Senate Bill 393 (PDF), styled the Oklahoma Science Education Act, is the latest antievolution bill in the Sooner State. SB 393 would, if enacted, in effect encourage science teachers with idiosyncratic opinions to teach anything they pleased — proponents of creationism and climate change denial are the usual intended beneficiaries of such bills — and discourage responsible educational authorities from intervening. No scientific topics are specifically identified as controversial, but the fact that the sole sponsor of SB 393 is Josh Brecheen (R-District 6), who introduced similar legislation that directly targeted evolution in previous legislative sessions, is suggestive.Why is it suggestive? It is suggestive because every other bill that has dealt with “strengths and weaknesses” has been aimed specifically at evolution.This is a common tactic and one can only hope this one goes down in flames.
Monday, January 23, 2017
Stealth Bill in Oklahoma
Another &ldauo;strenghts and weaknesses” bill has been put forth in Oklahoma. NCSE has the story:
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I'd been hoping this sort of thing was dying out; unfortunately, even if long-term that's true, I'm sure we're about to see a flurry of these types of bills. Hopefully, the proponents become emboldened enough that they drop their guard and start making them more obvious again.
ReplyDeleteOff topic but couldn't find your email. Thought you might like to see this if you haven't: https://nutcrackerman.com/2017/01/23/interview-with-chris-stringer/
ReplyDeletePreston G.