Complex Systems
Complexity is a necessary characteristic of living organisms.
The 'intelligent design' camp exploit this complexity in an attempt to prove the existence of God, aka the 'intelligent designer'. However, their arguments, though pseudo-scientific and mostly illogical, devolve, at best, into Spinoza's God, aka Nature. At worst, 'id' arguments terminate in the obvious – they are an attempt to inveigle religious teachings into the classroom in competition with the teaching of science.
Since Americans enjoy freedom of worship and tax-subsidized churches, it is redundant to impose further religious teaching on children who will receive religious inculcation, by parents of strong religious persuasion, from the cradle onward. The children of parents who do not hold strong religious convictions cannot escape exposure, in the culture at large, to religious beliefs.
Better, in my opinion, to allow adults to decide upon religious beliefs after they have received a sound education, including education in critical thinking and the sciences. Of course this, in a wealthy nation that ranks low in educational achievement in comparison to other nations, is probably unduly optimistic. However, to permit the teaching of religion in competition to scientific theories of biological evolution would only render a lamentable educational situation worse. In other words, "let's not be more ignorant!" | 0 Guide-Glossary
The 'intelligent design' camp exploit this complexity in an attempt to prove the existence of God, aka the 'intelligent designer'. However, their arguments, though pseudo-scientific and mostly illogical, devolve, at best, into Spinoza's God, aka Nature. At worst, 'id' arguments terminate in the obvious – they are an attempt to inveigle religious teachings into the classroom in competition with the teaching of science.
Since Americans enjoy freedom of worship and tax-subsidized churches, it is redundant to impose further religious teaching on children who will receive religious inculcation, by parents of strong religious persuasion, from the cradle onward. The children of parents who do not hold strong religious convictions cannot escape exposure, in the culture at large, to religious beliefs.
Better, in my opinion, to allow adults to decide upon religious beliefs after they have received a sound education, including education in critical thinking and the sciences. Of course this, in a wealthy nation that ranks low in educational achievement in comparison to other nations, is probably unduly optimistic. However, to permit the teaching of religion in competition to scientific theories of biological evolution would only render a lamentable educational situation worse. In other words, "let's not be more ignorant!" | 0 Guide-Glossary