A Brilliant Idea About "Intelligent" Design
Reason's Ron Bailey has done it again. Not only has he written a brilliant piece that sweeps the floor with that funda-nutter favorite, "intelligent" design, he has a brilliant solution for those who would have us preach, uh, teach, it in the public schools:
Get rid of public schools. Give parents vouchers and let them choose the schools to which to send their children. Fundamentalists can send their kids to schools that teach that the earth was created on Sunday, October 23, 4004 BC. Science geeks can send their kids to technoschools that teach them how to splice genes to make purple mice. This proposal lowers political and social conflict, and eventually those made fitter in the struggle for life by better education will win.
Not to worry. I'm sure the children of the science geeks will eventually need cleaning ladies.
Horrible idea. This would have the forces of science, reason and secularism retreating deep into the underbrush while the forces of baboonery would then rule the public schools outright. Don't forget this isn't an even split. The forces of those that believe in gods is something on the order of ninety percent.
In 1964, when Johnson signed his civil rights legislation, the vast majority of the ruling class whites strongly opposed it.(to say the least) but still, in a rare moment of courage the government passed it simply because it was the right thing to do. Some courage was involved. It would have been easier and more peaceful to not do it, but the forces of bigotry had to be opposed and met head on. This situation is no different.
Left unchecked, unopposed, the 90% of the religious ninnies would tend to devour the gene-splicers, not with reason and debate, but by the shear force of numbers and the muzzles of their shotguns.(shotguns that had been blessed with holy water.)
chris "world teacher" volkay at February 10, 2005 3:57 PM
You're right, Chris. But Ron Bailey probably doesn't care all that much about the fate of the world. Sometimes I don't either. The forces of baboonery have already taken over. Pass the bong, please.
Lena-doodle-doo at February 10, 2005 5:55 PM
Why, thank you Lena.
Ron Bailey-another so-called journalist. Ron should join his brother Jim and go back to female impersonating.(not that there's anything wrong with that). Journalists are good for covering things like the latest fashion tips and dog shows, but please, leave the serious writing to people like Nabokov, Dante, Goethe and myself.
chris "world teacher" volkay at February 10, 2005 7:37 PM
Chris. I think he was kidding.
Amy Alkon at February 10, 2005 8:00 PM
Most 'intelligent design' theories assume that earth is the center of the universe and there is no life, intelligent or otherwise anywhere else in the universe. Oh, except in heaven. And hell. Although, making the leap and believing that's true, is it an actual physical place or another dimension :insert twilight zone music here:? I don't get the whole *god* with a big *G* thing. Oh, and said god is white. And male. And old. And angry. And mean. And fickle. And jealous. Geez. Sounds like a real winner. Hold me back.
Why would someone worship that??
Goddyss at February 11, 2005 12:16 AM
My personal experience, especially lately, having made the stunning leap that most men don't find overweight women sexy, is that people will do just about anything to avoid reasoning. Independent thinking?? Naw, too much work. They'd much rather suck down what they're fed. Then, when they meet up with somebody like me, in person or on the page, they're forced into the unpleasant task of aggressively defending it as right -- never once engaging their ability to reason. People are most vicious when defending emotionally held beliefs...what's the John Stuart Mill word on this...something like, the more they're presented with reason knocking their belief down, the tighter they cling to it. Sorry, book's at home.
Amy Alkon at February 11, 2005 12:43 AM
I think there may be something to the intelligent part of the intelligent design. After all, October is my favorite month.
david at February 11, 2005 3:44 AM
To hell with vouchers; phase out public schools altogether, and if parents want their children educated they can pay for it like everything else. I know, I know, "What about those parents who can't afford to send their children to any school! Either pay to send them school now, or you'll have to pay to incarcerate them later!"
Gee, if I pay now and they STILL go to prison do I get a refund?
And I don't think Intelligent Design necessarily posits the existence of a supernatural god. It only says, so far as I know, that evolution and natural selection alone are inadequate explanations to account for the emergence of complex biological systems. To say nothing of the a-priori problem of abiogenesis. It's really a position of scientific skepticism as I see it, not one of religon.
RKN at February 11, 2005 11:31 PM
" phase out public schools altogether, and if parents want their children educated they can pay for it like everything else."
Actually, I've said this as well.
It says there HAD to be a "creator." That's ridiculous and illogical to assume.
Amy Alkon at February 12, 2005 12:11 AM
Actually, what they say implies a "designer," it doesn't assume one. Big difference. Besides, "creator" carries too much connotative baggage.
RKN at February 12, 2005 12:24 AM
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