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When is it acceptable to discriminate against evolution sceptics?
The Guardian ^ | 02/16/2011 | James Hannam

Posted on 02/18/2011 8:40:28 AM PST by SeekAndFind

Dr Martin Gaskell is a respected expert on supermassive black holes and a long-serving research fellow at the University of Texas.

In 2007, Dr Martin Gaskell applied for the position of director at the new MacAdam student observatory at the University of Kentucky. He stood "breathtakingly above the other applicants in background and experience" according to the chairman of the selection panel, but he did not get the job. Unsurprisingly, he sued.

It is not controversial to state that English-born Gaskell is a devout Christian. He has also said that he is sceptical about certain aspects of evolutionary theory and that he respects creationists for being true to the Bible. However, his own views have more nuance and he probably belongs somewhere in the broad church usually labelled "theistic evolution". But the mere fact he was sympathetic towards creationists and kept an open mind about evolution appears to have disqualified him from being director of the observatory. As the chairman of the selection committee emailed afterwards, "no objective observer could possibly believe that we excluded Martin on any basis other than religion ... "

The case was about to go to trial. But, last month, the university caved in and settled out of court. Gaskell was given a payoff of $125,000, although the university refused to admit any wrong-doing. Nonetheless, this appears to be an unambiguous example of religious discrimination within the American academy. It is hard to imagine the university would have settled if they were sure of their ground.

The case has given rise to a certain amount of hand-wringing in anti-creationist circles.

(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Religion; Science; Society
KEYWORDS: astronomy; creation; evolution; intelligentdesign; kentucky; martingaskell; sceptics; scientism; uofkentucky
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To: Yo-Yo

Acceptable to me.


21 posted on 02/18/2011 9:25:35 AM PST by stormer
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To: stormer

So then why did you ask me “how do you figure?”


22 posted on 02/18/2011 9:29:02 AM PST by Yo-Yo (Is the /sarc tag really necessary?)
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To: stormer
[ In other words, you prefer not to answer the question. I understand. ]

You didnt ask one.. you didnt even imply one..

If the third human on this planet didnt come from the so-called (lets call them)Adam and Eve.. where did "IT" come from?..
There must have been a third human at some time.. thats the way numbers work.. and procreation..

ELSE.. a very large even more simplistic Yarn must be built... to explain it all..

Science fiction requires logic or whats the point..
Reality need not be logical at all.. (nothing to prove)..

23 posted on 02/18/2011 9:43:48 AM PST by hosepipe (This propaganda has been edited to include some fully orbed hyperbole....)
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To: qam1
You have the sides backwards, it's the Creationist and Global Warming Alarmist are the same.

Nope. The similarities between evolutionists and global warming fanatics exists because both positions are not merely unscientific, but are so in a fundamentally dishonest way. Let's face it - evolution, indeed the whole naturalistic, materialistic basis on which it rests, is unscientific idiocy. A sophomore chemistry student knows enough to demonstrate the complete folly of believing in the naturalistic abiogenesis theories of the evos. Wishful thinking and an inside-the-bubble social autism are what drives belief in evolution.

24 posted on 02/18/2011 10:30:51 AM PST by Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus (When evolution is outlawed, only outlaws will believe in abject nonsense.)
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To: Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus

Rich in adjectival labelings. Weak in evidence.

The core of science is observed evidence—evidence that anyone can see, from fossils to self-organizing crystals. {poof} does not meet this requirement.

For an example of how a stupid ‘scientist’ can mis-state and mislead, see:
http://www.thehumanist.org/humanist/schempp.html


25 posted on 02/18/2011 10:48:47 AM PST by saltus (God's Will be done)
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To: saltus
Rich in adjectival labelings. Weak in evidence.

You're right - evolution IS weak in evidence.

26 posted on 02/18/2011 10:53:37 AM PST by Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus (When evolution is outlawed, only outlaws will believe in abject nonsense.)
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To: hosepipe

Didn’t ask? Um... I’m afraid I did. It was the sentence in post #9 that ended with this “?”, a question mark.


27 posted on 02/18/2011 11:41:45 AM PST by stormer
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To: Yo-Yo

Geez - How do you figure that the Tennessee vs Scopes case has made it acceptable to discriminate against evolution skeptics? In my opinion, it has always been acceptable.


28 posted on 02/18/2011 11:45:28 AM PST by stormer
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To: Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus

Except it isn’t. There are several billion years worth of evidence that has been studied extensively for the last 150 years. The Theory of Evolution is as robust as a theory can be. Those who chose to ignore that fact and engage in mindless and willful ignorance while purporting to support the insidious half-baked nonsense that masquerades as science under the pseudonym intelligent design, are simply incapable of the type of critical thought needed to understand the nature of evidence and the scientific method.


29 posted on 02/18/2011 11:56:08 AM PST by stormer
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To: stormer

“The Theory of Evolution is as robust as a theory can be.”

So it is still a theory? I’m no scientist and didn’t even stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, but I thought theories are unproven.


30 posted on 02/18/2011 1:58:45 PM PST by CSM (Keeper of the "Dave Ramsey Fan" ping list. FReepmail me if you want your beeber stuned.)
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To: CSM

“...still a theory?” In science, there is nothing more profound than a theory - they are ALL unproven. Ever been sick and had a doctor give you a pill? Germ theory. Experienced an earthquake? Tectonic theory. Flown in an airplane? Gravitational theory. Theories are not best guesses - they are the culmination of information and practical knowledge that shape and articulate the way we interact with the natural world.


31 posted on 02/18/2011 7:26:48 PM PST by stormer
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