I've been remiss in banging the drum here for a while (because, see, I was at this thing in late August and early September that took up most of my leisure time), but I got the feeling that somebody a good deal more credentialed than I am should drop some appropriate propaganda on readers of this blog. Granted, the following videos definitely fit the category of preaching to the choir on this blog, but if you think somebody needs to see these, then by all means point these out:
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
Something to be optimistic about, for once
The Mars Curiosity rover made it to the surface of its target intact and is probably collecting reams of data as I write this.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Louisiana continues to slide into the muck
Bobby Jindal continues to offer up reasons why he should never, ever be elected to anything ever again:
Louisiana is about to spend almost twelve million dollars to fund the teaching of creationism, charges Zack Kopplin, famous for organizing the effort to repeal the so-called Louisiana Science Education Act. In Kopplin's sights now is a controversial new voucher program in the state that uses public school funds to pay for tuition and certain fees at private schools for students who attend low-performing public schools and whose family income is below 250% of the federal poverty level. When the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education considered a set of accountability guidelines for such private schools at its July 24, 2012, meeting, Kopplin testified that of the roughly 6600 spaces available for students under the program, 1350 will be filled, as the Lafayette Independent Weekly (July 26, 2012) described it, "at private Christian schools that teach creationism and peg evolution as 'false science.'”
There's more, but don't bother to read the link if you're depressed about the state of science education in the US. It won't help.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Louisiana is about to spend almost twelve million dollars to fund the teaching of creationism, charges Zack Kopplin, famous for organizing the effort to repeal the so-called Louisiana Science Education Act. In Kopplin's sights now is a controversial new voucher program in the state that uses public school funds to pay for tuition and certain fees at private schools for students who attend low-performing public schools and whose family income is below 250% of the federal poverty level. When the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education considered a set of accountability guidelines for such private schools at its July 24, 2012, meeting, Kopplin testified that of the roughly 6600 spaces available for students under the program, 1350 will be filled, as the Lafayette Independent Weekly (July 26, 2012) described it, "at private Christian schools that teach creationism and peg evolution as 'false science.'”
There's more, but don't bother to read the link if you're depressed about the state of science education in the US. It won't help.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Sunday, July 22, 2012
The Aurora shootings: "explanations" that don't explain much of anything
By now, any number of unlucky people have run into some serious whoppers that purportedly "explain" the root cause of James Eagan Holmes' rampage at a Aurora, Colorado cinema during the midnight preview of Batman: The Dark Knight Rises on July 20th. Other than predictable missives full of irrationality from all the usual suspects (including such piles of self serving drivel as Louis Gohmert's "it's all the fault of atheism!", Rick Warren's equally hideous "it's all the fault of the Theory of Evolution!" and a hackneyed laundry list of convenient scapegoats provided by the American Family Association), I'm sure that there will be the usual reams upon reams of nonsense generated by people who - much like Columbine - have decided to use this tragedy to fill their coffers with donations and generate unwarranted media attention.
Add to this the fact that Holmes previously was a honors student in neuroscience and you have all the makings of another parade of idiots attacking science and scientists for no good reason except that it earns them easy points with people dumb enough to agree with them. It'll happen. Just you wait.
(For those of you who'd like to read a far more exhaustive list of articles both good and bad on the subject of the Aurora shootings, Gawker has provided one.)
(Also on WTTFTG)
Add to this the fact that Holmes previously was a honors student in neuroscience and you have all the makings of another parade of idiots attacking science and scientists for no good reason except that it earns them easy points with people dumb enough to agree with them. It'll happen. Just you wait.
(For those of you who'd like to read a far more exhaustive list of articles both good and bad on the subject of the Aurora shootings, Gawker has provided one.)
(Also on WTTFTG)
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Kansas: supporting documents for Dumbth
It turns out that Ken Willard does indeed have supporters for his latest effort to slip pro-creationist language into the NGSS debate, but they consist of the usual predictable suspects:
The Associated Press (June 13, 2012) reports that Ken Willard, a member of the board, described the draft as "flawed" and "distributed a nine-page letter criticizing the draft multistate standards from the group Citizens for Objective Public Education Inc., which lists officers in Florida and Kansas. The letter suggested that the draft standards ignore evidence against evolution, don't respect religious diversity, and promote secular humanism, which precludes God or another supreme being in considering how the universe works." Willard said of the letter, "I hope that it will be taken seriously and not as just information from a bunch of crackpots."
But Citizens for Objective Public Education is not exactly a well-known or a well-established group; its vice president Anne Lassey told the Associated Press that it was founded only in March 2012. Lassey is the wife of Greg Lassey, who was one of the authors of the so-called minority report of the committee that revised Kansas's state science standards in 2005; the report systematically deprecated the scientific status of evolution. The group's president, Jorge Fernandez, is a self-proclaimed young-earth creationist, with publications to his credit in Journal of Creation and on the True.Origin Archive website. The letter claimed that Citizens for Objective Public Education represents "children, parents and taxpayers who share our views"; Lassey told the Associated Press that the group has members across the nation.
(Also on WTTFTG)
The Associated Press (June 13, 2012) reports that Ken Willard, a member of the board, described the draft as "flawed" and "distributed a nine-page letter criticizing the draft multistate standards from the group Citizens for Objective Public Education Inc., which lists officers in Florida and Kansas. The letter suggested that the draft standards ignore evidence against evolution, don't respect religious diversity, and promote secular humanism, which precludes God or another supreme being in considering how the universe works." Willard said of the letter, "I hope that it will be taken seriously and not as just information from a bunch of crackpots."
But Citizens for Objective Public Education is not exactly a well-known or a well-established group; its vice president Anne Lassey told the Associated Press that it was founded only in March 2012. Lassey is the wife of Greg Lassey, who was one of the authors of the so-called minority report of the committee that revised Kansas's state science standards in 2005; the report systematically deprecated the scientific status of evolution. The group's president, Jorge Fernandez, is a self-proclaimed young-earth creationist, with publications to his credit in Journal of Creation and on the True.Origin Archive website. The letter claimed that Citizens for Objective Public Education represents "children, parents and taxpayers who share our views"; Lassey told the Associated Press that the group has members across the nation.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Kansas: here we go again
You'd think that certain individuals on the state Board of Ed would've learned their lesson by now. No such luck:
Kansas is among the twenty-six "lead state partners" of the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) development process, officially assisting in the development, adoption, and implementation of the standards; although the lead state partners are not required to adopt the standards, they have agreed to give them "serious consideration" for adoption when they emerge in their final form — which may be as soon as the end of 2012. But Kansas state board of education member Ken Willard told the Associated Press that the draft embraces naturalism and secular humanism, which he described as "very problematic" and as "preferring one religious position over another"; he intends to raise the issue on June 12, 2012, when the board is scheduled to hear a presentation on the present status of the NGSS.
"In the past," the Associated Press noted, "Willard has supported standards for Kansas with material that questions evolution; guidelines that he and other conservatives approved in 2005 were supplanted by the current ones." As NCSE reported, in November 2005, the Kansas state board of education voted 6-4 to adopt the draft set of state science standards that were rewritten, under the tutelage of local "intelligent design" activists, to impugn the scientific status of evolution — a decision roundly condemned by state and national scientific and education groups. After the antievolution faction on the board, which included Willard, lost its majority in the 2006 elections, the board reversed the decision in February 2007; the antievolution version of the standards was not in place long enough to be felt in the classrooms.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Kansas is among the twenty-six "lead state partners" of the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) development process, officially assisting in the development, adoption, and implementation of the standards; although the lead state partners are not required to adopt the standards, they have agreed to give them "serious consideration" for adoption when they emerge in their final form — which may be as soon as the end of 2012. But Kansas state board of education member Ken Willard told the Associated Press that the draft embraces naturalism and secular humanism, which he described as "very problematic" and as "preferring one religious position over another"; he intends to raise the issue on June 12, 2012, when the board is scheduled to hear a presentation on the present status of the NGSS.
"In the past," the Associated Press noted, "Willard has supported standards for Kansas with material that questions evolution; guidelines that he and other conservatives approved in 2005 were supplanted by the current ones." As NCSE reported, in November 2005, the Kansas state board of education voted 6-4 to adopt the draft set of state science standards that were rewritten, under the tutelage of local "intelligent design" activists, to impugn the scientific status of evolution — a decision roundly condemned by state and national scientific and education groups. After the antievolution faction on the board, which included Willard, lost its majority in the 2006 elections, the board reversed the decision in February 2007; the antievolution version of the standards was not in place long enough to be felt in the classrooms.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Good riddance times three
Good news out of Oklahoma for once:
When the Oklahoma legislature adjourned sine die on May 25, 2012, no fewer than three legislative attempts to attack the teaching of evolution and of climate change (i.e., Senate Bill 1742, House Bill 1551 and an amendment to House Bill 2341) were finally laid to rest. All three would have encouraged teachers in the public schools of the Sooner State to present the "scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses" of "controversial" topics such as "biological evolution" and "global warming."
One of these days, I'm going to have to sift through the NCSE's archives and see exactly how many of these bills floated in state legislatures contain the usual weasel words concerning the supposed "controversies" concerning "biological evolution" and "global warming". I'm not going to be able to get around to it now, but my guess is that the over-under is around 15 bills in total since January 2011. Place your no-prize wagers and we'll see.
(Also on WTTFTG)
When the Oklahoma legislature adjourned sine die on May 25, 2012, no fewer than three legislative attempts to attack the teaching of evolution and of climate change (i.e., Senate Bill 1742, House Bill 1551 and an amendment to House Bill 2341) were finally laid to rest. All three would have encouraged teachers in the public schools of the Sooner State to present the "scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses" of "controversial" topics such as "biological evolution" and "global warming."
One of these days, I'm going to have to sift through the NCSE's archives and see exactly how many of these bills floated in state legislatures contain the usual weasel words concerning the supposed "controversies" concerning "biological evolution" and "global warming". I'm not going to be able to get around to it now, but my guess is that the over-under is around 15 bills in total since January 2011. Place your no-prize wagers and we'll see.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Cretin of the moment
Representative Jeff Flake (R-Wingnut), for a self-serving (but futile, apparently) attack on the NSF's 2013 budget that puts him in the running for "politician with the most appropriate surname".
Monday, April 16, 2012
Oppose CISPA - before CISPA opposes you
This is a bit of a departure from the science-themed nature of this blog, but it's still a highly important issue for anyone using the Internet, much less writing on it:
Congress is currently considering CISPA (the Cyber Intelligence Sharing & Protection Act) – a bill that purports to protect the United States from “cyber threats” but would in fact create a gaping loophole in all existing privacy laws. If CISPA passes, companies could vacuum up huge swaths of data on all Internet users and share it with the government without requiring a court order. CISPA is an exceedingly bad piece of legislation that should be opposed on constitutional grounds, and Congress would be wise to reject it and any other legislation that:
* Uses dangerously vague language to define the breadth of data that can be shared with the government.
* Hands the reins of America’s cybersecurity defenses to the NSA, an agency with no transparency and little accountability.
* Allows data shared with the government to be used for purposes unrelated to cybersecurity.
Please join me in opposing this bill by posting this statement on your own page and using the online form available at the link below to send a letter to Congress against CISPA:
(Form available here)
Congress is currently considering CISPA (the Cyber Intelligence Sharing & Protection Act) – a bill that purports to protect the United States from “cyber threats” but would in fact create a gaping loophole in all existing privacy laws. If CISPA passes, companies could vacuum up huge swaths of data on all Internet users and share it with the government without requiring a court order. CISPA is an exceedingly bad piece of legislation that should be opposed on constitutional grounds, and Congress would be wise to reject it and any other legislation that:
* Uses dangerously vague language to define the breadth of data that can be shared with the government.
* Hands the reins of America’s cybersecurity defenses to the NSA, an agency with no transparency and little accountability.
* Allows data shared with the government to be used for purposes unrelated to cybersecurity.
Please join me in opposing this bill by posting this statement on your own page and using the online form available at the link below to send a letter to Congress against CISPA:
(Form available here)
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Tennessee: things get worse - far worse
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam did the gutless (but entirely predictable) thing concerning the "monkey bill" (translation: Tennessee Senate Bill 893 and House Bill 368) and decided to let the bills become law without actually bothering to sign it in the face of a potential legislative override. Feel free to read Haslam's statement and decide for yourself whether he's waffling about supporting the bill without actually "supporting" it:
“I have reviewed the final language of HB 368/SB 893 and assessed the legislation's impact. I have also evaluated the concerns that have been raised by the bill. I do not believe that this legislation changes the scientific standards that are taught in our schools or the curriculum that is used by our teachers. However, I also don't believe that it accomplishes anything that isn't already acceptable in our schools. The bill received strong bipartisan support, passing the House and Senate by a three-to-one margin, but good legislation should bring clarity and not confusion. My concern is that this bill has not met this objective. For that reason, I will not sign the bill but will allow it to become law without my signature.”
Ah, political doublespeak.
What that statement reads like to me is something along the lines of this: "I'm going to say that I agree with these bills even though they do change scientific standards in state education, and on a very obvious ideological basis; however, I deny that they do. I also deem that 'acceptable' even though I just said that these bills change nothing. However, I need to not take a stand while seeming to do so, which I why I now bring up 'strong bipartisan support' despite the fact that such bipartisan support doesn't seem to have cleared up the 'confusion' the bills cause. So, in other words, I won't veto them - that might actually call for a level of courage on this issue that I'm unwilling to show even though my veto could be easily overidden in both houses of the legislature - but I won't sign them either."
Anyone who feels like whining about how courts have usurped the power of legislatures to make law should feel free to keep their traps shut. With legislation like this, passed in a state that should know better since it was the site of the Scopes trial in 1925, this entire issue was practically tailor-made to end up in Federal court - which might be the dirty little secret of promoters of this sort of legislation in the first place. It's not really about "states' rights" in choosing educational curricula or any other similar claptrap - it's about overturning rulings like Kitzmiller v. Dover and ultimately Edwards v. Aguillard by finding a sympathetic ear in Federal court - and it always has been.
(Also on WTTFTG)
“I have reviewed the final language of HB 368/SB 893 and assessed the legislation's impact. I have also evaluated the concerns that have been raised by the bill. I do not believe that this legislation changes the scientific standards that are taught in our schools or the curriculum that is used by our teachers. However, I also don't believe that it accomplishes anything that isn't already acceptable in our schools. The bill received strong bipartisan support, passing the House and Senate by a three-to-one margin, but good legislation should bring clarity and not confusion. My concern is that this bill has not met this objective. For that reason, I will not sign the bill but will allow it to become law without my signature.”
Ah, political doublespeak.
What that statement reads like to me is something along the lines of this: "I'm going to say that I agree with these bills even though they do change scientific standards in state education, and on a very obvious ideological basis; however, I deny that they do. I also deem that 'acceptable' even though I just said that these bills change nothing. However, I need to not take a stand while seeming to do so, which I why I now bring up 'strong bipartisan support' despite the fact that such bipartisan support doesn't seem to have cleared up the 'confusion' the bills cause. So, in other words, I won't veto them - that might actually call for a level of courage on this issue that I'm unwilling to show even though my veto could be easily overidden in both houses of the legislature - but I won't sign them either."
Anyone who feels like whining about how courts have usurped the power of legislatures to make law should feel free to keep their traps shut. With legislation like this, passed in a state that should know better since it was the site of the Scopes trial in 1925, this entire issue was practically tailor-made to end up in Federal court - which might be the dirty little secret of promoters of this sort of legislation in the first place. It's not really about "states' rights" in choosing educational curricula or any other similar claptrap - it's about overturning rulings like Kitzmiller v. Dover and ultimately Edwards v. Aguillard by finding a sympathetic ear in Federal court - and it always has been.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Recycling drivel doesn't make it wisdom
Here's no real surprise: in Oklahoma, yet another attempt at introducing previously recycled evolution and global warming denial language in an education bill is being undertaken by a state legislator (Steve Russell [R-45th] is the crackpot panderer you should blame), and this time the method was genuinely underhanded:
As introduced, House Bill 2341 would, if enacted, have extended by two years a deadline by which local school districts are required to meet certain standards for media, equipment, and textbooks. The bill passed the House on a 81-8 vote on March 7, 2012, and proceeded to the Senate Education Committee, where it passed on March 26, 2012.
But on March 28, 2012, Steve Russell (R-District 45) proposed to amend HB 2341 with the addition of a new section containing the language of HB 1551, encouraging teachers to present the "scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses" of "controversial" topics such as "biological evolution" and "global warming." The proposal will be considered when the bill comes to a floor vote in the Senate; it is currently on the Senate calendar, but not on the Senate agenda, for April 3, 2012.
No one should really surprised that this continues to go on in Oklahoma ad nauseum. State rep Sally Kern has pretty much made a career out of flogging this dead horse; she did it in 2006 and 2011 (and doesn't that bill look familiar?), although she's also making a career for herself as an all-around champion wingnut on a whole truckload of other "issues" as well (evidence for which can be found here and here). Still, the language of this attempted amendment of HB 2341 belongs to her even if she didn't introduce it, meaning that she still can claim her dunce cap right after Russell picks up his.
(Also on WTTFTG)
As introduced, House Bill 2341 would, if enacted, have extended by two years a deadline by which local school districts are required to meet certain standards for media, equipment, and textbooks. The bill passed the House on a 81-8 vote on March 7, 2012, and proceeded to the Senate Education Committee, where it passed on March 26, 2012.
But on March 28, 2012, Steve Russell (R-District 45) proposed to amend HB 2341 with the addition of a new section containing the language of HB 1551, encouraging teachers to present the "scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses" of "controversial" topics such as "biological evolution" and "global warming." The proposal will be considered when the bill comes to a floor vote in the Senate; it is currently on the Senate calendar, but not on the Senate agenda, for April 3, 2012.
No one should really surprised that this continues to go on in Oklahoma ad nauseum. State rep Sally Kern has pretty much made a career out of flogging this dead horse; she did it in 2006 and 2011 (and doesn't that bill look familiar?), although she's also making a career for herself as an all-around champion wingnut on a whole truckload of other "issues" as well (evidence for which can be found here and here). Still, the language of this attempted amendment of HB 2341 belongs to her even if she didn't introduce it, meaning that she still can claim her dunce cap right after Russell picks up his.
(Also on WTTFTG)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)