Arkansas Bill Lets Teachers Promote Creationism and Intelligent Design in Science Class

House Bill 2050, a bill just filed in the Arkansas State House, would “allow public school teachers to teach creationism and intelligent design as theories alongside the teaching of the origins of the earth and the theory of evolution.”

Which is a fancy way of saying that science teachers should be allowed to preach Christianity in addition to educating students on topics of actual value.

That’s literally all it says, in utter defiance (or complete ignorance) of the Supreme Court’s ruling against the teaching of Creationism and a federal court’s ruling against Intelligent Design — both of which were seen as illegally advancing religion instead of teaching credible science.

Besides the fact that both concepts have no basis in evidence or reason, this is also a Republican’s attempt to dismantle science education from the outside. The sponsor, State Rep. Mary Bentley, is a graduate of Harding College, a Church of Christ-affiliated school.

Notice that the bill doesn’t even bother giving lip service to the creation myths of any non-Christian religion. It’s all about advancing Christianity, which means it has nothing to do with science. At best, Bentley is just ignorant of what science is. Give her time and she’ll want to give teachers the option of promoting astrology, alchemy, and homeopathy, too.

For now, the legislation is in committee. But it’s a bill that should be stopped immediately.

(Thanks to Amy for the link)