301
Adam Tjaavk
Charles Darwin
22/11/2005 07:00:00
Charles Darwin:
Evolution of a Scientist
Jerry Adler |MSNBC, Newsweek
He had planned to enter the ministry,
but his discoveries on a fateful voyage
170 years ago shook his faith and changed
our conception of the origins of life.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10118787/site/newsweek/
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
302
Adam Tjaavk
Lessons from your sponsor
22/11/2005 10:15:00
Lessons from your sponsor
Blair wants to hand our children
over to born again car dealers in
the name of school diversity
John Harris |The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1647685,00.html
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
303
Paul Rooney
Creation Science Movement UK
22/11/2005 16:59:00
Hey Guys,
Not sure if you are aware of this group in the UK:
http://www.csm.org.uk/index.php
They are based in Portsmouth and even have an exhibition of creation
"science" evidence you can go see!
Worth looking at just to see what arguments they are currently using if
nothing else.
Cheers
Paul
304
blackshadowcouk
Re: Creation Science Movement UK
22/11/2005 20:11:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, "Paul Rooney" <p.rooney@h...>
wrote:
>
> Hey Guys,
>
> Not sure if you are aware of this group in the UK:
>
> http://www.csm.org.uk/index.php
>
> They are based in Portsmouth and even have an exhibition of
creation
> "science" evidence you can go see!
>
> Worth looking at just to see what arguments they are currently
using if
> nothing else.
>
> Cheers
>
> Paul
Hi Paul,
Yes I have heard of them before, they are responsible for the
following:
"Today society witnesses to the effect of atheistic humanism which
belief in the theory of evolution has brought--fragmented family
units, abortion, child abuse etc."
Which is typical YEC nonsense. Another group with similar views can
be found at:
http://www.christiandoctrine.net/index.html
Here is an example of their handiwork:
"The next proposed Christian school has been threatened with a
parents' protest march…for goodness sake, what's the big problem?
Parents must apply for their kids to join the school, so if they
don't like the idea of God in the classroom, they should simply shut
up and not send them."
http://www.christiandoctrine.net/doctrine/periodicals/british_beacon/
beacon_79_june_2004_web.htm
http://tinyurl.com/5nlem
Alan.
305
blackshadowcouk
Technorati on creationism
22/11/2005 20:20:00
To find out what bloggers are saying on the subject of creationism,
try:
http://www.technorati.com/search/creationism
Alan.
306
Adam Tjaavk
Trashing ID
23/11/2005 08:15:00
Trashing ID
College course seeks to
debunk intelligent design
Proposed religion class labels
creationism as 'mythology'
AP, CNN International
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/EDUCATION/11/22/intelligent.design.course.ap/index.h\
tml
=
http://tinyurl.com/8lg5j
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
307
Max Wurr
TrueOrigin
26/11/2005 02:31:00
Do any of the regulars here ever visit the TrueOrigin group? I have
been a lurking/occasionally commenting member for some time but am
starting to get worked up by the smug self-congratulatory nonsense of
some of their members which is going mostly unchallenged. Anyone fancy
paying a visit to see if you can stir things up a bit?
Cheers
Max
308
Adam Tjaavk
The American conflict: Science & God
26/11/2005 05:35:00
America is caught in a
conflict between science & God
A new exhibition on Darwin's
life & work is a defiant gesture
against US biblical literalism
Martin Kettle |The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/religion/Story/0,2763,1651334,00.html
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
309
ukantic
Re: TrueOrigin
26/11/2005 22:41:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, "Max Wurr" <mail@m...> wrote:
>
> Do any of the regulars here ever visit the TrueOrigin group? I have
> been a lurking/occasionally commenting member for some time but am
> starting to get worked up by the smug self-congratulatory nonsense
of
> some of their members which is going mostly unchallenged. Anyone
fancy
> paying a visit to see if you can stir things up a bit?
>
> Cheers
>
> Max
>
Hi Max,
I am familiar with the main website but not the group. However if
the website is anything to go by then I would not bother. Just look
at the feedback section of the website where Wallis always has the
venomous last word, he is a master of distortion & dishonest
rhetorical tactics. I think you are more likely to have a rational
conversation with a pissed Russian than that idiot & his deranged
mates.
Alan.
310
ukantic
Traveling creationism museum
27/11/2005 14:04:00
Traveling creationism museum makes a stop at Cape Christian School
http://www.semissourian.com/story/1126187.html
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
By Aurora Meyer ~ Southeast Missourian
Outside Cape Christian School on Tuesday, thunder, lightning and
torrents of rain reminded many inside of the biblical flood. The
students inside learned how that flood fit into the science of
creationism.
A traveling creationism museum visited the school to share
scientific facts behind creation.
For the last 13 years, Project CREATION executive director Sean Meek
has traveled the country with exhibits on the days of creation, the
flood, the ice age and dinosaurs showing scientific and historical
information in support of the Genesis account of Creation.
"There is no conflict between the Bible and science, there is none
at all," Meek said. "The conflict is between the evolutionists and
the Bible."
Meek got the idea for the museum from the Creation Museum in San
Diego, Calif., he said he knew everyone would not be able to travel
to that museum so he created a traveling version. His current museum
is the fourth version.
Amid giant blue posters decorated with colorful pictures of fish,
horses, rainbows, DNA strands and butterflies Meek spoke to
attentive students about the "imaginary, nonsense world of
evolution."
"Evolutionists love to make up stories," Meek said, referencing the
big-bang theory and the many books published on the theory.
He compares evolution to a building.
"Here's the evolutionist version of how this building got here, one
day all the raw materials were mixing around and hit exactly right
and the building went up all by itself," Meek said. "It would be
easier for this building to have popped out of the ground all by
itself than it would be for a living cell to become something else."
Meek says the goal of his presentation is to clear up
misinformation, nonsense and deceptions that evolutionists tout, and
give comfort to people who believe in the Genesis account by giving
them facts.
"Creation is the foundation of the Bible, take out the foundation
and the whole structure collapses," Meek said. "You cannot have the
Bible be true unless you understand fully that the facts are there."
Principal Beverly Smart said the museum gives her students
scientific facts to back up their beliefs.
Fifth-grader Joshua Sander said in the past he has debated evolution
and creation with people and enjoyed the presentation because "it
was very factual."
"In nature there is so much evidence of creation, this gives us
reasons why not to believe in evolution and why to believe in
creation," Joshua said.
Sarah Stroup, a fourth-grader, said she learned a lot of new things,
such as a caterpillar turns into a gloopy, watery mess before it
becomes a butterfly.
Meek also talks to church groups and Sunday schools. He has been to
more than 1,000 schools and hundreds of churches.
End
Is there any wonder so many Americans believe in creationism when
their press print shit like this.
311
ukantic
Notes on TinyURL
27/11/2005 14:33:00
Notes on TinyURL
Nothing is more irritating than trying to reconstruct a long URL
that has broken across one or more lines. I tend not to even bother
& I suspect many people are the same. That is why I recommend the
use of TinyURL. However, even this can be a nuisance to use, so here
are a few tips on how to do so effectively.
Firstly, there is no need to use TinyURL unless it seems likely that
the URL is so long it is liable break across a line.
Secondly, the best way to use TinyURL is to place it into the IE
links toolbar as shown at:
http://tinyurl.com/#toolbar
If using Firefox, go to the same page & simple drag the TinyURL link
to a spare space on the toolbar.
In either case it takes up an insignificant amount of room & will
automatically generate a TinyURL link of any page when clicked on.
Alan.
312
Mikey Brass
Re: Traveling creationism museum
27/11/2005 14:34:00
There used to be a saying back in Apartheid South Africa: whites would
prefer to attend Black schools (which were under a separate education
dept and the standards mandated by the dept were lower) than an American.
313
ukantic
Flagship schools fail the maths test
27/11/2005 21:06:00
Flagship schools fail the maths test.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?
xml=/news/2005/11/27/nacad27.xml&sSheet=/portal/2005/11/27/ixportal.h
tml
http://tinyurl.com/7jwrg
By Julie Henry, Education Correspondent
(Filed: 27/11/2005)
Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
English, this year.
The poor success rate will embarrass ministers, who insist that the
schools, which are privately sponsored and are given control of
their curriculum and admissions, are the best way to raise standards
in inner-city areas.
314
Mikey Brass
Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
27/11/2005 22:13:00
ukantic wrote:
> Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
> academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
> English, this year.
Lovely. Just what we need: more illiterate teenagers and
soon-to-be-adults that can't spell and add numbers.
--
Best, Mikey Brass
MA in Archaeology degree, University College London
"The Antiquity of Man" http://www.antiquityofman.com
Book: "The Antiquity of Man: Artifactual, fossil and gene records explored"
- !ke e: /xarra //ke
("Diverse people unite": Motto of the South African Coat of Arms, 2002)
315
oeditor
Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
28/11/2005 16:50:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, Mikey Brass <mike@a...> wrote:
>
> ukantic wrote:
>
> > Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
> > academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
> > English, this year.
>
> Lovely. Just what we need: more illiterate teenagers and
> soon-to-be-adults that can't spell and add numbers.
>
Yes, but at least they'll be god-fearing illiterates.
Also, since they can't turn the clock back to Latin bibles, they'll at
least have the satisfaction of knowing that their pupils won't be able
to read the English ones and see the inconsistencies and nastier bits.
Brian
316
germainsjy@localdial.com
re: Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
28/11/2005 23:19:00
You are ALL the SAME!
You hate Numerology and Spells!!!
<blub>
My elder daughter had an aquaint evening at her 14+ school (Hautlieu) last week
and encountered her old (not Old) R.E. Teacher posing as a Philosophy Tutor.
The children and a few young goats were wide-eyed:
\Noooo....\
No-one. Narry a one. Oddly, the critter was talking with parents...
Science: Stinks-a-plenty.. courtesy of lots of muttering .. .
Bio: Spot-the-Org quiz - using Microscopes
Languages: French Teachers, young. (Also, regrettably evidently Preggo.)
History; `You spent a day at Chinon?' To Girl-child: "You will look back on
that!"
I have high hopes...
Never mind the fact that the Drama Dept. keeps mugging anyone and they believe
in Backstage Tech. as much as anything.
John (Yesss... Things are Right in this small Island..!!) Germain
> ** Original Subject: Re: [BlackShadow] Flagship schools fail the maths test
> ** Original Sender: Mikey Brass <mike@antiquityofman.com>
> ** Original Date: Sun, 27 Nov 2005 22:28:31 +0000
> ** Original Message follows...
>
> ukantic wrote:
>
> > Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
> > academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
> > English, this year.
>
> Lovely. Just what we need: more illiterate teenagers and
> soon-to-be-adults that can't spell and add numbers.
>
> --
> Best, Mikey Brass
> MA in Archaeology degree, University College London
> "The Antiquity of Man" http://www.antiquityofman.com
> Book: "The Antiquity of Man: Artifactual, fossil and gene records explored"
>
> - !ke e: /xarra //ke
> ("Diverse people unite": Motto of the South African Coat of Arms, 2002)
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>** --------- End Original Message ----------- **
>
317
germainsjy@localdial.com
re: Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
28/11/2005 23:21:00
Or the Greek...
JG
> ** Original Subject: [BlackShadow] Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
> ** Original Sender: "oeditor" <b-jordan@lineone.net>
> ** Original Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2005 16:51:17 +0000
> ** Original Message follows...
>
> --- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, Mikey Brass <mike@a...> wrote:
> >
> > ukantic wrote:
> >
> > > Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
> > > academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
> > > English, this year.
> >
> > Lovely. Just what we need: more illiterate teenagers and
> > soon-to-be-adults that can't spell and add numbers.
> >
> Yes, but at least they'll be god-fearing illiterates.
> Also, since they can't turn the clock back to Latin bibles, they'll at
> least have the satisfaction of knowing that their pupils won't be able
> to read the English ones and see the inconsistencies and nastier bits.
>
> Brian
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>** --------- End Original Message ----------- **
>
318
Mikey Brass
Re: Re: Flagship schools fail the maths test
28/11/2005 23:43:00
oeditor wrote:
> --- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, Mikey Brass <mike@a...> wrote:
>> ukantic wrote:
>>
>>> Only 15 per cent of pupils attending the Government's flagship city
>>> academies managed to get five good GCSEs, including maths and
>>> English, this year.
>> Lovely. Just what we need: more illiterate teenagers and
>> soon-to-be-adults that can't spell and add numbers.
>>
> Yes, but at least they'll be god-fearing illiterates.
I once asked a young earth creationist if he could (a) tell me which of
these sites were located in a desert, and (b) which is the flood layer
at that site: Klasies River, Blombos, Nabta Playa and two other sites.
Of course he couldn't tell me either; he, of Laurie Appleton fame.
> Also, since they can't turn the clock back to Latin bibles, they'll at
> least have the satisfaction of knowing that their pupils won't be able
> to read the English ones and see the inconsistencies and nastier bits.
Some American creationists - on the ground, followers - have insisted
that Jesus spoke King James English.
319
Adam Tjaavk
Darwin Under the Microscope
01/12/2005 09:29:00
Darwin Under the Microscope:
The Origin of the Man and His Theory
Michael Powell |Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/28/AR2005112801889.\
html
=
http://tinyurl.com/7tkuv
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
320
blackshadowcouk
Faculty protest creation speech
09/12/2005 11:58:00
Passing this across from Debunk Creation as it contains information
on a UK based creationist.
http://www.al.com/news/birminghamnews/index.ssf?/base/news/1134037343
160350.xml&coll=2 (personal details req'd)
Faculty protest creation speech
Academic leaders fear for Samford reputation; president defends event
Thursday, December 08, 2005
THOMAS SPENCER
News staff writer
A planned lecture by intelligent design proponent John Lennox has
upset Samford University faculty who don't want the Baptist-
affiliated school to be seen as endorsing teaching alternatives to
evolution.
A resolution introduced in the College of Arts and Sciences' faculty
senate describes intelligent design as a political movement, not
science. The resolution, by Samford geography professor Max Baber,
questions whether Samford should involve itself in a movement that
seeks to inject religion into science education in the public
schools.
"In accordance with the spirit and letter of Samford's foundation
statements," Baber's resolution reads, "we affirm that church and
state should remain separate. We therefore protest the president's
decision to involve Samford in a political movement that stands in
direct opposition to that principle."
The senate has formed a committee to examine the issue.
Samford President Tom Corts cooperated with local Christian ministry
group, the Fixed Point Foundation, to bring Lennox, also an Oxford
University mathematician, to campus Feb. 23.
Corts doesn't understand the controversy surrounding the visit.
Intelligent design is an issue in the news, and while the school's
science department teaches evolution as a basic scientific fact,
that doesn't rule out the involvement of an intelligent designer,
Corts said. On the other hand, Corts said he wasn't aware of a
serious scientific theory that attempts to describe God's
intervention in creation of life.
"I don't know anyone who presents it as science," Corts said.
Whatever the case, discussion of the idea shouldn't be shut down, he
said. "This is a university and you are supposed to talk about
ideas."
Fixed Point Executive Director Larry Taunton said there is nothing
political about his organization, and its intent in bringing Lennox
to campus is to move the discussion beyond politics.
Lennox is a research fellow in mathematics at Green College, Oxford
University in England. He is one of a comparatively small band of
academics who question the theory of evolution and argue that the
complexity of biological life suggests a designer guides the process.
Intelligent design has become the latest flashpoint in the long-
running battle over how evolution is taught in schools. Most
scientists believe in the validity of evolution and believe
theorizing about the existence of an intelligent designer crosses
into a religious realm where theories are not testable by observable
evidence.
"We are conscientious about teaching science as science and
philosophy as philosophy and religious belief as religious belief,"
said Rod Davis, an English professor and former dean of Samford's
College of Arts and Sciences.
Academic reputation:
Ron Jenkins, a biology professor who teaches evolution, is concerned
about linking Samford's name with intelligent design, particularly
if the event suggests intelligent design is a science.
While Samford prides itself on its Baptist affiliation, it also is
protective of it academic reputation. "Many of the faculty think of
this as politically risky," Jenkins said.
Jenkins describes himself as a "theoevolutionist" and sees no
contradiction in believing both in evolution and a creator. He is
considering an invitation to sit on a panel that would question
Lennox after his remarks but is concerned that participating would
raise the profile of the event. "There is nothing for me to gain
with me being on it," he said.
Reached at his home in England, Lennox said it is scientific
evidence that leads him to believe in intelligent design. Even the
simplest forms of life are so complex that it is implausible to
believe random chance combinations of non-living matter produced
life, Lennox said. Darwin's theory of evolution does not address the
origin of life.
Lennox is amused that such a divisive debate would begin as soon as
someone suggests an unobserved outside force is at work in
evolution. In cosmology and physics, theories are advanced about
forces and effects from other dimensions, and it doesn't stir
controversy.
"The universe is not self-explanatory," he said. Most of the
greatest minds in history have believed that there is more to the
universe than matter and energy, Lennox said.
But Lennox goes further. While he accepts Darwin's idea that species
adapt and change in response to their environments, he questions
whether species evolve into other species.
In the mainstream, scientists still argue about the mechanics of the
process, but not much about whether evolution has led to the
emergence ofnew species.
"I don't think it (intelligent design) is a legitimate field of
scientific inquiry," said Samford's Davis. "I think of it as a
political wedge to get creationism into the schools ... I think
there are people who want to get a legitimacy for this, and I think
they could be trying to use our standing as an institution of higher
learning to gain credibility."
Issues should be discussed on campus, Davis said. "I just don't
think this is a legitimate issue. We don't have people that want to
challenge the germ theory of disease. We have to make choices."
Fixed Point's Taunton said their guest is not a crackpot. "He is a
heavyweight. He lectures on pure mathematics," he said. "If, in fact,
Lennox's position is without merit, then let him speak, it will be
exposed as such. I don't think that will be the case, though."
Future of Samford:
Some of the Samford faculty's unease could be attributed to
uncertainty about the direction of the university. After more than
20 years at the helm, Corts has announced his retirement. Under
Corts, Samford managed to have both academic independence and good
relations with the Alabama Baptists.
Corts has been involved with civic issues such as the reform of the
Alabama Constitution and of the state's regressive tax structure.
Other Baptist schools, including Mercer University and Shorter
College in Georgia and Baylor University in Texas, have endured
nasty contests for control between independent administrations and
state Baptist conventions.
Recently, Jerry A. Newby, president and chairman of the board of Alfa
Insurance Corp., has been added to Samford's board of trustees. Alfa
traditionally has opposed tax reform.
Re-elected as a trustee and taking a prominent role in the search
for a new Samford president was the Rev. Jay Wolf, pastor of First
Baptist Church in Montgomery. Wolf has been a supporter of ousted
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore and of legislative proposals to ban
gay marriage.
Corts said there is nothing to worry about. Samford is not
vulnerable to takeover by one faction or another. It respects
differing points of view.
"This institution is built to last. This institution is not for
sale," Corts said. "I don't think anyone needs to worry about that."
321
blackshadowcouk
Talk Reason update
09/12/2005 12:06:00
Bring On the Chiquitas!
By Richard B. Hoppe
http://www.talkreason.org/articles/Chiquitas.cfm
Richard Hoppe dissects the preposterous quasi-debate between
"conservative" journalist Cal Thomas and his "liberal opponent" Bob
Beckel wherein both, in a touching display of unity,enthusiastically
suggested "an open debate" between scientists and the proponents of
intelligent design, as if this were some new idea and as if such
(fruitless) debates have so far never taken place. In fact both Thomas
and Beckel have demonstrated an abject lack of understanding of what
the real issues are and where the "debate" stands at this time. The
discussion of this post can be seen on the Panda's Thumb blog
(http://www.pandasthumb.org/archives/2005/12/bring_out_the_c.html).
http://tinyurl.com/bgeqa
published: Dec 07, 2005
322
Mikey Brass
Re: Faculty protest creation speech
09/12/2005 15:17:00
blackshadowcouk wrote:
> Fixed Point's Taunton said their guest is not a crackpot. "He is a
> heavyweight. He lectures on pure mathematics," he said.
If I lectured on plumbing, would this person expect other plumbers to
listen?
--
Best, Mikey Brass
MA in Archaeology degree, University College London
"The Antiquity of Man" http://www.antiquityofman.com
Book: "The Antiquity of Man: Artifactual, fossil and gene records explored"
- !ke e: /xarra //ke
("Diverse people unite": Motto of the South African Coat of Arms, 2002)
323
ukantic
Article on Cobb stickers
12/12/2005 00:22:00
Warning Label on Darwin Sows Division in Suburbia
Parents in Cobb County, Ga., Clash Over Sticker in Textbooks
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/content/article/2005/12/10/AR2005121000911.html
http://tinyurl.com/aq7yy
MARIETTA, Ga. -- The evolution controversy in this comfortable Atlanta
suburb began with one boy's fascination with dinosaurs.
"He was really into 'Jurassic Park,' " his mother recalled. The
trouble was, "we kept reading over and over that 'millions and
millions of years ago, dinosaurs roamed the earth,' " Marjorie Rogers
continued. "And that's where I said, 'Hmm -- wait a second.' "
324
Adam Tjaavk
ID deja vu
17/12/2005 11:21:00
Intelligent Design Deja Vu
Douglas Baynton |Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/16/AR2005121601559.\
html
=
http://tinyurl.com/dgr5x
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
325
Adam Tjaavk
Re: ID deja vu
19/12/2005 20:34:00
Opinion: 'Intelligent Design' Deja Vu
Douglas Baynton |Washington Post
ID deja vu
online Q&A
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2005/12/16/DI20051216012\
51.html
=
http://tinyurl.com/conke
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
326
Adam Tjaavk
Victory over ID in Pennsylvania
20/12/2005 18:26:00
Victory over ID
in Pennsylvania
Americans United Hails Federal Court
Ruling Against ID In Public Schools
http://www.au.org/site/News2?abbr=pr&page=NewsArticle&id=7725
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
327
Adam Tjaavk
Re: Answering creationists
26/12/2005 12:46:00
Re: Answering creationists
Museums answer critics of evolution
Volunteers receive special training
to handle disputes |William Kates
AP, Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/25/AR2005122500675.\
html
=
http://tinyurl.com/cmxxr
See bs244 & responses
http://groups.yahoo.comhttp://message/244
_____________________________
octoTerpsichorean impetus >8<
purveyor of pointers to the
perspicacious & preposterous
328
ukantic
Anger at academy plan for inner-city schools
27/12/2005 21:54:00
Anger at academy plan for inner-city schools
http://iccoventry.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100localnews/tm_objectid=
16483439&method=full&siteid=50003&headline=anger-at-academy-plan-for-
inner-city-schools--name_page.html
http://tinyurl.com/bcqpp
Dec 14 2005
By Fiona Scott, Political Editor
GOVERNORS are rebelling over plans to create one of Tony Blair's
academies by merging two inner-city schools.
Last night, governors at Sidney Stringer School in Hillfields voted
against merging their school with Barrs Hill and turning it into a
city academy.
A majority were "not minded to support" the council's proposal to
merge both schools and build a new one in the Swanswell learning
quarter.
It is understood most objected to both the merger and to the
proposal that the new school be a city academy with an outside
sponsor.
Rob Windsor, vice-chairman of governors and a Socialist, said the
council doesn't need their permission to go ahead with the scheme.
The former city councillor said: "The key concerns put forward were
not just about city academies, but about two secondary schools
merging on a smaller site, with very little space to do anything.
"The sports facilities will be contained in a city-wide sports
centre and students from Sidney Stringer will have to trog across
there to PE lessons, which to me raises safety risks as it's not an
enclosed school site.
"We didn't want to merge schools anyway - we were happy for both
schools to carry on as separate entities."
The council is talking to Readingbased educational charity Centre
for British Teachers about it becoming the academy sponsor.
The Swanswell development is one of the biggest changes to the city
in decades.
Mr Windsor said governors also felt they didn't know enough about
the track record of the potential sponsor.
City academies can get grants of up to £25 million from the
government if they find a sponsor to put in £2 million.
The sponsor gets to appoint the governing body, head and staff, and
have a say in the curriculum and ethos.
The council is planning two city academies - the other one is at
Woodway Park School where Christian evangelist Bob Edmiston, wants
to be the sponsor.
329
ukantic
SPIEGEL INTERVIEW WITH EVOLUTION PHILOSOPHER D. DENNETT
27/12/2005 22:00:00
SPIEGEL INTERVIEW WITH EVOLUTION PHILOSOPHER DANIEL DENNETT
"Darwinism Completely Refutes Intelligent Design"
Intelligent Design is once again making headlines in the United
States. But what is the attraction? Daniel Dennett spoke with SPIEGEL
about the attraction of creationism, how religion itself succumbs to
Darwinian ideas, and the social irresponsibility of the religious
right in America.
http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/spiegel/0,1518,392319,00.
html
http://tinyurl.com/dv53f
330
ukantic
Schools for the Enlightenment or epiphany?: Steve Fuller
02/01/2006 18:58:00
Schools for the Enlightenment or epiphany?: Steve Fuller
http://www.thes.co.uk/current_edition/story.aspx?story_id=2026965
http://tinyurl.com/99737
Steve Fuller
Published: 23 December 2005
Does allowing faith a more prominent role in education mean allowing
unreason and intolerance on to the curriculum?
Steve Fuller argues that intelligent design shows how the Bible has
been a powerful spur to science...
For the past two decades, intelligent design theory (IDT) has been
wrestling for space alongside neo-Darwinism in the US high-school
biology curriculum. IDT would have students approach science by
trying to get inside "the mind of God". That IDT is more than an
American quirk is suggested by the resurgence of Christian and
Muslim fundamentalism worldwide. Secular societies insist on a
segregation of science and religion that many thoughtful monotheists
find arbitrary and even oppressive.
To its opponents, IDT is a thinly veiled attempt to reverse
scientific progress by reintroducing biblically inspired teachings.
The shock value of the allegation assumes that the Bible has been
mainly a deterrent to science. But that assumption is false. The
Bible has provided a powerful spur to the scientific imagination.
A staple in the psychology of scientific creativity is the
word "heuristics". It refers to mindsets that facilitate problem-
solving. The person who coined "heuristics" also coined "scientist"
to name a specialised profession: William Whewell, master of Trinity
College, Cambridge, who was the leading natural theologian of the
mid-19th century.
For Whewell, one biblical teaching stood out as a heuristic for
science: that humans are created in the image and likeness of God.
This claim can be taken in two ways. One stresses the similarities,
the other the differences between humans and God. Are we junior
creators or senior creatures? Junior creators reason from
hypothetical causes to sensible effects, while senior creatures try
to infer causes from effects.
The former promises an argument from design, the latter to design.
The former fuels ambition, while the latter encourages a humility
verging on mystery.
This dual reading of the biblical claim captures the difference
between the attitudes of Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin. Newton
presented his mathematical physics as the divine plan that was
implicitly written into the Bible. He clearly thought he had got
into God's mind. In contrast, Darwin pursued the humbler path of
William Paley's analogy of nature's order being like a watch found
on a beach, which implied the existence of a watchmaker.
Unfortunately, the fossil record revealed to Darwin only a lot of
broken half-watches, nothing that could have been produced by a God
worthy of human respect. Darwin's humility remained, but his faith
disappeared.
In today's secular culture, Darwin is more readily embraced than
Newton as a scientific icon although Newton remains unquestionably
the greater scientist. The American Museum of Natural History has an
exhibit devoted to Darwin's life that includes a reconstruction of
his home. This is not surprising. Darwin's biography projects the
politically correct image of a Christian who loses his faith through
scientific inquiry. We are unlikely to see a similar exhibit for
Newton because his life teaches that the Bible can provide a sure
path to great science.
IDT's heuristic value for science education lies in the distinctly
nonconformist reading of the Bible that united Newton and the other
scientific revolutionaries of the 17th century but has been
consistently opposed by the Catholic Church. These Protestants
believed that the Bible addressed the faithful directly and
individually, without the mediation of priestly authority. Thus,
Newton read the Bible as a personal intellectual challenge
to "reverse engineer" the divine plan. The result was science's most
powerful vision, the mechanical world-view.
Nowadays mechanistic approaches to nature are criticised for
oversimplifying complex organic processes. However, they were
originally subversive for suggesting that God is just a big
mechanic, not some opaque animating force. Biology thus reduces to
divine technology. Animals - including humans - are products of
artifice in exactly the same sense as our own machines. Indeed,
mechanists have expected that technological progress would allow us
to fathom life's mysteries by stimulating our capacity to mimic
God's handiwork.
In updating the mechanical world-view IDT is less a rival theory of
life to Darwin's than a more ambitious theory of "design" that is
indifferent to the distinction between living things and inanimate
objects. This shift in scientific focus helps to explain IDT's
peculiar modes of reasoning - why, say, the biochemist Michael Behe
moves so easily between reasoning about the design of mousetraps and
cells.
Contrary to popular accounts, Darwin never provided a mechanistic
account of evolution because he lacked a credible theory of
genetics. Indeed, by the time The Origin of Species reached its 50th
birthday in 1909, Darwin's theory was itself close to extinction. It
could offer only "just so"
adaptation stories to explain species change. However, Darwinism was
saved by the rediscovery of the work of Gregor Mendel, a Catholic
monk whose statistical account of heredity was meant to capture the
range of traits that God deemed permissible in a given species. Such
knowledge would allow humans to extend their dominion over nature -
via agriculture - and thereby complete the divine plan.
The history of genetics quickly lost its theological overtones
despite retaining a name that references Genesis. Nevertheless, if
the history of genetics is treated as distinct from that of neo-
Darwinism, the "playing God" theme becomes even clearer over the
20th century, especially with advances in molecular biology and now
biotechnology. Geneticists have been always keen to speed the
processes of evolution by experimenting on species such as the fruit
fly, whose reproductive patterns might allow the equivalent of
billions of years of change to occur over, say, the six days
stipulated in Genesis.
No doubt IDT trades too much on neo-Darwinism's empirical weaknesses
as if IDT had no positive scientific vision of its own; God appears
more as a gap-filler shrouded in mystery than a principled architect
whose example we might follow. But it is the latter vision that
poses a serious challenge to Darwin's apostasy.
Steve Fuller is professor of sociology at Warwick University. He was
an expert witness in the recent Pennsylvania trial on the teaching
of IDT.
331
ukantic
Schools for the Enlightenment or epiphany?: Harry Brighouse
02/01/2006 19:09:00
Schools for the Enlightenment or epiphany?: Harry Brighouse
http://www.thes.co.uk/story.aspx?story_id=2026966
Harry Brighouse
Published: 23 December 2005
Harry Brighouse believes the opposite but would welcome faith-based
schools into the mainstream to curb such excesses of religious
zealotry
One of the many aims of the Government's new education White Paper
is to encourage and provide incentives for private schools to become
state schools. While it appears that some of the impetus is to bring
traditional secular "independent" schools under the umbrella of
state schools, the more controversial aim is to increase the number
of faith schools in the state sector. The Government promises more
Hindu, Buddhist and Christian schools; but the big change will be a
substantial increase in the numbers of Muslim schools in the state
system.
Opponents of faith schools bemoan the involvement of the state in
promoting religion. They worry particularly that Muslim schools will
bring social division and will promulgate sexist attitudes. The
gentle rise in fundamentalist forms of Christianity in schools fuels
similar worries; many of the Christian schools most likely to join
the system have evangelical and fundamentalist aspects.
Some critics argue for looking to the US school system as an
alternative model. In the US, all government-run schools are
secular; with very few and unusual exceptions, so are all government-
funded schools. Religious education is barred from the public
schools, as are prayer and worship unless they are clearly conducted
outside the curriculum and without the endorsement of school
officials.
The task of educating the next generation is a matter of public
concern whether it be conducted in private or public schools. About
12 per cent of American children attend private schools, most of
them religious schools.
These are all but unregulated, and fundamentalist schools in
particular frequently teach curriculums in science and history that
would shock most Times Higher readers. The Accelerated Christian
Education schools, for example, teach in science classes that
evolution is false and that God created the world in seven days
(literally). Their history presents a teleological account of
American history as leading to the ultimate fulfilment of God's
will, a kind of Christian version of the Stalinist approach to
history but without the intellectual subtlety. Several hundred
thousand children attend these and similar schools.
A system in which religious schools are invited to participate in
the social task of educating the next generation has more
probability of softening the edges of religious extremism and
preventing the divisions in schooling to translating into further
social divisions.
Civil servants at the Department for Education and Skills can use
the carrot of state support to encourage and confer status on those
Muslim schools whose leaders are most inclined to integrate with the
rest of British society. Once those schools are in the system, their
leaders and the families who use them will have more interaction
with the rest of society. No such mechanism is available to US
education officials; religious schools are out on their own.
The other problem with the US system is illustrated by the
intelligent design controversy. The ID movement has emerged
precisely in an environment in which religious perspectives find it
so hard to get a hearing in state schools. Intelligent design is
presented by its proponents as a non-religious theory - one that
uses "scientific" methods and considerations to infer the existence
of a non-denominational God as an explanation of those phenomena
that evolutionary theory has difficulty with.
Its emergence is a good example of the distorting effect of the
barrier between religion and government schooling. It would be a
positive good to have religious moral and theological perspectives
presented by believers and discussed in schools. Because that is out
of the question, wealthy and unscrupulous perpetrators of a
scandalous intellectual fraud are able to gain support from
Christians frustrated by their sense of being shut out of the most
important social process the government is involved with - educating
the next generation.
Keeping schools secular, in other words, does not prevent religious
influence; it simply allows religious entrepreneurs to select what
influences they want to have and what causes they want to press. The
ID debate is probably having a more corrosive effect on US
educational culture than either intelligent design theory or
creationism themselves would have.
The prevalent atmosphere of relativist toleration, and the weight
that the proponents of ID have managed to accumulate behind their
fraud, leads to teachers being unwilling to teach those aspects of
biology that invoke evolutionary theory because, to quote a local
teacher: "It is a personal matter for the students to decide what
they believe." The victory the IDers have had is not in having their
theories taught, but in undermining teachers' confidence in
scientific standards of rigour.
Islam presents a rather different set of pedagogical challenges than
American fundamentalist Christianity. In higher education in the US,
one often comes across students who are flagrantly hostile to
scientific standards of reasoning and to rigorous exploration of
humanistic issues.
They seem to believe that they are somehow entitled to have their
own viewpoint go unchallenged.
But Islam, unlike Christianity, does not have a historical strand of
hostility to the findings and standards of science; the Muslim world
was forging ahead with rational approaches to understanding our
world when Christianity was in the Middle Ages. There is no reason
to believe, for example, that increased government sponsorship of
Muslim schools will in itself diminish the supply of well-qualified
science undergraduates.
And British Muslims have little sense of entitlement; unlike some
American fundamentalist Christians, they know only too well that
their viewpoint is not the dominant one. They do not seek any sort
of "return" to hegemony.
They are often used to arguing their corner and are much more likely
to have encountered a wide range of criticisms of their moral and
religious outlook than American fundamentalists.
So I am inclined to think that the Labour Government's approach is
preferable to the US approach; it encourages integration and mutual
learning between religious and non-religious outlooks rather than
the hostility and mutual disengagement encouraged by the peculiar
American arrangements.
Harry Brighouse is professor of philosophy at the University of
Wisconsin and author of On Education, to be published in 2006 by
Routledge.
332
ukantic
Oh come all ye faithless
12/01/2006 18:28:00
Reaction to Dawkin's program on Monday night (channel 4)-
The Root Of All Evil?
Oh come all ye faithless
A new series depicts religion as dangerous bunk. But is presenter
Richard Dawkins just preaching to the converted? By Stephen Phelan
WHEN it comes to the question of its own existence, humanity is
roughly divided between three possible
answers: "Creation." "Evolution." Or, "Don't know." In competing for
the largest possible audience share, television networks now
generally cater to viewers whose beliefs fall into each of those
categories, while trying not to alienate any of them. Which makes
programmes such as The Root Of All Evil? so rare as to seem almost
revolutionary. This new two-part documentary, which begins on
Channel 4 tomorrow, asserts that there is no safe or defensible
middle ground between science and religion, its thesis being that
even the moderate followers of Islam, Judaism and Christianity are
deluded, defective and potentially dangerous.
http://www.sundayherald.com/53499
333
ukantic
New academy suspends one in ten pupils
12/01/2006 18:32:00
New academy suspends one in ten pupils
http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?
SectionID=55&ArticleID=1307735
http://tinyurl.com/8v2zo
Shocked parents to launch campaign against school's disciplinary
policies after children sent home
Paul Whitehouse
ALMOST one in 10 pupils have been suspended from a new educational
academy in the first term since it took over from a conventional
state secondary school.
One pupil has been permanently excluded from the £22m academy,
another teenager is the subject of an appeal but could also end up
excluded and a girl was sent home in a row over the uniform.
Some parents say they have been shocked by the severity of the
discipline regime at the Trinity Academy, near Doncaster, which has
replaced Thorne Grammar.
It is semi-independent and funded by the Vardy Foundation, which
finances a similar academy in Middlesbrough that has also attracted
controversy.
Dissatisfied parents have formed the Thorne and Moorends Parents and
Students Support Group and have organised a public meeting in a pub
at Moorends tomorrow evening to try to launch a campaign against the
academy's policies.
Organiser Pauline Wood said the idea snowballed out of a
conversation between unhappy parents.
Now they are trying to enlist the support of parents of children at
feeder schools in the area and want the issue to be raised
nationally.
"We need to let people know nationally so that others don't end up
in the position which we are in now," she said.
"Maybe, if we get enough people together and enough support we can
stop things from getting any worse. We believe we have already
stopped some children from being excluded, because of our presence."
Members of the National Union of Teachers are among those expected
to attend the meeting.
The boy appealing against exclusion was ejected from the school for
smoking, Ms Wood claimed, but had not been caught on school
premises. Instead, he was reported by another pupil and then
interviewed by a teacher and, although he originally denied guilt,
he eventually admitted it.
"He was told he would be treated more leniently if he admitted it,
so he did so and they excluded him. A lot of kids smoke and,
although it is wrong, it is not the worst thing they could do," she
claimed.
Academy staff had suggested to some parents that they voluntarily
withdraw their children, she claimed, but the group was advising
parents against that because it left them legally responsible for
their child's education.
"If parents choose to take their children out it looks better for
the academy because it does not go down on the figures as an
exclusion," she said.
Ms Wood's own daughter, Catherine Hodgeson, 15, spent two days out
of school as the result of a row over school uniform, which is
provided by one specific outfitter in Doncaster.
Trousers supplied to Catherine were from a different supplier
because she takes a larger size than many pupils and they have a
different appearance.
Because of that, she was accused of wearing non-uniform trousers and
was sent home, resuming her studies only two days later after the
business confirmed to the academy that her trousers were an official
item that it had supplied.
"It seems to us that they are just trying to break the spirit of the
children who attend the academy. They are not allowed to question
anything," she said.
But the Vardy Foundation, which operates the academy, is
unapologetic, insisting that suspension and exclusion rates are no
worse, and in some cases better, than the rates recorded at the old
grammar school. Many of the suspensions were for shorter periods
than expected under the grammar school regime and were concluded by
a meeting which a parent was expected to attend.
A spokeswoman said: "The academies are set up to make a difference
and raise standards. We have made no secret of the fact that when we
were chosen as sponsors we would have very high expectations of
behaviour and attendance."
The only confirmed permanent exclusion so far was of a girl who had
been found carrying a knife.
Trinity Academy is not the first Vardy Foundation-backed school to
face criticism. The exclusion rate at the similar establishment in
Middlesbrough was 10 times ahead of neighbouring schools when it
first opened.
The spokeswoman said that situation was a blip caused by the
changeover and it had now settled down.
Parents in the protest group had not approached the academy
principal and had declined an offer of a meeting, she added. "These
seem to be parents of children who have fallen foul of the rules."
10 January 2006
334
Mikey Brass
Re: New academy suspends one in ten pupils
12/01/2006 21:28:00
ukantic wrote:
> The boy appealing against exclusion was ejected from the school for
> smoking, Ms Wood claimed, but had not been caught on school
> premises.
In my former high school, the parents would have been called in and the
pupil warned but not expelled.
> Ms Wood's own daughter, Catherine Hodgeson, 15, spent two days out
> of school as the result of a row over school uniform, which is
> provided by one specific outfitter in Doncaster.
>
> Trousers supplied to Catherine were from a different supplier
> because she takes a larger size than many pupils and they have a
> different appearance.
>
> Because of that, she was accused of wearing non-uniform trousers and
> was sent home,
The girl should have got a temporary warning and given a date by which
she supplies the school with a letter from the supplier. A suspension
wasn't in order.
> "It seems to us that they are just trying to break the spirit of the
> children who attend the academy. They are not allowed to question
> anything," she said.
Part of the problem is the far stricter disciplinary routine being
imposed than is the case in the vast majority of UK schools.
As harsh as these two rules are, I actually support them to a very large
degree.
--
Best, Mikey Brass
MA in Archaeology degree, University College London
"The Antiquity of Man" http://www.antiquityofman.com
Book: "The Antiquity of Man: Artifactual, fossil and gene records explored"
- !ke e: /xarra //ke
("Diverse people unite": Motto of the South African Coat of Arms, 2002)
335
ukantic
Re: New academy suspends one in ten pupils
13/01/2006 14:58:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, Mikey Brass <mike@a...> wrote:
>
> ukantic wrote:
>
> > The boy appealing against exclusion was ejected from the school
for
> > smoking, Ms Wood claimed, but had not been caught on school
> > premises.
>
> In my former high school, the parents would have been called in
and the
> pupil warned but not expelled.
>
> > Ms Wood's own daughter, Catherine Hodgeson, 15, spent two days
out
> > of school as the result of a row over school uniform, which is
> > provided by one specific outfitter in Doncaster.
> >
> > Trousers supplied to Catherine were from a different supplier
> > because she takes a larger size than many pupils and they have a
> > different appearance.
> >
> > Because of that, she was accused of wearing non-uniform trousers
and
> > was sent home,
>
> The girl should have got a temporary warning and given a date by
which
> she supplies the school with a letter from the supplier. A
suspension
> wasn't in order.
>
> > "It seems to us that they are just trying to break the spirit of
the
> > children who attend the academy. They are not allowed to
question
> > anything," she said.
>
> Part of the problem is the far stricter disciplinary routine being
> imposed than is the case in the vast majority of UK schools.
>
> As harsh as these two rules are, I actually support them to a very
large
> degree.
There are always two sides to every story of course but it seems
more than a little strange that they have to expel so many pupils.
The government has made it very clear that children must attend
school at all times as this is in their best interest. There have
been advertising campaigns warning parents they can be fined for
taking holidays in school terms & cases of parents fined by the
courts for their children's non-attendance.
As a parent, I have received letters from the school reminding me of
the importance of ensuring my children attend regularly (they do of
course) & pointing out the consequences to a child's education if
this is not done.
Surely, given this then it is obvious that expulsion should be a
very last resort. Not only does it effect a child's education but it
could also affect the parent financially as well if they are forced
to stay off work to look after it.
Alan
336
Mikey Brass
Re: Re: New academy suspends one in ten pupils
13/01/2006 19:09:00
ukantic wrote:
> As a parent, I have received letters from the school reminding me of
> the importance of ensuring my children attend regularly (they do of
> course) & pointing out the consequences to a child's education if
> this is not done.
The mere fact you received such unnecessary letters is indicative of the
underlying problem of truancy. Sometimes it is best to shock children
and complacent parents out of their comfort zone; the parent or parents
need to ensure their son or daughter is smartly dressed, attends school
and adheres to the school rules. Self-discipline.
337
ukantic
Talk Reason Update
14/01/2006 14:11:00
Discovery Institute tries to "swift-boat" Judge Jones
By Kevin Padian and Nick Matzke
http://www.talkreason.org/articles/swift.cfm
Kevin Padian and Nick Natzke of NCSE dissect the unseemly attacks by
Discovery Institute's defenders of ID upon Judge John Jones and upon
his decision in Kitzmiller vs DASD. They conclude that the decision in
question has inflicted a devastating blow upon the ID movement and
specifically upon Discovery Institute's gang of pseudo-scientists.
Their assault upon Judge Jones's decision betrays their sense of a
crushing defeat so they desperately try to contain the damage by
impugning the judge and attempt to denigrate his decision. Padian and
Matzke assert that such tactics will not work.
published: Jan 08, 2006
338
ukantic
I''m just a normal Christian guy
14/01/2006 15:12:00
I'm just a normal Christian guy
Jan 12 2006
http://iccoventry.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100localnews/tm_objectid=
16576359&method=full&siteid=50003&headline=i-m-just-a-normal-
christian-guy-name_page.html
http://tinyurl.com/8gpnb
MILLIONAIRE Bob Edmiston is a deeply religious family man and an
incredibly successful businessman.
He's the 59-year-old entrepreneur who wants to create Coventry's
first academy school.
And it's his Christian beliefs, his business expertise - and his
money - that lie at the heart of this plan.
Mr Edmiston is paying £2million to become a city academy sponsor and
try his hand at running a Coventry secondary school - Woodway Park
School, in Woodway Park.
A father of three grown-up children, he has no teaching background
but a wealth of experience in business.
He once pitched everything he had - £6,000 - into an ailing firm,
and within 10 years had turned it into a £30million empire.
He now lives in Lapworth, near Warwick, with second wife Tracy, who
grew up in Coventry and went to Coundon Court School.
Mr Edmiston sent his son to the fee-paying Bablake School in
Coventry and his two daughters to a fee-paying school in Leamington,
which has now closed.
Mr Edmiston said: "We decided to send our children to private
schools because we didn't think the state schools in Coventry were
good enough. I think the state schools should be so good that people
would send their children there even if they could afford private
schools."
He said he wanted the best for the children of Coventry, believing
in the benefits of good education, sound discipline and
encouragement to do well - and his city academy would offer all that.
Mr Edmiston said he would be steering the ship but much of the day-
to-day running would be done by carefully chosen governors, the head
and senior managers.
It's not yet clear whether the current head, Steve Allen, would stay
on as head if the school became an academy. The job would be
advertised and he would be able to apply.
One way Mr Edmiston would influence the school is by making it a
specialist business and enterprise academy. That means pupils would
learn geography by looking at the location of the world's remaining
oil reserves, learn maths by considering how to use interest rates
to calculate the price of a loan, and try their hands at stock
market investment games.
Pupils aged 11 to 16 would have to wear a uniform, including a
school tie. In the sixth form they would be expected to wear suits
as if they were working in an office. And they would take turns to
eat formal dinners with teachers.
Parents have been told there will not only be a new building but
vastly improved computer equipment to boost learning.
The way the school would be run would also reflect the fact that Mr
Edmiston is a committed Christian, with a belief that the
description of the creation of the world in the Bible is a theory
which will one day be proved.
He would discourage teachers from having books such as the Harry
Potter series in the school library and instead encourage them to
stock authors he approves of, such as Mark Twain.
The school's sex education policy would be to teach that abstinence
is the best protection from sexually transmitted diseases.
Mr Edmiston said: "I think I'm a normal sort of individual really.
We want people to be caring and we want to create a caring, under-
standing group of kids. We want them to have a good education, to be
well-adjusted and to contribute to their country. That's what I
regard as a Christian ethos and it's the opposite of some of the
worst aspects of society."
339
oeditor
Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
14/01/2006 17:11:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, "ukantic" <ukantic@y...> wrote:
>
b
>
> MILLIONAIRE Bob Edmiston is a deeply religious family man and an
> incredibly successful businessman.
>
> He would discourage teachers from having books such as the Harry
> Potter series in the school library and instead encourage them to
> stock authors he approves of, such as Mark Twain.
>
Who wrote:
"Faith is believing something you know ain't true."
(Mark Twain / 1835-1910 / Following the Equator / 1897)
But perhaps Bob's dad tore that page out before giving it to him.
As for Reflections on Religion / 1906
("Our Bible reveals to us the character of our god with minute and
remorseless exactness... It is perhaps the most damnatory biography
that exists in print anywhere. It makes Nero an angel of light and
leading by contrast"), I don't suppose his dad gave him a copy at all
More gems can be found at: http://atheisme.free.fr/Quotes/Twain.htm
Brian
340
Andrew
Re: Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
14/01/2006 19:21:00
I'm just re-reading the Guardian article on these so-called `academies' that
was given out on this site or on Debunk Creationism recently (sorry, can't
give the link as I've downloaded it and Windows won't display what it was).
I thought at first the government were selling off state schools, which
would be scandalous enough. But apparently they turn over control of these
schools to fundamentalists and we continue to pay for them. The
fundamentalists pay two million, and we pay about twenty million plus about
another five million per year.
So not only is the education system being wrecked by these clowns, but we're
contuining to support the schools where they're allowed to promote their
ideas and appoint the staff they want.
This truly is absolutely scandalous. And it's been going on a lot longer
than I thought as well, and was stepped up at the last election.
I wonder why this scandal wasn't enough to sink Blair's bunch of fanatics at
the last election? And why nearly everyone I speak to still doesn' know
it's happening - as I didn't myself until recently.
I'll be writing to the Conservative and Liberal candidates for this
constituency. I'll post their replies here. Has anyone else done this, and
with what result?
341
Mikey Brass
Re: Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
15/01/2006 12:06:00
Andrew wrote:
>
> I'll be writing to the Conservative and Liberal candidates for this
> constituency. I'll post their replies here. Has anyone else done this, and
> with what result?
Alan, myself and Ian (formerly at DC) wrote to Labour, Tory and Libs
about two years ago now. Labour refused to understand our point, the
Tories were ambivalent, only the Libs agreed with us and tried to raise
it in the House of Commons again. But we all know how much attention
Labour pays to the Libs.
The replies were forwarded to Richard Dawkins who copied us in on his
reply to Labour. Dawkins nearly had a epileptic fit, demanding
categorical answers from Labour - which, btw, I am sure he never received.
342
ukantic
More on Trinity Academy
16/01/2006 23:36:00
Protest at harsh rules that turn children into 'zombies'
http://www.tes.co.uk/search/story/?story_id=2177614
William Stewart
Published: 06 January 2006
Parents are protesting against the strict regime at a new academy
that they claim is turning their children into "zombies".
Trinity academy, near Doncaster, is sponsored by the Emmanuel
Schools Foundation which has previously attracted controversy for
teaching creationist theory in its schools. But this time it is the
school's no-nonsense disciplinary code that is making waves.
A group of parents, whose children attended the school that Trinity
replaced in September, say they are shocked at the tough punishments
for what they see as minor offences. They have formed a support
group, which has already attracted the backing of parents of 40
pupils.
Pauline Woods, one of the founders, said: "There are 1,500 pupils in
that school but you can go in there and hear a pin drop. I think it
is very strange."
She said her daughter Catherine Hodgson had never had a detention in
the previous school. But last term the 15-year-old had received up
to two hours a week for minor offences such as speaking out in
class.
"It is as if any child that has got any sort of spirit or is
prepared to speak out about things there is being slammed down
straight away," she said.
"I think parents are afraid their children are going to turn out
like little zombies."
Janet Barwell, another founder, is appealing against her son's
permanent exclusion for being caught smoking three times, the last
occasion outside the school grounds.
She said that Chris, 15, had never been in trouble before and last
summer received an award for his good behaviour, manners, attendance
and attitude to learning.
"I am disgusted," she said. "They are there to educate not to
destroy a good lad's future over a cigarette."
Ian Brew, Trinity principal, says he makes no apology for creating
the good behaviour and order necessary to raise standards. The
figures for exclusions were in line with those for the school which
the academy had replaced, he said.
There had been only two permanent exclusions in the first term and
around 100 temporary ones "The vast majority of parents are
delighted with the discipline, order and calm which exists in the
academy," he said.
343
ukantic
Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
17/01/2006 00:03:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, Mikey Brass <mike@a...> wrote:
>
> Andrew wrote:
> >
> > I'll be writing to the Conservative and Liberal candidates for
this
> > constituency. I'll post their replies here. Has anyone else
done this, and
> > with what result?
>
> Alan, myself and Ian (formerly at DC) wrote to Labour, Tory and
Libs
> about two years ago now. Labour refused to understand our point,
the
> Tories were ambivalent, only the Libs agreed with us and tried to
raise
> it in the House of Commons again. But we all know how much
attention
> Labour pays to the Libs.
>
> The replies were forwarded to Richard Dawkins who copied us in on
his
> reply to Labour. Dawkins nearly had a epileptic fit, demanding
> categorical answers from Labour - which, btw, I am sure he never
received.
>
I think I should just point out for the benefit of other members
that the Alan referred to by Mike is Alan Wilson & not me. The
original letter seems to be no longer available on the internet; I
furled it under British letter & the furl server retained my copy:
Letter to express concern at the teaching of creationism in some UK
colleges
There has been much media discussion of the fact that creationism is
being taught in science classes in Emmanuel City Technology in
Gateshead. It is a ridiculous state of affairs that taxpayers money
is used to foster this lie on the pupils of the college. The text
below was drafted by two friends and myself for sending to the UK
government Education Department, the Shadow Education Secretary, The
MP for the constituency where the college is located and the two
main teaching unions. It was also cc'ed to Dr. Stephen Law and
Professor Richard Dawkins. Whilst we don't expect to change the
policy of the government with this single letter we hope it will add
to the existing outcry about this situation and hopefully encourage
others to also express their concerns.
The text -
For attention of -
Rt. Hon. Charles Clarke MP
Secretary of State for Education and Skills
Dear Sir,
We write to you to express our concern, and dismay, at the inclusion
of so called "creation science" in science classes in Emmanuel City
Technology College, Gateshead. We are also concerned that this ethos
will be replicated in other colleges, under the control of the same
parent body, in the near future.
Evolution is the basis upon which the modern biological sciences are
founded and affects every aspect of our lives, from the standard of
science education received to the quality of the medication issued
when we fall sick. The dangers posed by the so-called "creation
science" movement in The United States of America (USA) are well
known and documented. It was therefore distressing when it became
publicly known that Emmanuel City Technology College was encouraging
its teachers to promote "creation science" alongside evolutionary
theory in the science classrooms. While we understand and indeed
applaud Prime Minister Blair for actively promoting the mantle of
high education standards, this should not be allowed to be utilised
as a cover for sneaking pseudoscience in through the backdoor. If
ideas such as "creation science" are to be addressed in the
curriculum then their place is in Religious Education classes or
comparative theology classes. In these it can be discussed alongside
other creation stories such as those of Buddhism, Hinduism and the
numerous other religions.
In this light, we are deeply concerned at the announcements that the
group which runs Emmanuel City Technology College is planning, with
the backing of local and governmental authorities, to expand and
open up yet another school to be run along the same lines. This new
school will also be permitted to introduce creationism to its pupils
as a form of valid scientific thinking. This is not only
disingenuous and doing a grave disservice to the standard of
teaching the pupils will receive, it is a matter of grave concern
that teachers who call themselves Christians would willingly lie to
the pupils entrusted to them.
It is unacceptable for HM Government to try and sweep these events
under the carpet on pretence of the schools' otherwise fine academic
record and to pretend that creationism does not pose a threat to the
United Kingdom. While it is true to say that creation science does
not have the same following yet in the UK as it does in the USA, it
is noticeable that young-earth creationism (which posits that the
Earth is only 6000 years old) is on the rise here in these troubled
times. Such data was adequately presented by Dr Stephen Law at the
recent Darwin Day celebrations held by the British Humanist
Association. An overview of the presentations given and a transcript
of Dr Law's paper is provided online at -
<http://www.humanism.org.uk/thebha/events/previousevents.shtml>.
Given this background, it is of even graver concern that the group
co-ordinating the setup of these schools does itself have
connections with the influential American young-earth creationist
organisation "Answers in Genesis" -
<http://www.answersingenesis.org>.
We believe not only that "creation science" should not be
permissible in science classrooms but that the teaching of
evolutionary theory in the current biology curriculum should be
brought up-to-date and strengthened at all levels of schooling, from
primary through to university level.
This is the responsibility not just of the Department of Education &
Skills and the respective local educational authorities, but indeed
of the teacher unions, influential university staff members and
clergy, of all denominations, who can bring the relevant pressure to
bear upon the Government and local authorities, but also concerned
members of the general public who wish to see the children of this
country receive even higher standards of scientific education to
better enable understanding of the world around them and prepare
them adequately for the real world which awaits them.
Yours faithfully,
Mike Brass
Archaeologist
Oxford, UK
Ian Robinson (contact for correspondence)
Technical Design Consultant
Belfast, UK
Alan Wilson
Chartered Engineer
Congleton, UK
Cc to:
Lord Sainsbury of Turville, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
for Science and Innovation
Damian Green MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills
Phil Willis MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills
Rt. Hon. Joyce Quin MP, Gateshead East & Washington West
Professor Richard Dawkins, New College, University of Oxford
Dr. Stephen Law, Heythrop College, University of London
344
Mikey Brass
Re: More on Trinity Academy
17/01/2006 00:20:00
ukantic wrote:
> But last term the 15-year-old had received up
> to two hours a week for minor offences such as speaking out in
> class.
Totally unacceptable.
> There had been only two permanent exclusions in the first term and
> around 100 temporary ones
Woooohhhh and they consider these disgusting figures to be
acceptable?!?!?!? My former school, which was rightly big on proper
discipline, did not have these figures over two decades!
(I know the rough figures)
Any headmaster proud of such figures should be fired for bloody
incompetence and malpractice.
345
Mikey Brass
Re: Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
17/01/2006 00:41:00
> Mike Brass
> Archaeologist
> Oxford, UK
Thanks Alan for posting the letter.
List members please note that I no longer live in Oxford.
--
Best, Mikey Brass
MA in Archaeology degree, University College London
"The Antiquity of Man" http://www.antiquityofman.com
Book: "The Antiquity of Man: Artifactual, fossil and gene records explored"
- !ke e: /xarra //ke
("Diverse people unite": Motto of the South African Coat of Arms, 2002)
346
ukantic
Re: I''m just a normal Christian guy
18/01/2006 20:28:00
--- In BlackShadow@yahoogroups.com, "ukantic" <ukantic@y...> wrote:
>
> I'm just a normal Christian guy
>
> Jan 12 2006
>
>
http://iccoventry.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0100localnews/tm_objectid=
> 16576359&method=full&siteid=50003&headline=i-m-just-a-normal-
> christian-guy-name_page.html
>
> http://tinyurl.com/8gpnb
>
<snip article>
In my opinion Bob Edmiston is just using his concerns for the
education & welfare of children as a smokescreen for his real aims,
which are proselytising
his fundamentalists views. Take a look at this:
http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/24/252.html
SYDNEY, Jun 23 (IPS) - The Howard government has come under renewed
attacks by critics after it agreed to sell a government-owned radio
transmitter to a Christian fundamentalist group to broadcast
propaganda programmes to Asia.
Earlier this month, the government of conservative Prime Minister
John Howard announced that the powerful Radi
