Shifting Blame and Veiled Threats

From the San Antonio Express-News and the Houston Chronicle, more bad news for Texas students and teachers.

[Vice Chairman David Bradley, R-Beaumont] and the board majority faulted English teachers for forcing too much of their own ideas into a proposal the board had tentatively approved two months earlier. That's why board members had to salvage a final document with a last-hour cut and paste job, he said.

“I don't think this will happen again because they got spanked,” Bradley said. “Science teachers should work with the board on their process and not try to do an end run around this elected body and steal the process.”

Fuck you very much.

“We want our children to be able to think and understand the strengths and weaknesses of any theory. Some ultra-radical groups have not evolved to the point where they realize that the ‘theory of Evolution' is just that — a theory,” [Board member Ken Mercer, R-San Antonio] said.

Well, isn't that clever?

“Any real scientist understands there are major weaknesses in evolution,” said Mercer, who has a degree in biology from the University of Texas at Austin. “If we truly believe in intellectual debate, let's discuss those weaknesses.”

And no true Scotsman ever put sugar on his porridge.

“There are issues in the evolutionary process that have been proven wrong,” [Vice Chairman Bradley] said. “Evolution is not fact. Evolution is a theory and, as such, cannot be proven. Students need to be able to jump to their own conclusions.”

Not so fast.

"Part of preparing our students for postsecondary success includes providing them with a well-rounded education," [Barabar Cargill, R-The Woodlands] said. "Having the freedom to discuss the scientific strengths and weaknesses of a theory such as evolution teaches students how to evaluate both sides of an issue. It prompts them to be critical thinkers, and it also helps them to respect the opinions of other students even if they disagree."

In that case, we should probably teach students how to spot a blatantly false dilemma.