Due to several civically minded citizens in Dover, Pa., the teaching of intelligent design may no longer be part of the science curriculum. Of the five school boards in the United States that have mandated intelligent design being taught alongside biological evolution, this is the first case where reason has prevailed over insanity.
The eight members of the Pennsylvania Board of Education that introduced intelligent design into the school system were "swept out of office" by anti-intelligent designers, according to The New York Times. Whether or not intelligent design will be taken out of the curriculum is still under judicial review.
The New York Times noted that the overthrow came after the former board members voted in October 2004 to "require ninth-grade biology students to hear a brief statement at the start of the semester saying there were gaps in the theory of evolution, that intelligent design was an alternative and that students could learn more about it by reading a textbook, 'Of People and Pandas,' available in the high school library."
USA Today also commented on the situation saying, "Proponents [of intelligent design] say the Dover board requirement encourages critical thinking; opponents say it promotes a religious viewpoint, because the designer has to be God."
The requirement in Dover does, in fact, push critical thinking. Students must now be able to see through the babble of intelligent design and realize that biological evolution -- the actual search for truth -- is the best choice to explain how life evolved on this planet.
Opponents of intelligent design must also realize that the theory does not only push God as a designer -- it can also be aliens. Seriously, some intelligent design proponents say that.
In fact, prominent intelligent design advocate Michael Behe also called for a change to the very essence of the theory. While testifying on the basis of intelligent design as a scientific theory, Behe argued for a broader definition of the term, one that even included astrology.
Has intelligent design actually crumbled to the point of allowing aliens and astrology to invade science classes?
Maybe the theory is only meant to be right 15 percent of the time, just like my horoscope.
Additionally, lawyers for the Dover Board of Education called on professor Steve Fuller of the University of Warwick. Fuller claimed, "It seems to me, in many respects the cards are stacked against radical, innovative views getting a fair hearing in science these days."
A fair hearing is exactly what happened, and eight board members lost. Perhaps Fuller, like Behe, would like to change the meaning of certain words, such as "innovative," since intelligent design has nothing to do with innovation.
With the court's decision only a few weeks away, residents of Dover have another fear to worry about -- the wrath of God.
Conservative Christian Pat Robertson warned, "I'd like to say to the good citizens of Dover: If there is a disaster in your area, don't turn to God, you just rejected him from your city." Robertson followed this by saying, "And don't wonder why he hasn't helped you when problems begin, if they begin. I'm not saying they will, but if they do, just remember, you just voted God out of your city. And if that's the case, don't ask for his help because he might not be there."
I thought they simply voted eight school board members out office, who knew one of them was God?
Yet, residents of Dover who oppose the teaching of intelligent design in the classroom are not anti-God. In an Associated Press article, Jill Reiter, a bank teller in Dover asserted, "My kids believe in God. I believe in God. But I don't think it belongs in the science curriculum the way the school district is presenting it."
Intelligent design advocates consistently talk about the gaps in evolution. And yes, there are areas that are not fully understood. By comparison, however, to be considered a science, intelligent design needs aliens and astrology. Thanks but no thanks, I'll stick with evolution. Bravo to the residents of Dover, one down four to go. Who's next? Kansas?
Noah Lewkowitz is a graduate student in architecture. You can find him in a cornfield searching for aliens at noah.lewkowitz@asu.edu.
