Inherit the Dumbassery

A California couple is trying to take SOCAS and use it against evolution. Apparently these people think that since the University of California-Berkeley has a site designed to help teachers teach evolution that is partially funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation; SOCAS has been violated. From the article:

Jeanne and Larry Caldwell of Granite Bay say portions of the Understanding Evolution Web site amount to a government endorsement of certain religious groups over others because the site is partly funded through a public money grant from the National Science Foundation.

In the lawsuit filed last month, the Caldwells contend the site is an effort "to modify the beliefs of public school science students so they will be more willing to accept evolutionary theory as true".

Yes, it a conspiracy to brainwash kids into believing in science and not god! The eeeevil scientists and science teachers are out to get your children! Be alert! They're using websites to train those teachers in the best way to "modify" students' beliefs.

So get this:

The plaintiffs are not proponents of "intelligent design" — a theory that living organisms are so complex they must have been created by a higher intelligence — but they object to the teaching of evolution as scientific fact, Jeanne Caldwell said.

Because, you know, it's not a scientific theory or anything. WTF. And just what is it that these people would like taught? I'm guessing outright creationsim--given their fear that the site to help teachers teach is going to "modify" student beliefs into accepting evolution as possible and that they think that since the NSF gave a grant to the site, this is endorsing "certain" religious groups (read: not theirs).

Here is the site: Understanding Evolution. Check it out for yourself.


(cross-posted at expostulation)