Re: possibly OT: NYT article on GA creationism/evolution debate

[Gary Turner <turner@MORNINGSIDE.EDU>]

On Sat, 24 Aug 2002 09:33:57 -0400, John S. Denker <jsd@MONMOUTH.COM> wrote:

I've been following this argument and have a slightly different
perspective.  The first two paragraphs below I agree with ABSOLUTELY, but
I've seen the 'attack' on evolution not so much as an attack, but a door to
better education.  Certainly, there are those who have jumped on the
bandwagon and used the pro-creationism arguments to try to discredit
evolution.  That tactic is wrong for so many reasons.

However, I do agree with teaching creationism alongside evolution in some
schools.  I is not an attack on thinking, it promotes thinking.  You have
two "theories", one says ... and the evidence/problem is ..., the other
says ... and the evidence/problem is .... To deny that creationism exists
is self-defeating.  If a teacher claims that we descended from bacteria
(which spontaneously appeared from dirt), and a church leader claims that
God made the world and everything on it in seven days, which one will a
child believe?  Without any guided discussion, it is extremely difficult to
make an informed decision.

Alternatives to any "theory" should be presented, particularly when they
are believed by a significant proportion of the general public.  That makes
the teaching of creationism more important in some school districts than in
others.


> There's not much I can add except to say that the problem
> is not confined to school-age persons.  Sometimes I think
> that kids are more open-minded and more ready to think for
> themselves than typical adults are.
>
> Teaching people how to think for themselves is the most
> important teaching we can do, far more important than any
> particular facts.
>
> And that's why the attack on evolution is so despicable.  It
> is not just an attack on the facts of evolution;  it is an
> attack against thinking.