January 30, 2003
APE DESCENDANTS ONLY NEED APPLY:
Justice Department probes Texas Tech professor's policy: Student alleges religious discrimination (LISA FALKENBERG, Jan. 29, 2003, Associated Press)The U.S. Department of Justice is looking into the policy of a Texas Tech University biology professor who refuses to write letters of recommendation to students who don't believe in the theory of human evolution, school officials said Wednesday.Federal officials, in a Jan. 21 letter, asked the university to respond to a complaint alleging that Texas Tech and biology professor Michael Dini are discriminating on the basis of religion. [...]
Texas Tech spokeswoman Cindy Rugeley said the university stands by Dini and that his policies do not conflict with those of Texas Tech.
"A letter of recommendation is a personal matter between a professor and student and is not subject to the university control or regulation," Texas Tech Chancellor David Smith wrote in an October response to a complaint letter.
The professor may well be a flaming anus, as the comments on his website suggest, but since when do you have a right to a recommendation from anyone? It's not even clear that there'd be a cause of action if he refused all Jewish or black or gay students. We're with the Darwinist on this one. Posted by Orrin Judd at January 30, 2003 9:54 PM
I am a little puzzled that there is a complaint of discrimination being made on the basis of religion...isn't the Creation Science/Intelligent Design position that they have developed an equally valid scientific theory and are entitled to equal time in the schools on that basis? To turn around and argue that to disagree with them is religious discrimination would seem to be trying to have it both ways.
Posted by: Harry Tolen at January 31, 2003 1:26 AMI think that scince regards any
appeal to a final cause as 'religious', even if testable or quantifiable.
I hasten to add, howver, that OJ's original point is valid. A letter of recommendation is not a right.
Posted by: Bruce Cleaver at January 31, 2003 7:55 AMHarry:
He is discriminating. The question is: why can't he? He should be fired, not forced to write recommendations he doesn't believe in.
A letter of recommendation ought not be regarded as a right in any sensible legal system, but the cases flowing out of Brown v Board of Ed have more or less held that states are responsible for any discriminatory actions by employees of their schools. The passion to exterminate racism, I think, has led to bad law.
Posted by: pj at January 31, 2003 9:25 AMI find it strange that Dini's policy is being challenged in any way at all. He makes perfect sense. If he's going to be recommending students for med schools, he's essentially recommending people who'd be good physicians or medical researchers. I definitely wouldn't see a doctor who told me to pray for God to heal me. Texas Tech shouldn't fire a man for creating sane policy.
Posted by: Alan Slipp at January 31, 2003 1:01 PMHow do we make the leap from "doesn't believe in evolution" to "beleives in some form of religion."
In actual students, that's probably true, but it is not a necessary relation. How would the professor know what
a student's religious belief is? And, if he knew, why would it matter?
He is being asked to recommend a student based on the student's qualifications. The only qualification that matters is darwinism. There is no competing paradigm. There are no non-darwinian research programs, no non-darwinian methodoligies.
If you could recommend a student who opted out of darwinism, you could recommend a yellow dog.
THE OTHER HARRY has it right about arguing two ways, too.
Mr. Shipp:
Skepticism about evolution is hardly the same as believing in faith healing. Next time you see a doctor ask for an atheist and see who you get.
I live in Lubbock and write for the Texas Tech University Daily. I'm also a big fan of this Blog.
I wrote about this issue the last time it came up and will probably be weighing in again later this week.
FYI: http://www.universitydaily.net/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/10/31/3dc096c7a2ce7