December 14, 2005
EVEN LILLIAN HELLMAN WOULDN'T CUT AND TRIM (via Mike Morley):
Stephen Barr writes (On the Square, 12/13/05)
The philosopher Daniel Dennett visited us at the University of Delaware a few weeks ago and gave a public lecture entitled “Darwin, Meaning, Truth, and Morality.” I missed the talk—I was visiting my sons at Notre Dame and taking in the Notre Dame-Navy football game. Friends told me what I missed, however. Dennett claimed that Darwin had shredded the credibility of religion and was, indeed, the very “destroyer” of God. In the question session, philosophy professor Jeff Jordan made the following observation to Dennett, “If Darwinism is inherently atheistic, as you say, then obviously it can’t be taught in public schools.” “And why is that?” inquired Dennett, incredulous. “Because,” said Jordan, “the Supreme Court has held that the Constitution guarantees government neutrality between religion and irreligion.” Dennett, looking as if he’d been sucker-punched, leaned back against the wall, and said, after a few moments of silence, “clever.” After another silence, he came up with a reply: He had not meant to say that evolution logically entails atheism, merely that it undercuts religion.
Always helpful to have a theory you're just making up as you go along..... Posted by Orrin Judd at December 14, 2005 8:10 AM
Dennett should hang around this website if he wants to be better prepared for next time. Anyone who would look "sucker-punched" by that question has obviously never really debated Darwinism.
I've been harping on this issue for about a decade. Evolution is merely a tenet of Secular Humanism, which is no less a religion than Christianity.
It is preached in schools to the exclusion of all others.
It requires an ordained Preisthood to enter the Church (certification to teach)
etc. etc. Why no conservative group has sued Public Education institutions under the First Amendment is beyond me. The PR value alone makes it worth it.
Public Education today IS the establishment of Religion. If we wish to have a publically funded education system that meets Constitutional Muster, the only solution is vouchers/scholarships.
The Cleveland Case shows the way, in that they have already decided that the decision of the parent short circuits "state action".
Having a court that wipes out the current public education model and replaces it with scholarships is an "activist court" I would support.
Legislate from the bench indeed.
Posted by: Bruno at December 14, 2005 11:33 AMBruno,
Yes and their Bible is the collected works of St. John of Dewey.
Posted by: Jim in Chicago at December 14, 2005 12:05 PMJim, OJ says it starts with the Book of Decartes.
Posted by: jdkelly at December 14, 2005 12:41 PMJDK:
The rot begins there.
But its ALL in Dewey, he represents the final refinement.
Reading Dewey for the first time made everything crystal clear. Everything the liberals have been working towards since 1900 or so. The whole schebang.
Posted by: Jim in Chicago at December 14, 2005 9:38 PM