
.
.
Hope ya like it!
.
———————————————-
Ms. Bostock,
.
As the subject line states, I’m with you…I like the idea of introducing more topics and/or topics with a different point of view to help ‘balance’ things out. To the best of my knowledge, nobody has a ‘lock’ on the correct idea. No one has a ‘lock’ on the correct theory. (At least to the best of my knowledge…)
.
Apart from teaching Intelligent Design (ID) to help balance out Evolution, I would suggest that other alternate theories/ideas are also taught.
.
May I suggest a few…
.
-Gravity is at odds with the second law of thermodynamics. They work towards different goals. Gravity helps order things, while the second law of thermodynamics states that everything is working towards disorder. Imagine 30 bowling balls floating around in space. Eventually, gravity will bring the balls together. There is more order in this system. One clump of balls is a more ordered system than 30 balls spread out. Why would gravity make things clump together (a more ordered system) when the second law of thermodynamics states that the balls should not clump together and there should be disorder. The only conclusion is that one idea is wrong. I believe, among others, that gravity is wrong. We believe that an intelligent being is pushing or pulling things together. “Things fall not because they are acted upon by some gravitational force, but because a higher intelligence, ‘God’ if you will, is pushing them down,” said Gabriel Burdett, who holds degrees in education, applied Scripture, and physics from Oral Roberts University. Those of us who believe in Intelligent Falling advocate that Intelligent Falling should be taught in school along with the theory of gravity so that students can make “an informed decision.”
.
-The moon is made of cheese.
.
.
I thank you for your time.
.
Sincerely,
C. Felix
I had sent a letter to Polk County Board and now I am going to send one to these ones as well. Being proactive pays! Thank you to Bobby.
The inevitable flooding of the state of Florida as a consequence of global warming is beginning to like a plus, no?
Here’s tweaked version of my letter to Polk County now addressed to the Pinellas Board.
To The Pinellas County Board of Education:
I applaud you for your courage and conviction in advocating for a balanced science curriculum in Pinellas County.
Despite the fact that science embodies logic, reason, evidence, and the peer review process, nothing can trump our faith that there is another, greater explanation for the universe. That’s what my parents taught me, and that’s what their parents taught them, and so on. Could all of my ancestors stretching back thousands of years be wrong?
But, I implore you all not to shortchange your students. While Intelligent Design (”ID”) has no physical evidence to support it as a scientific theory, it is not the only alternative to rational thought out there. Please consider incorporating the theory of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (”FSM”) into your science curriculum as well. While I grant you that there is far more logic behind FSM than ID, I can also assure you that, at its core, FSM is really based on faith and therefore passes your rigid test as appropriate material for your children.
I thank you for your consideration. If you would like to learn more about my faith, I would be most happy to enlighten you.
R’ Amen,
Daren Niklerog
Dec 26, 2007
NOTE to Pastafarian Readers:
I sent this message to Chairperson Bostock, and a slightly modified message to Board Members Carol Cook and Jane Galluci. Amazing place, Florida!
Mike
——————————————–
Dear Chairperson Bostock:
As a citizen of Florida, and a retired (2003) professor of Neuroscience at Florida State University who taught generations of ill-prepared Florida students for 35 years, I am writing to urge that you fully implement the kind of balanced educational program for Pinellas students in the life sciences as envisioned in the quote attributed to you below:
“The entire theory of evolution is not scientific fact. Intelligent design balances it out. ” — Nancy Bostock, Chairperson
It must be reassuring to parents in Pinellas to have a Chairperson of the Board as open-minded as you seem to be, and so concerned about balance in this one branch of science. But, surely there is balance required in physics and chemistry, too? For, example, a nice section on Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue’s recent initiative to override the laws of physics by his Call for Massive Prayer Campaign to stop the drought in the Southeast would provide an excellent balance to scientists’ claims about why weather occurs. At this time of year, a unit concerned with virgin births would provide some serious balance to certain one-sided claims about reproduction made in Pinellas Biology classes. A unit on the raising of dead people to life could be inserted for balance at the Easter season. Please note that these suggestions are simply meant as examples to stimulate you and the Board to expand your “fair and balanced” approach more fully in the Pinellas science curriculum. Please don’t stop at Intelligent Design — it would be so unfair to your students.
But, since you seem to be focused on ID as providing “the” only balance to evolution in your schools’ science training, I must provide another specific recommendation that you seem to have overlooked.
A worthy competitor to ID that you should include for balance in your evolution units is the powerful explanatory system developed by the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster . You could instruct your life-science teachers to review, and become certified in, the Church’s ideas by studying the information provided on the web site: http://www.venganza.org/ . This is not meant as a crazy comment. It is dead serious. Just as serious as you must be about ID.
Good luck with your attempts to provide future generations of Florida students with the kind of excellence (and balance) in science training that will continue to keep Florida near the bottom of national and international scientific literacy and competitiveness.
Sincerely,
They say that science should be balanced by religion. If that’s the goal, then I say you balance school with church. But you don’t put church in school. This school ruling would be just the beginning if allowed to run its course because this totalitarian mentality would lead to their own kind of forced busing. This school board evidently would make church compulsory if they could, with police forcing everyone onto buses on Sunday and guiding them at gunpoint to their pew. Nobody is hindering their religious practices, and they badly need some perspective. I’m not from Florida, but I blush for you.
@ C_Felix…
.
-The moon is made of cheese ?
.
-I KNEW IT !!
.
Paul m.
Windsor,Ontario
Canada…confirmed pirate.
I’m wondering if this is now the only school district in the country attempting to get a biblical explanation of reality into the public school curriculum. If it is, then obviously a lot of progress is being made. I remember a few years back, “creationists” had made significant inroads into a number of school districts by running stealth “fundamentalist” candidates for school boards. I think a supreme court decision a few years back permanently put the kybosh on an explicitly theological set of teachings being advanced as an alternative to evolution to explain biological change and diversity.
ID is of course the counterpunch to society drawing that line in the sand. If only one school district in the entire country can get it advanced that is probably progress.
This hopeful counterassessment must, however, be counterbalanced by the fact that many of these fundamentalist parents have opted out of the school system for “home skulin’” where there are not governmental controls on the curriculum. You just have to wonder how many kids will be deprived of their birth right to a quality education (and not just a quality science education) because spineless politicians have chosen to function as enablers for agendas of these extremists. And you have to wonder what else is being taught–any literature but the bible? How about history–is there some sort of fundamentalist revisionist version of American and/or World history being taught? Civics–What is taught about the constitution and the rights of non-believers?, about civil disobedience? What is being taught about the history of the universe and the earth?
It seems incredible to me that homes that don’t send their children to school do not receive a visit from a truant officer. After all, how many of these parents have teaching certificates, and how many of these homes are chartered as schoold? How many of these parents can demonstrate they are competent to teach, and how many of these kids can pass standardized tests? It just seems that society allowing this movement to flourish is in many ways a capitulation to these American Christian Taliban types.
My email sent to all board members:
There is no controversy between Creationism / I.D. and evolution anywhere on the planet outside of bible-belt USA. Why do you think that is?
Please educate yourselves, for the sake of future generations:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution
http://evolution.berkeley.edu/
If you didn’t follow the Dover County case, again, please educate yourselves so as not to become the next laughing stock of Idiot USA:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/id/
All that’s missing from the mugshot line-up in this post is a picture of Sherri Shepherd. :)
Kirk T: “I’d really like to see a form letter that we can all use to send to these people. Something so I don’t sound like the pissed-off person that I am.”
I respectfully disagree with that. It’s better to get a variety of arguments, in the hope that one of them might work. If you’re pissed off, say so. Others can use FSM sarcasm / humor and others scientific argument. It’s all good.
@Mike
Very good letter, thanks for composing and sending that.
The Moon is made of Brie!!!
Curse the infidels who voice the heresy that it is made of Swiss Cheese.
The streets will flow with the blood of the non-believers!!!
The moon is made of swiss.
Look at all those holes in it; and you were told they were craters from impacts.
Here’s the response I got. Is that what everyone else received? It’s more than can be said for Polk county though…
Your e-mail will be shared with the Board Members, as well as with the Superintendent and his staff.
Debbie
Deborah E. Beaty
Administrative Assistant to the Board
727-588-6300 Fax 727-588-6477
It seems like this school board believes that they should bring their religious ID beliefs into science classes. I think this is only fair if there is a regulatory “Church Board” formed where members of the community are able to change the curriculum of sunday school classes and the content of sermons, as well as make decisions on Church policies such as gay marriage and support of contraception. Fair’s fair right?
When are these ID people going to realize that while they may disagree with evolution, evolution doesn’t disagree with them. Evolution has nothing to say about the beginning of life, it’s only a theory of the change of life over time. The theory of ID and the biblical scripture and the theory of cosmogenesis (where life came here from extra-planetary origins) are all genesis theories. They all address the question of abiogenesis, life coming from non-life… which presumably would have had to happen at some point.
I don’t think it’s inappropriate to make comparative studies of genesis theories part of a curriculum. Although, there is no evidence on either side that is conclusive. No chemist has created life from a soup of amino acids, and no ID proponent will ever be able to prove their theory. The chemist’s theory has not been disproven, which still places it in the realm of science. The ID believer can never prove their theory scientifically, it is not testable, and is therefore a philosophy, and incompatible with science. Perhaps a philosophy class could tackle this question more appropriately.
irate Pirate
Dec 26th, 2007 at 9:38 pm
@ C_Felix…
.
-The moon is made of cheese ?
.
-I KNEW IT !!
.
Paul m.
*
Ramen Crusader
Dec 27th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
The Moon is made of Brie!!!
*
Goat’s cheese I hope :) Absolutely lovely cheese :)))
What a wonderful example of the diversity of cultures that make up our Nation. Florida takes the Blue Ribbon, if it be awarded anywhere.
.
On the one hand, we have the space launch center at Cape Canaveral; and on the other hand, we have the Polk and Pinellas County Boards of Education. Where else in the world can one find such a perfect contrast between intelligence and enlightenment and blithering ignorance and stupidity?
.
Of course, one does have to remember that the intelligence and enlightenment are imports from elsewhere in the United States, while the blithering ignorance and stupidity are typical examples of what might be called native, or home grown Floridian.
.
But the ultimate contrast is still priceless.
Oh, how good it is to know believers still fight the good fight against rationality. Here is what I wrote to the four Pinellas County board members:
Dear Board Members of the Pinellas County School District,
I firmly support your courageous stand against teaching evil-ution to your impressionable and easily misled children. I am a devout member of a minority religious group, the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. You may not have heard of our beliefs but they are very sincere and also quite attractive to children who, as we all know, love spaghetti.
It may not be well known, but the term “noodle” is a nick name from the brain, as in “use your noodle.” This phrase descends, we believe, from the way the Flying Spaghetti Monster touched each human at conception and gave them a little meatball of their very own to use for thinking about where it all comes from and what it all means.
I am so glad to hear you will be teaching alternatives to evil-ution and insist that you include our teachings about the Flying Spaghetti Monster in your new, enlightened science classes. Your pupils may not be able to get into college but they will certainly get into Heaven.
Sincerely yours,