VIEWPOINTS
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Creationists start fight
to put theory in school
■ OUR OPINION: Bom
evolution and creationism
are only theories, and
each should be taught
Sclent 1st* made a fascinat
ing discovery during an
archeological dig a few
years ago
Paleontologists found llie
fossilised remains of three
targe fish that showed signs
of intensely hunting for
something The fish were
wearing baseUii taps and
gloves, and one of them
held a ImI. Only a few feet
in front of them, entombed
in the earth just out of their
reach, lay the distinct object
of their hunt: a baseball.
OK, OK. maybe Gary Ur
son's Far Side rendition of
"Groat Moments in Evolu
tion'* shouldn't be acc epted
as scientific evidence for the
theory, but it is a great intro
due tion for disc union on an
otherwise serious issue: evo
lution and creationism in
public education
Die two theories are once
again being debated in pub
lic: schools and courtrooms
from Tennessee (home of
I he original Scopes Monkey
Trial of the '2tt*|. to CaUfor
uia Educator*, scientists
and parents on both sides
are lobbing verbal bombs
and accusation* at each
other in this renewed and
emotional Utile.
Creationists argue that
educators fail to provide
students with a well-round
ed education when evolu
tion is the sole theory
offered up in iiKjdanation of
the origins uf life.
They do have a point
Scientific creationists
argue that creationism has
just as much physical evi
dence to support it (and
therefore give it legitimai y)
a* the theory of evolution
doe* To reject creationism
merely because It may la*
purl tally based on the Bible
or appear* to approach that
gray area of the separation
between church and state, is
to unfairly discriminate
against the theory and its
proponents
After all. these are then
ruse. As one Alabama text
book diet says, no
one was around to record
the fa* ts when life first
appeared on earth — to nei
ther evolution new creation
ism can be presenter! as fact
Doing so is tantamount to
educational tyranny and
brainwashing
The unacceptable alterna
tive (to teaching both) is that
educators skip the subject
altogether A perfect solu
tion really, if that's what
people want, because every
one tomes out the loser
Creationists, most often
found in the conservative
and religious right, have had
thetr fair share of losses over
the evolution vs. creation
ism debate tong labeled
intolerant and c lose-minded
over evolution and most
other social issues, creation
ists got a recent lesson in
intolerance and classism
from Wayne Corley of the
National Association of
Biology Teachers
S(waking from Fairfax
County in Virginia. Car lev
said, "Even here... jin) one
of the richest counties in the
country, over half the candi
dates for the school board
were creationist fundamen
talists." Apparently, only
the wealthy are intelligent
enough to accept evolution
(jet's stop being intolerant
of each other, and start
teaching our children both
theories.
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Bible-thumpers, Jesus freaks misguided
'What's in a name’ Thai which we call a tom
By any othar nttmn would tmrll at sweet*
—■ Wdham Hhaktmpmrr. Ramaa and lullm
A couple of weeks ago I was a perusing
through this esteemed campus news
pep* of our* when I stumbled across
a little tidbit from the AP w ire ll
appears that a group of students at Hast High
School in Sait lake Qty tried to form a school
dub called the Gey-Strsighl Alliance, ll was a
support group lor students who were struggling
with their sexual identity The Salt Lake City
Sc hool Board got wind of this, then proceeded
to get their high and mighty panties all In a snil
and squashed II In the process they also ended
up banning all other dubs within the school
district that were not academic due to a federal
law and U S Supreme Court decision whic h
would allow the district to either allow all
extrsc.umc ulsr dub* or simply none at all So
rather than let a couple of conc erned kids form ■
support group, the school board axed every
thing
Groat Now not only will these kids have gay
basher* after them, all of the other student* will
use them as scapegoats as well — for terminal
mg all the district * aortal dub* It's rattier
funny, however, if you consider that the district
will allow the formation of a "Beef Club" where
member* aft around eating i I burgers
and go to monster truck rallies but not a sup
pent group for a bunc h of kids who probably
need on* Ah yes, Salt Uk* City, home of the
Mormon Tabernacle and Beavu and Butt head I
do believe that it wav Samuel Clemen* who
one* said that when God crested the idiot, he
made the school hoard as prac tice
But perhaps we should examine this a wee bit
closer Where doe* this anti gay sentiment come
from? Not enough iron in the diet? Too much
carbon monoxide from the monster truck ral
lies? Bad interpretations of the Bible. Oops, now
I've done it. I'll probably get spew from every
}esu» freak on tempo* for what I blunder into
next
If you ever take the time to listen to someone
condemn homosexuality, they will invariably
start off with the Bible So I swiped my room
male's copy and went #-perusing. 1 aune ac ross
the Book of Lev iticus, which details, among
other thing*, the proper procedures for various
types of tacrifkial offerings, purification after
childbirth, what and what not to eat. rituals to
get rid of disease and mildew, and a detailed
account of what are acceptable sexual relations
and practices And the Bible thumpers are quite
right: Leviticus 18 22 clearly state* "Do not lie
with a man a* one lies with a woman; that is
detestable." The rest of that particular section
then goes on to deal with incest and adultery,
but |ust about every other human culture also
has taboos against incest
Yet then* are those who would say that it
would be unfair and improper of me to take that
particular passage out of context And they
wouia ue anttaiuteiy ngnt. so
here's some other little goodies
I dug up out of the Book of
Leviticus. It is • sin to do the
following things: to plant your
field with two kinds of semi
(Lev 10 10). to wear clothing
woven of two different materi
als (Lev 10 10). ( tilting the hair
at the sides of your head or
trimming your beard (Lev
10:27). to get a tattoo (Lev
10 28). or to have *e» with a
woman during n«r period (Lav IB19) along with
many other little interesting tidbits Damn, it
tanks like we're all gonna bum
It fascinate* me how the moral majority is
able io pit i and choose just whai sin* they
would like to enforce Perhaps the next (X A
initiative will not only condemn homosexuality,
hut those damn cotton polyester leisure suits a*
well Bui then they'll spout out that all of those
other sins are all out date*! and aren't really
applicable Oh rvallyf Well. I feel so much bet
ter already knowing that someone else ha* the
best interests of my morality in mind
When you really gel down In hrass tack*,
there's two thing* that just pis* me off about this
whole situation The first is that there are so
many more thing* that "good God fearin’ folk"
should be worrying about. Such as going out of
our way to help our fellow man And I'm not
talking about the Mormon missionaries who go
out of their way to give out stacks of the Book of
Mormon I'm talking about the nuns from the
jungles of Africa to the Ament an inner cities
who care for the sick and the dying People who
actually try to do some good in the name of God
What really gnaws at me is the fact that some
one would have the audat ity to tell me who I
can and can't love Being gay isn't about just
preferring someone of the same sex It's about
love, just like it is for everyone else We are all
human and we all have the tame emotion* We
all have the same capacities for joy. sadness,
and love The Bible-ihumpers then try to get all
warm and fuzzy by saying love the sinner but
hate the tin But what they just don't get is that
being in love is not a sin. nor is ihe expression
of it
Christian morality be damned, love is the
greatest power erf all. historv will g.
Love i* the highest mural choice of alt.
/esse Boh rvr-Clancy, a senior maforine in bio
chemutry. it a columnut for the Emerald E-mail
jbdancy&gktdsiane uotvgun .edu