"Regular Joe" Precipitates Scientific Revolution

Observers were stunned recently when an unidentified Kansas man asked a simple question that has shaken evolutionary theory to its roots. "If man comes from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?"
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The Panda's Thumb pointed out this article in The Guardian titled, "Religious right fights science for the heart of America."

Folks, I don't think this represents progress.


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Al Frisby has spent the better part of his life in rooms filled with rebellious teenagers, but the last years have been particularly trying for the high school biology teacher. He has met parents who want him to teach that God created Eve out of Adam's rib, and then then adjusted the chromosomes to make her a woman, and who insist that Noah invited dinosaurs aboard the ark. And it is getting more difficult to keep such talk out of the classroom.
"Somewhere along the line, the students have been told the theory of evolution is not valid," he said. "In the last few years, I've had students question my teaching about cell classification and genetics, and there have been a number of comments from students saying: 'Didn't God do that'?"

Would we stand for this kind of stuff in a history class? How about, for example, "[Insert favorite military conquerer] was victorious because God was on his/her side." Or maybe, "[Insert favorite minority] suffered oppression as a result of God's wrath."

In a crowded high school auditorium, biology teachers, mathematicians, a veterinarian, and a high school student made passionate speeches on the need for cold, scientific detachment, and the damage that would be done to the state's reputation and biotechnology industry if Kansas became known as a haven for creationists. They were countered by John James, who warned that the teaching of evolution led to nihilism, and to the gates of Auschwitz. "Are we producing little Kansas Nazis?" he asked.

Wait a minute, I thought God created the Nazis. Now really, little Kansas Nazis? Actually this is a little ironic since white supremacists often use the Bible as justification for their beliefs.

But the largest applause of the evening was reserved for a silver-haired gentleman in a navy blue blazer. "I have a question: if man comes from monkeys, why are there still monkeys? Why do you waste time teaching something in science class that is not scientific?" he thundered.

Well, there you go. I guess evolutionary biologists will be running with their vestigal tails between their legs. Meanwhile the gentleman in the navy blue blazer may want to ponder--if he came from Europeans (presumably), why are there still Europeans?