Newsgroup: it.scienza.biologia
Titolo: Dittatura accademnica

Un articolo per tutti coloro che sperano di zittirci. Qui, o in altri NG :-)
The Raelian Movement
for those who are not afraid of the future : 
http://www.rael.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Discovery org
http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=2165&program=CSC%20-%20Science%20and%20Education%20Policy%20-%20News%20and%20Articles&callingPage=discoMainPage
Evolution's 'Dictatorship' -- Student Struggles to Get Opposite Viewpoint
Heard
By: Ed Vitagliano
AFA Journal
August 16, 2004
Samuel Chen was a high school sophomore who believed in freedom of speech
and the unfettered pursuit of knowledge. He thought his public high school
did, too, but when it came to the subject of evolution -- well, now he's not
so sure.
In October 2002, Chen began working to get Dr. Michael Behe, professor of
biological sciences at Lehigh University, to give a lecture at Emmaus High
School in Emmaus, Pennsylvania.
Chen, who was co-chair of a student group that tries to stress the
importance of objectivity on controversial issues, knew that Behe would be
perfect, since the group was examining evolution as a topic. The author of
Darwin's Black Box, a critique of the foundational underpinnings of
evolution, Behe had presented his work and debated the subject in
universities in the U.S. and England.
Behe agreed to come in February 2004 and give an after-school lecture
entitled, "Evolution: Truth or Myth?" As the school year drew to a close in
2003, Chen had all the preliminaries nailed down: he had secured Behe's
commitment, received approval from school officials, and reserved the school
auditorium.
Then he found out just how entrenched Darwinist orthodoxy was in the science
department at Emmaus. By the following August, Chen had entered into a
six-month battle to preserve the Behe lecture.
As the struggle unfolded, it became obvious that those who opposed Behe
coming to Emmaus didn't seem to care about his credentials. In addition to
publishing over 35 articles in refereed biochemical journals, Darwin's Black
Box was internationally reviewed in over 100 publications and named by
National Review and World magazine as one of the 100 most important books of
the 20th century.
Instead, it was Behe's rejection of Darwinism -- in favor of what is called
"intelligent design" -- that drove opposition. According to the Discovery
Institute, of which Behe is a fellow, this theory holds "that certain
features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an
intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection."
The head of the science department, John Hnatow, sent a statement to every
faculty member in the school stressing that Emmaus held to the official
policy of the National Science Teachers Association. That policy states:
"There is no longer a debate among scientists about whether evolution has
taken place."
It appeared there would be no debate at Emmaus, either. Some of the science
teachers would not even allow Chen to address their classes and explain to
students what Behe's lecture would be about.
Chen said various tactics were apparently used to undercut the event,
including an attempt to cancel the lecture and fold the student organization
without the knowledge of Chen and other members; requiring that the
necessary funds for the lecture be raised much faster than for other student
events; and moving the lecture from the auditorium to the school cafeteria.
One science teacher in particular, Carl Smartschan, seemed particularly
riled about the upcoming lecture. Smartschan took it upon himself to talk to
every teacher in the science department, insisting that intelligent design
was "unscientific" and "scary stuff." He asked the principal to cancel the
lecture, and then, when the principal refused, asked the faculty advisor for
the student group to halt the lecture. Smartschan even approached Chen and
demanded that the student organization pay to have an evolutionist come to
lecture later in the year.
Smartschan's campaign to get the Behe lecture canceled was surprising to
Chen because the event was scheduled after school, and not during class
time, and was sponsored by a student group, not the school itself.
Nevertheless, Chen persevered. The lecture was a success, attracting more
than 500 people.
In the process, however, Chen's struggle took its toll. His health
deteriorated over the course of the controversy, to the point where he
collapsed three times in one month, including once at school. "My health has
been totally junked," he told AFA Journal.
Brian Fahling, senior trial attorney and senior policy advisor for the
American Family Association Center for Law & Policy, is advising Chen on his
options for the coming year. Fahling said, "Schools are not allowed to
interfere with viewpoints with which they disagree, and schools cannot
disrupt the right of the students to participate in the academic and
intellectual life."
Despite the hardship, Chen said he would do it all over again because the
issue is so important. "I feel that there's a dictatorship on academic
freedom in our public schools now," he said, adding, "I refer to evolution
education as a tyranny .... You can't challenge it in our schools. Kids have
been thrown out of class for challenging it."
That tyranny can be intimidating to students. "Some of the students who
support me are afraid to speak out, especially because they saw how the
science department reacted," Chen said. "They have a fear of speaking out
against it in their classes."
On the other hand, he added that some students "are now questioning
evolution, some for the first time."
That may be the first step in the overthrow of Darwin's dictatorship.
-- 
Carlos
"Il Big Bang che tanti usano per dimostrare
il momento della creazione non è esistito.
Ma se fosse esistito, sarebbe stata la prova
che dio si è sparato."
http://rael.org
http://www.thereisnogod.info
cabb5...@hotmail.com
Prima di scrivermi disinnescate le c@22@t3

 Qui, o in altri NG :-)
Perchč vorrebbero zittirvi? Se al mondo non ci fossero
i buffoni chi ci farebbe ridere?
fuzzy
-- 
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 > Un articolo per tutti coloro che sperano di zittirci.
...pero' ripensandoci qualcuno c'e': il mitico CICAP!
non sono loro che si occupano di ESP e altri fenomeni
"misteriosi" (=cretinate) tipo i cerchi nei campi coltivati
ecc. ecc.? Chissà se hanno una sezione dedicata ai Raeliani...
D'altronde il mondo è fatto di opposti e gli opposti
si attraggono irresistibilmente.


 i buffoni chi ci farebbe ridere?
A parte Berlusconi intendi?


 A parte Berlusconi intendi?
Berlusconi caso mai ci fa piangere.
ciao
Giancarlo