Wednesday, March 10, 2004

Why is this even an issue? 

From this morning's STrib (by our new favorite reporter Kevin Duchschere):
Four of the 13 members of Minnesota's science standards writing committee Tuesday released results of a statewide poll they commissioned that shows most respondents favor teaching scientific evidence both for and against evolution.
Note: the question is whether to teach both sides of the evolution issue, not to teach creationism. But to some, there isn't two sides:
Yvonne Boldt, a doctorate who teaches biology and chemistry at Providence Academy, a college prep school in Plymouth, said the poll supports "a realistic evaluation" of evolution. But Jamie Crannell, a member of the science standards committee who teaches chemistry at Chaska High School, said the standards already call for that.

"The trouble comes in what is proclaimed to be the scientific evidence against evolution," he said. "According to the science community, there really is not any scientific evidence to counter evolution. My problem with this poll is that it preys on a lack of scientific literacy."
Am I reading that correctly? It seems to say that anyone who is not convinced of the evolutionary theory is "scientifically illiterate." That would seem to be PZ's view.

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