Dispatches from the Creation Wars

Buttars’ Bill Goes Down

Posted by Ed Brayton on February 27, 2006
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No, not the bill on gay straight clubs, though that would make the metaphor in the title of this post much funnier. His anti-evolution bill has been rejected by the Utah state legislature:

The Utah House of Representatives voted 46-28 to kill SB96, which cast doubt on the teaching of evolution.

“There are a number of influential legislators who believe you evolved from an ape. I didn’t,” said Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, who sponsored the bill.

He said it was “doubtful” that he would try a similar bill in the future.

Well, that’s a relief.

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Comments

  1. #1 wheatdogg
    February 27, 2006

    Seems like the IDists are swimming against the current now, given that Utah is such a leftist, secular-humanist state. This is good news.

  2. #2 Clark Goble
    February 28, 2006

    One thing to keep in mind is that LDS theology is quite different from Protestant or even Catholic theology on these matters. While there are literalists in the LDS community who thus have a lot in common with fundamentalist Protestants (thus Buttars view) there are also a lot who have significant theological problems with ID. And of course literalists ought have trouble with ID as well since ID buys into most of evolution which these literalists like Buttars reject.

    But the amount of ignorance by some of the politicians was amazing. I think once the governor came out and said he’d veto the bill that its days were numbered. But I’m still glad that this happened.

  3. #3 Anuminous
    February 28, 2006

    It is also true that even the most fundamentalist Mormons have less stake in biblical inerrancy. The Book of Mormon is the gold standard; the Bible has been through too many hands. From the LDS Articles of Faith, #8:

    “We believe the Bible to be the word of God as far as it is translated correctly; we also believe the Book of Mormon to be the word of God.”

    Emphasis mine, of course.

  4. #4 Dave S.
    February 28, 2006

    Ed says:

    No, not the bill on gay straight clubs, though that would make the metaphor in the title of this post much funnier.

    Buttars’ Bill Bombs.

    That would have been a cool title. :)

    Chris Buttars opines:

    “There are a number of influential legislators who believe you evolved from an ape. I didn’t,” said Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, who sponsored the bill.

    Unfortunately Chris, that you don’t believe it doesn’t make any difference. The evidence is clear….you did evolve from an ape.

    Better 6,000,000 years removed from apes than 6000 years removed from dirt though, right?

  5. #5 Gretchen
    February 28, 2006

    Better 6,000,000 years removed from apes than 6000 years removed from dirt

    That would look good on a t-shirt.

  6. #6 Ed Darrell
    February 28, 2006

    Ever feel like you’re in a big Whack-a-Mole game?

    Now it’s bubbling up in Nevada, in an unbelievably bizarre form: Constitutional amendment by referendum!

    Go see: http://sos.state.nv.us/nvelection/int_ref/TruthInScience.pdf

    Maybe Buttars could move to Las Vegas to improve the, uh, “odds.”