another messy divorce with science
In this world there exist images so vile and offensive that I only dare post a link to it and the relevant story, a story of one school district’s fight for what’s right and to hold their institution to the highest letters of the law against a forceful tide of pure chaos and sinister efforts by nefarious evildoers in their biology labs. Oh, who am I kidding? It’s a story of supreme foolishness and the application of double standards to accommodate a popular dogma out of ignorance, or cowardice, or both. I’m talking, of course, about the now infamous t-shirts for the Smith-Cotton High School worn by members of its marching band in the Missouri State Fair.
By themselves, the t-shirts have a pretty unscientific reference to evolution, trying to equate the gradual tweaks and improvements in brass instruments with evolutionary change in a very casual, colloquial manner. And as it turns out, even that much was enough to send fervent fundamentalists complaining to a pliant administrator who yanked the t-shirts, justifying his kowtowing to ridiculous demands with very spacious reasoning…
While the shirts don’t directly violate the district’s dress code, Assistant Superintendent Brad Pollitt said complaints by parents made him take action. “I made the decision to have the band members turn the shirts in after several concerned parents brought the shirts to my attention,” Pollitt said.
Pollitt said the district is required by law to remain neutral where religion is concerned. “If the shirts had said ‘Brass Resurrections’ and had a picture of Jesus on the cross, we would have done the same thing,” he said.
Now really Mr. Pollitt, you would’ve pulled images used for Judeo-Christian religious statements in a religious community for which you censor a popular image of scientific collection of facts used for a visual pun at the drop of a hat? You have that much fortitude? Well, following the Establishment Clause is commendable, but in this case, the given justification is as hard to ignore as a splinter in your eye. Evolution is not a religion. It’s as much of a tenant of faith as time, gravity and electromagnetism. To call a well established theory that’s been studied for well over a century by experts and world class research institutions a matter of religion to a media outlet is akin to going on national TV and declaring that water is a solid or that we’re silicon based life forms.
It’s a stunning display of ignorance from someone who’s job it is to make sure that kids are educated in math, science and communication. Of course there are parents who don’t seem to mind seeing their children being given what can only be described as a lackluster education. Take this parent (and teacher!) for instance…
“I was disappointed with the image on the shirt.” Melby said. “I don’t think evolution should be associated with our school.”
You know what Mrs. Melby? I don’t think the word education should be associated with your school. Obviously, when dogma is more important than teaching children reality and ignorance is allowed to triumph over facts, you can’t expect to have scientifically literate student emerging from your school district without some serious help from parents who take the time and effort to learn enough about the scientific method and teach it to their progeny. And if some of the quotes from the students in the last third of the article are anything to go by, this is one district that really needs to assess its ability to teach scientific subjects to their pupils.
