Indiana, my Indiana, going all stupid

Oh my God Zeus!  I'm not sure which is worse.

First, the Indiana Republicans controlling the state Senate Education Committee voted to allow creationism to be taught in the state's public schools(!).  Then, the Muncie (IN) StarPress newspaper ran an editorial titled, "What's so bad about creationism in public schools?"(!!) Yes, a prominent newspaper in a city with a large state university (Ball State) thinks teaching creationism in Indiana's public schools is okay.  Why?  Because the editorial writer doesn't have a clue what the word "theory" means especially as used in science.

Theory: 1) a coherent group of tested general propositions, commonly regarded as correct, that can be used as principles of explanation and prediction for a class of phenomena: Einstein's theory of relativity. Synonyms: principle, law, doctrine.

The writer believes that by tacking the word "theory" onto creationism that makes it equal to the theory of evolution.  The writer took a lot of hits for that in the comments section (what do you expect in a city with a large university?).

This bill, now ready to be voted on in the Indiana Senate, and the editorial, have now gone national and is becoming a huge black eye for Indiana.  Here's my comment:

I have a diploma from an Indiana high school and I graduated from Indiana University. When Hoosiers like me apply for jobs in this extremely competitive job market, often all candidates have similar credentials and the decision who gets the job comes down to little thing like where you went to school.

In one fell swoop, the Republicans in the Senate Education Committee, who equate creationism with evolution, and an editorial writer at a prominent Indiana newspaper who doesn't know the definition of the term "theory" in science, have just made Indiana look stupid, and those who have been educated in this state look suspect.

This issue has now received national attention and it will mean job seekers educated in Indiana will have a harder time competing against those educated elsewhere...and maybe that's as it should be because one can easily presume that the educational system in Indiana is not prime time judging by the bills proposed and editorials written recently.

Might I suggest that if Indiana wants employers offering good paying jobs to move there, and it's graduates to do well in the job market, their elected leaders should focus less on busting unions and concentrate more on developing intelligent and responsible leaders who have the guts to put an end to pandering to the myth-purveyors.

--Trakker

Comments

[Dan D. Doty]

Nice to see you're setting future lawsuits EEOC.