The Texas Battle for Academic Freedom for ID has Publicly Begun

This morning there was much discussion in Austin, Texas regarding the Academic Freedom rules. This rulling will allow teachers in public schools the freedom if they wish to teach about the controversy of Darwinian evolution. This controversy is certainly true in the realm of how life came from non life. Anika Smith posted the following on All Eyes on Texas. (January 21, 2009 8:51 AM)

We're down in Austin, covering the Texas Board of Education hearings today, and this morning's public testimony is... well.. interesting. To say that there is interest in this issue is an understatement -- the room is packed with people standing along the walls and sitting with their laptops on the floor, waiting for their turn to get a word in on this controversy.

It's interesting to hear the testimonies from both sides in the public. We just had a mother speaking in favor of keeping "strengths and weaknesses" in the science standards who shared how her children's AP biology teacher would not allow any questioning of Darwin's theory -- the Board members called it "intimidation," and that doesn't seem far off:

Here are some of the complaints of allowing teachers the freedom to discuss ID.

UT-Austin professor Arturo de Lozanne, who rather sweetly told the Board that the strengths and weaknesses language would destroy the scientific supremacy of the great state of Texas.

How is Texas declared a scientific supreme state? What are the studies which show this? Has an intelligently designed study been created to determined this? Did Texas evolve into a supreme example of scientific excellency?

Students who question evolution "fall behind their peers in admissions."

What studies declare this? What type of evolution are you talking about? observable genetic changes or make believe stories of how life came from non life.

This is an invitation for pseduoscience to harm us all.

How will we be harmed? What are the studies to show we will be harmed? How would a teacher sharing the controversy of ID for 10 minutes doom their students?