…and this is a 
The evil bastards have gone and done it. The right-wing dbags on the Texas board of education have approved their decrepit curriculum — you know, the one that has decided that Thomas Jefferson was persona non grata, while Joe McCarthy is a true American hero. It's a tragedy for the nation, because, as we always point out, Texas clout is going to warp schoolbooks all around the country, but the worst thing is that there are 5 million kids in Texas who are now going to get a substandard education. OK, an even more substandard education.
There's not much we can do at this point, except keep up the pressure, keep making noise about this disgrace, keep working in your states to fund education and make it better. You can also support the Texas Freedom Network, which has been trying to fight the extremists.
And if you just want to vent, the Wall Street Journal has a poll. Let's destroy it.
Yes 64.9%
No 35.1%
Politics
Comments
Posted by: Anubis Bloodsin the third
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May 22, 2010 8:54 AM
Err!...Nope!
Posted by: johnlil#0a224
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May 22, 2010 8:55 AM
Done.
At least California has indicated it will not use any textbook ddsigned for use in Texas. If enough other large states join in, Texas' influence on other states' textbooks could be greatly diminished.
Posted by: jan
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May 22, 2010 8:59 AM
voted! it´s already 57 - 42
Posted by: creating trons
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May 22, 2010 9:00 AM
voted.
yes = 59.9
no = 40.0
is it too much to expect the WSJ to get the math correct, or is this close enough?
Posted by: ursulamajor
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May 22, 2010 9:01 AM
McCooch here in Virginia no doubt got huge boners
when this passed. These bagsuckers are just jonesing for another civil war.
Posted by: Rorschach
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May 22, 2010 9:02 AM
You're being generous, calling the kind of historical revisionism being introduced here just a "substandard education".
These kids will be lied to about the historical roots of their country.
Stalin would be proud.
Posted by: vanharris
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May 22, 2010 9:08 AM
Biblical values - you mean like genocide, misogyny, slavery, homophobia, as exhibited by the bible bogey?
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, Quel Dommage
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May 22, 2010 9:13 AM
So they discarded the writer of the Declaration of Independence and replaced him with someone formally censored by the Senate for bullying and unethical behavior.
Posted by: Cosmic Snark
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May 22, 2010 9:13 AM
This, quite simply, makes me sick.
Posted by: JagyrEbonwood
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May 22, 2010 9:13 AM
Guys! Vote NO for chrissake!
Yes = I agree with the theist morons.
No = I like Jefferson more than McCarthy.
Right?
And the stupid poll is flash based, so I can't vote from my iPod...grumble.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, Quel Dommage
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May 22, 2010 9:18 AM
In my post #8 I used the word "censored" when I should have used "censured."
Posted by: Carlie of the lacy, gently wafting adjectives
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May 22, 2010 9:18 AM
I can't tell from the story - did they also succeed in renaming the Atlantic Slave Trade to "Atlantic Triangular Trade"? Because that made me want to vomit.
Posted by: Tor Arne
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May 22, 2010 9:19 AM
Idiots trying to make more idiots. Fuck!
Posted by: Cosmic Snark
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May 22, 2010 9:20 AM
Carlie, they dropped the "Atlantic Triangular Trade" euphemism from what I saw in the article.
Posted by: Carlie of the lacy, gently wafting adjectives
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May 22, 2010 9:21 AM
Deprogrammed - thanks, just saw it. "But during the discussions some of the most controversial ideas were dropped - including a proposal to refer to the slave trade as the "Atlantic triangular trade".
Scrolldown is a good thing that I ought to take advantage of.
Posted by: Danish
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May 22, 2010 9:23 AM
Judging from the TFN reports, some of the more sane members of the board actually managed to save Jefferson but lost Maddison.
Posted by: Dana J
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May 22, 2010 9:29 AM
Write to your home state reps and school board and request they take measures to have standards which would reject Texas' nonsense.
Further, I would propose an educational boycott of Texas.
Posted by: ERV
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May 22, 2010 9:30 AM
Well, clearly this is all the historians fault.
If they had just framed history better...
Posted by: Citizen of the Cosmos
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May 22, 2010 9:32 AM
Why would they want to lower the standards even more? Don't they want better education for everyone? One might even ask... why do they hate America?
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler
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May 22, 2010 9:32 AM
Five million schoolkids get screwed in Texas
I saw that and wondered if there was some sort of worldwide priests' convention meeting in Dallas.
Posted by: Aquaria
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May 22, 2010 9:33 AM
I'm wondering what education policies and standards Texas had before the fucking Gablers came in and started trying to Christianize every part of education. The SBOE was started to stop those jerks...er to end the influence of, essentially, lobbyists to determine such matters.
The Gablers were already poisoning the curriculum when I was in school, but this new standard goes beyond their wildest dreams.
Posted by: Dr. I. Needtob Athe
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May 22, 2010 9:34 AM
The poll uses "ISOs", which are the Flash equivalent of cookies, to ensure that you vote only once.
There's an add-on for Firefox called BetterPrivacy that allows you to delete ISOs and vote again as many times as you like.
http://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6623/
Dr. I Needtob Athe, founder of Atheism
Posted by: Nerd of Redhead, OM
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May 22, 2010 9:37 AM
I voted from home, now I'll do so from work. Might even reboot my home modem to see if I get a different ISO.
Posted by: Fundie
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May 22, 2010 9:40 AM
Sweet, I'm packing up my family and moving to Texas.
Posted by: Thalia
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May 22, 2010 9:42 AM
Voted
No: 67.6%
Yes: 32.4%
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawk8nuEGr2AboPw3B5JlVHLruh87cSf2gi4
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May 22, 2010 9:44 AM
@24: Great! You can swap houses with my best friend, so he and his wife and kids can escape. When Texas is filled with idiot fundies and all the rational, intelligent folks get out, we can kick it out of the union and raise our collective IQ by about 50 points.
Posted by: cyan
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May 22, 2010 9:46 AM
thnx, Dr.
very useful!
Posted by: Antiochus Epiphanes
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May 22, 2010 9:50 AM
The irony is that the kind of democracy that Jefferson favored was used as a tool to wipe him from history textbooks.
I think I need a drink.
Posted by: Aquaria
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May 22, 2010 9:51 AM
I'm wondering what education policies and standards Texas had before the fucking Gablers came in and started trying to Christianize every part of education. The SBOE was started to stop those jerks...er to end the influence of, essentially, lobbyists to determine such matters.
The Gablers were already poisoning the curriculum when I was in school, but this new standard goes beyond their wildest dreams
The standards are more than Christianized; they also promote right-wing economic and political ideology, like unregulated free markets, and American exceptionalism.
We have some of the finest universities in the world, and we're preparing only morons to send to them.
Posted by: mxh
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May 22, 2010 9:57 AM
Sure we can. We could not buy any textbooks from publishers who decide to play a role in this. With college students buying textbooks every year, it'll hurt them more than losing Texas would and would send a bigger message than just making noise. We could take a page from their book and let the free market talk.
Posted by: Dr. I. Needtob Athe
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May 22, 2010 9:59 AM
I've found the fastest way to add votes is to checkmark the BetterPrivacy option of "Delete Flash cookies by timer", and set the time interval to 1 second. Then you can vote again every time you reload the page.
http://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6623/
Dr. I. Needtob Athe, founder of Atheism
(Rhymes with "Cathy-ism")
Posted by: mxh
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May 22, 2010 10:01 AM
@Aquaria, I would think that legitimate colleges will have a hard time accepting students who come out with that type of education.
Posted by: DrScottRobinson
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May 22, 2010 10:05 AM
The up-side, if there can be an up-side, is that tens of thousands of kids who are a bit older and not stupid and raised in homes that know better, are going to walk into class and Bring It. This idiotic move will stir it up among the kids themselves, and we'll see smart Texan kids raised by smart Texan parents fighting on the inside --- kids who otherwise might have been as passive and disengaged as kids are everywhere, these days.
Posted by: Aquaria
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May 22, 2010 10:05 AM
Well I'm not sure how that first version got up there unless I hit something when I set aside the laptop to answer my phone.
Anyway...
Write to your home state reps and school board and request they take measures to have standards which would reject Texas' nonsense.
Further, I would propose an educational boycott of Texas.
I've supported this idea since the science standards battle, but with the full knowledge that it could backfire into a pissing contest between states. Or that the funditards could boo- hoo about how persecuted they and (of course!) Texas are, and get the moron christard and Texas pride votes> And then they'd come up with an even loonier curriculum, just to spite 'em all.
Just so you know what the risks are.
Posted by: jason.myers8
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May 22, 2010 10:10 AM
Poll appears to be sufficiently bombed. As of posting it shows 23.6% (632 votes) yes and 76.4 (2047 votes) no. Damn
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawmqD_mcUIrSfOTlK3iGVsnEDcZmI43srbI
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May 22, 2010 10:13 AM
Server not available....
The force is strong with us...
Posted by: cyan
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May 22, 2010 10:13 AM
even more useful, Dr.
one small group of people deciding that their beliefs, which are based not on facts but hand-me-downs, and their morality from those beliefs should be the standards for millions - unbelievable arrogant ignorance
Posted by: Dr. I. Needtob Athe
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May 22, 2010 10:17 AM
Please check in here if you're using Firefox with BetterPrivacy to delete your Flash cookies and add multiple votes. I've achieved about one vote every two seconds and watched the "no" tally increase by about a thousand while the "yes" votes increased by about a half-dozen. We can do better.
Post here if you're have any problems getting it to work, and if you're using it successfully, please help others who are having trouble.
http://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6623/
Dr. I. Needtob Athe, founder of Atheism
(Rhymes with "Cathy-ism")
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawkZ6bud_2OWnH4ya1KYZ-QpvDKkqP4LTac
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May 22, 2010 10:23 AM
Petition your local school boards to accept no textbooks which are used in Texas schools for history and social studies.
Posted by: Summer Seale
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May 22, 2010 10:26 AM
I voted and we're killing the creationists in the poll now, btw! =)
And I'm not surprised that they did this. It's been coming all along. The Christian Right has been targeting this since two decades or more when they decided that taking control of school boards and local politics was the way to go to achieve their talibanesque dreams for the country. And I'm not an optimist on the outcome right now. We see it everywhere in the country. The Tea Party movement is completely based on this crap, and worse. It's not getting better.
Posted by: mxh
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May 22, 2010 10:30 AM
@#40
and its the way for us to stop them from getting there.
Posted by: DavidCT
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May 22, 2010 10:37 AM
Many of the worse offenders on the SBOE did not make it thru the primaries and won't be re-elected. These fine people are lame ducks but are immune to voters until their terms end.
It's discouraging as a new Texan to be virtually powerless to do much about the situation. There a lot more candidates running for the board now that reasonable people realize what is going on. To those that like to make fun of Texas I ask - do you know who makes up the school board in your state or even your district? I thought not.
Posted by: Anubis Bloodsin the third
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May 22, 2010 10:40 AM
Seems that the most pragmatic way to counter this travesty of reality is for other states to withdraw from text book agreements unless, or until, rationality forces the board to rethink their own utter idiocy.
Or not...in which case Texas will be identifiable but unemployed retards praising jeebus cos they got now't else to occupy themselves with.
The power to get 'real' lies elsewhere because rationality and intelligent argument obviously can not be interpreted correctly by goons in Texas.
I feel sorry for Texan kids but when summat goes that rancid and necrotic best advice is to lop it off.
Because this is beyond just a few fundamentalists being...well fundamentalist...it is a national emergency in American education.
There is no educating the board dullards either because they are totally beyond it.
They have proved time and again that they are incapable of learning and that brain dead morons vote, the fallout and consequences are fully theirs.
Maybe other states really should move on and isolate them not because their ideology is sick and twisted but the future of America should lie in rational hands and not in Texan paradise.
If that is not considered and no major moves are enacted to counteract this utter foolishness by other states then it remains the American nightmare and you are welcomed to it but do not expect sympathy from the rest of the Western world.
I think that will not happen.
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawm9TW3ClR_aW9xJ3n7s8LoweV_Xg85D4VU
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May 22, 2010 10:42 AM
#41
Then you'd better get on with it and produce some damn results my friend because it looks from this side of the pond like you are losing the battle.
With the biggest turnaround in voting for an age, a majority in both houses and more activism on the net and in the press than I've seen for twenty years, the side of reason and rationality is getting its butt kicked on the ground.
Get a damn grip!
Posted by: Emil Karlsson
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May 22, 2010 10:47 AM
83% No.
I think that the Texas plan is a bad idea.
Posted by: Antiochus Epiphanes
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May 22, 2010 10:53 AM
DrRobinson: Right. The upside is that I will raise my child to obliterate other Texans in competition for scholarship money. I think I'll buy American Sphinx and start reading it to her tonight...Although, at three, she prefers books with pictures*. I wonder if I can find a pop-up book about Jefferson. I'm also going to stock up preemptively on kids' books about Lincoln and the War of Northern Aggression.
*Lame, right? I know I know.
Posted by: jidashdee
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May 22, 2010 10:54 AM
@Emil #45
Best post ever.
Is there an opposite to the Molly Award?
Posted by: kc5tty
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May 22, 2010 10:56 AM
Voting "NO" as much as I can.
... and I thought that Oak-la-homer was backward. Guess I got it a little better than I thought here in SW OK.
steve
Posted by: youwhatnow
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May 22, 2010 11:01 AM
Currently pushing 83% No.
Good work.
Posted by: raven
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May 22, 2010 11:04 AM
Even some right wing or conservative Republicans thought the Orwellian 1984 style rewriting of history was a but much.
The choice in Texas politics often isn't between Dem. or GOP. It is between right wing and fruitbat crazy right wing.
And I have to say it. This is all about brainwashing school children in toxic fundie death cult xianity and right wing extremism.
WATCH OUT!!! The christofascist creationist kooks really are coming for your kids.
Posted by: MrFire
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May 22, 2010 11:11 AM
2030: Waves of illegal Texans caught trying to get into Mexico for decent jobs.
Posted by: Cosmic Snark
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May 22, 2010 11:15 AM
Heh. Someone's trying to re-skew the poll the opposite way.
Posted by: badgersdaughter
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May 22, 2010 11:19 AM
Get me the fuck out of Texas. Hire me, marry me, kidnap me, I don't care. Plant my ass in some country where I don't have to walk around with a fucking clipboard ticking off check boxes every time I see something around me crumble a little further into ignorance, fundamentalism, totalitarianism, anti-culture, panopticon, and wishful thinking.
Help!!
Posted by: Rorschach
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May 22, 2010 11:21 AM
As they say in 2010, your pic gets mine !!
;)
Posted by: old-toy-boy
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May 22, 2010 11:21 AM
I see that the P.Z.’s American cronies and British underlings are swinging this vote. (what is the difference between cronies and underlings? – vocabulary! :-)
Posted by: raven
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May 22, 2010 11:24 AM
I keep hearing that Texas has a lot of influence on school textbooks.
That can always change. It may have just done so.
California which is a larger market, isn't real enthusiastic about textbooks written by St. Orwell's followers.
A lot of people in other states aren't going to be too happy about being told what to lie to kids about by some extremists in Texas. They quite likely will just say no.
Posted by: Victor
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May 22, 2010 11:49 AM
On the bright side, we can now blame any problem the country has with it's "Christian roots".
Posted by: Fred
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May 22, 2010 12:05 PM
Better yet, send letters to the textbook companies that will be implementing these changes.
Posted by: BrianX
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May 22, 2010 12:12 PM
raven:
You know, you've just reminded me how similarly the Right treats Jesus and George Orwell -- much like Jesus, Mr. Blair would be horrified at how his name is used in modern politics. He was, after all, more or less a socialist, though he had no love for Soviet communism.
Posted by: Ye Olde Blacksmith
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May 22, 2010 12:16 PM
TEXAN!!
Do you know by doing such things like removing the mention of Our Founding Father will make us aggravated!.
If I`ve ever come across you I swear I will relieve myself with this burden.
RobD
Posted by: Audley Z. Darkheart OM, purveyor of candy and lies
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May 22, 2010 12:18 PM
#42
That's a pretty awful assumption, jackass.
Yes, I know who is currently on my local school board and I know who got elected earlier this month.
I also know who is on the New York Board of Regents, and although it's been a while since I was in high school, I also know their policy stances.
Stop being a dick.
Posted by: Ye Olde Blacksmith
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May 22, 2010 12:20 PM
-- or ---
I can has ALL your edumacation!
Posted by: umkomasia
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May 22, 2010 12:21 PM
So the anti big government people want the big government entangled in their religions? Color me confused.
Posted by: raven
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May 22, 2010 12:22 PM
Blame the right is correct. They think Orwell's novel 1984 is an instruction manual, not a cautionary tale.
It is all there, the memory hole, doublespeak, thoughtcrime, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength etc.. Thomas Jefferson was just made an Unperson.
At least he is famous and not forgotten. Unlike the religious prophets, he got parts of the future right.
Posted by: Ye Olde Blacksmith
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May 22, 2010 12:23 PM
Seriously,
I'm really glad I live in Helsinki, Finland now instead of back in Texas. As a Texan since birth, I am deeply ashamed. Unless things change quite dramatically, I fear (not really) that I will never return to my home state for more than a visit.
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
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May 22, 2010 12:24 PM
The poll in the WSJ was 65% for the Yeses?
This is fucked. You're fucked. Your whole country is fucked.
Leave now. Come to Canada. We've got the room. Take all the non-Biblical technology and just leave. It'll be five, ten years tops for the effects to sink in that Deuteronomy doesn't contain instructions for nuculer weapons and birds don't croak "It's a living" when you use 'em like a trash can, at which point you can all go back, sweep the dildo-bloated latex-wrapped wide-stanced heavy-luggaged corpses into a pit, and have your country again.
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawnC2QhJT0xXUAH9fbB7eNUKl24nx6yuVh4
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May 22, 2010 12:25 PM
I wrote my Illinois senator this week to ask him to sponsor legislation to ban Texas schoolbooks from our state. I urge all of you to do the same.
http://thinkprogress.org/2010/05/17/california-texas-textbooks/
Posted by: Chgo_Liz
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May 22, 2010 12:29 PM
So, lying is one of the biblical values Texas wants to teach its youngest citizens.
Kids who (mostly) have access to the internet.
I wonder how many intelligent students who have the misfortune of going to a public school in Texas are going to realize the truth and then
1) reconsider their education;
2) reconsider their religion; and
3) reconsider their location.
This could backfire on the fundies, big time.
Well....a girl can dream, right?
Posted by: PZ Myers
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May 22, 2010 12:31 PM
The problem is that they aren't Texas schoolbooks. They're produced by publishers (mostly in New York) who want to sell lots of copies, and who quietly try to make them compatible with every state's requirements.
It isn't as easy as forbidding a book titled "Texas Biology" from crossing the border. What you have to do is work on your state science standards so that they require essential material, like evolution, which will be omitted from books that meet the Texas standards.
Posted by: BrianX
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May 22, 2010 12:32 PM
raven:
You're mostly right, but Isaac Asimov savaged the book for missing a very important point -- Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot aside, the most effective totalitarian governments have been right wing (or at least right-wing authoritarian, ht Bob Altemeyer for the distinction) and have succeeded because they stroked the egos of their power base, which were all too happy to go along with what to outsiders was blatant astroturfing. Look at the teabaggers -- most of them will swear up and down that it's a grassroots movement, because they were happy to find an excuse to let their prejudices and entitlements hang out and therefore don't care that the whole thing was started by PR hacks.
Asimov's exact point was more or less that using Stalinism as a model was incredibly uncreative and Orwell could have just as effectively used a fascist government. Of course, we now have "V for Vendetta" and "A Handmaid's Tale" to fill in the blanks that Asimov identified, so maybe the 1984 point is moot, but I will agree that the security state so beloved of the right is one thing that Orwell got right, at least as much as it gives certain elements of law enforcement happy wet dreams.
Posted by: johnsma11berries
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May 22, 2010 12:34 PM
On the one hand, altering the textbooks so that children will be more receptive to your worldview is pretty much a tacit admission that you realize it can't stand up on its own in the free marketplace of ideas.
On the other hand, to be honest, I can't really see how gaming a poll by technological means to produce the result you want is any different.
Posted by: Rey Fox, Bird Caller Guy
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May 22, 2010 12:40 PM
And this is news on the BBC, so apparently we're being humiliated internationally again.
Posted by: tom.perrine.myopenid.com
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May 22, 2010 12:41 PM
The Austin tech boom was one of the few bright lights in Texas. I would certainly reconsider moving (or starting) a company to (in) Texas. How can you hire smart people who will also want their kids to have a great education?
No thanks. California or Research Triangle will continue to get even more high-tech jobs and the Austin boom may fade away...
Posted by: Cosmic Snark
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May 22, 2010 12:43 PM
johnsma11berries: producing the result we want isn't the purpose of gaming the poll. The purpose is to show just how easily these online polls can be manipulated, and therefore show how worthless they are.
It's also a way to blow off steam, as PZ implied in his post.
Posted by: a.human.ape
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May 22, 2010 12:45 PM
The Wall Street Journal poll has gone from 35.1% NO to 83.9% NO. Thank goodness PZ's minions can fix these things.
Sorry, this is off-topic but it's also about something in the Wall Street Journal, and it's very interesting:
Humans: Why They Triumphed
Posted by: badgersdaughter
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May 22, 2010 1:02 PM
Sure thing, Rorschach. What do you want me to draw? (rimshot)
;)
Posted by: Fred
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May 22, 2010 1:10 PM
The problem is that they aren't Texas schoolbooks. They're produced by publishers (mostly in New York) who want to sell lots of copies, and who quietly try to make them compatible with every state's requirements.
Which is why I suggested letting the publishers hear your voices. There's a reason why they're doing it quietly. Although they're out to make a buck, they also pride themselves on being at the forefront of education. Believe me, I work for a major textbook company, and this sort of thing is an embarrassment to a lot of us. Unfortunately, most of us aren't in a position to put our necks on the line, especially in this economy. You, on the other hand...
Posted by: James F
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May 22, 2010 1:13 PM
Don't forget that the Texas SBOE elections are coming up in November, and even if you're not in Texas you can support a campaign. In the Republican primaries, the Religious Right had two major defeats: former chair Don McLeroy lost by a razor-thin margin to Thomas Ratliff (since there is no Democrat running, Ratliff has effectively won the election), and Cynthia Dunbar's hand-picked would-be successor Brian Russell lost to Marsha Farney.
The single biggest game change in the general election would be if Rebecca Bell-Metereau defeats Ken Mercer, who thinks evolution is wrong because no one has seen a "dog-cat" or a "cat-rat." (Seriously). Like PZ said, support TFN, too, they will keep you properly updated.
Posted by: Fred
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May 22, 2010 1:25 PM
The Credo Action Network already has a letter writing campaign to publishers going:
http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/textbooks/?rc=votinghome
Posted by: r3v
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May 22, 2010 1:28 PM
YES = 14.7%
NO = 85.3%
I also think we should voice our opinions to the publishers. We should not stop there though. Contact our local and state school boards, depts of education, etc. Make it known that we don't want these false history books pushed on other children.
I almost wish I wasn't an atheist... because if I wasn't, I'd be praying for Texas schoolkids right about now.
Posted by: jidashdee
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May 22, 2010 1:51 PM
The fact that the newer parts of this curriculum was assembled out of whole cloth and the finest of available cow pies by an elected board of locally grown fools brought this Mencken quote to mind:
"Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance."
If this feedback system from the Texas schools to the board is allowed to continue for another thirty or so years, get ready for a new section in the texts, "Rush Limbaugh: Messiah, Prophet, or Simply a Hero?" Of course, my answer would be "Hero to the Simple."
Posted by: UXO
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May 22, 2010 1:52 PM
I'm Canadian (eh) but have a couple of cousins who live in Texas. I'm horrified by the implications for their kids' educations.
Voted. Now 85.9% / 6385 for "No".
Posted by: tom.curran422
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May 22, 2010 2:02 PM
This makes me physically sick. Guess I'm putting off lunch for a few hours while I rant at rave at my dog about how stupid Texans are.
Posted by: ogremkv
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May 22, 2010 2:05 PM
I'll say what I said on Panda's Thumb:
Honestly, in spite of the huge amounts of idiocy at the state level in Texas, I don’t see much happening. Textbook adoptions for History are in 2012. There’s not much chance that any textbook publishers are going to rewrite books, supplementary materials, curriculum notes, etc. in less than 18 months (the adoption process starts in Jan-Feb and books are generally chosen in May). The next adoption wouldn’t be until at least 2020 (maybe even 2021).
I know a lot of Texas history teachers and they’re going to pretty much ignore the things that aren’t correct. Unlike some subjects, there’s just not as much controversy in Social Studies (at least according to those whose opinions I respect). So, they’ll pretty much teach history as reality versus the made up reality of the SBOE ‘consultants’.
Finally, I also know the people and process that write the tests that these students will take. There’s this department called ‘Fact Check’ and they are pretty serious. If there’s not a peer-reviewed scholarly article confirming a fact, then it’ll be sent back. The teachers are also involved in the process of the test questions and I don’t think they’ll let things just slide by. Also, it takes at least 24 months for test questions to go from first write to on an operational test.
So, While it makes my home state look like idiots (sigh), I really don’t think much will come of this. Hopefully, by the time, changes have a chance to be changed, we will have a new board that knows what the hell it’s talking about. If not, I’ll just move to Iowa.
BTW: I was a Texas science teacher for 5 years and involved in the Biology adoption in 2003 (I think). Presently I work for the company that writes the TAKS, I don’t deal with the Texas project, but I am familiar with people and processes that are involved.
Posted by: monado
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May 22, 2010 2:21 PM
Sideways, with a textbook?
It might not be as bad as you think except for children that are kept deliberately isolated. My high-school curriculum had no evolution, just a menagerie: "this is a fish, this is an amphibian, this is a reptile" etc.
But I never noticed. We had IIRC four TV stations, a few radio stations, and family books, which included books on evolution, science, and the evolution of mankind. We had a public library where I could check out Ashley Montagu's book about the myth of race. I never even noticed what I wasn't getting in school. With educational TV channels and the Internet, any child should get SOME exposure to real science and nature.
Posted by: Daz
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May 22, 2010 2:28 PM
Being Canadian the Texas textbooks won't directly affect me. But if I was from a southern state I would sure be lobbying my state representatives to pressure the school boards to boycott those texts. There must be organized groups set up for this...
Posted by: monado
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May 22, 2010 2:32 PM
In Canada, to be "Politically Sensitive" the educational standards allowed Quebec's textbooks to say that Quebec contributed more money to Canada than it received back, a straight-up lie. Several years ago, Quebec's accumulated hurt pride and sense that they weren't getting anything for their membership in Confederation almost resulted in their seceding from the country, which would have resulted in Balkanization and economic disaster all 'round.
Letting lies go unchallenged is wrong.
Posted by: Christopher
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May 22, 2010 2:56 PM
Will we see a similar situation where many employers and colleges do not wish to hire those who had a Texas public school education, much like they have been with homeschooled children?
There are requirements for people to serve as judges, sheriffs and so forth. Why can't people understand there needs to be a requirement for people to serve on school boards? A dentist choosing what's best for history books? It was meant to end in disaster.
Posted by: Meathead
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May 22, 2010 3:01 PM
Brownian wrote:
This is fucked. You're fucked. Your whole country is fucked.
Leave now. Come to Canada. We've got the room. Take all the non-Biblical technology and just leave. It'll be five, ten years tops for the effects to sink in that Deuteronomy doesn't contain instructions for nuculer weapons and birds don't croak "It's a living" when you use 'em like a trash can, at which point you can all go back, sweep the dildo-bloated latex-wrapped wide-stanced heavy-luggaged corpses into a pit, and have your country again.
The real problem is that Texas is an oil-ocracy. It's the same as many states in the Middle East really. The elite that controls the oil don't need or want an educated populace. They prefer a religious, illiterate one in fact. Just switch Jebus for Allah and you get the picture.
Of course this latest dick move is just another example of how the red parts of the country are deliberately making themselves unable to ever have a truly modern society or exist in peace with the coastal regions that depend on human rather than geological resources.
Posted by: raven
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May 22, 2010 3:10 PM
Probably not. But maybe.
A lot of work these days in the US is done by "knowledge workers", well educated specialists.
If businesses can't get those workers somewhere, they won't locate there. There is a reason why Silicon Valley and the biotech industry is in California and Microsoft is in Washington.
I wouldn't locate a business in a place like Texas except if there was lots of low paid, unskilled labor and that was what was needed. Good luck competing with the Chinese and Indonesians in a race to the bottom.
Posted by: Meathead
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May 22, 2010 3:22 PM
My comment in #89 actually only begins at "The real problem is..." due to a blockquote fail. Sorry.
Posted by: raven
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May 22, 2010 3:34 PM
That will work until the oil runs out. It isn't called a fossil fuel for nothing.
I've long considered the whole area but mostly Texas and Louisiana as national sacrifice areas.
They willingly destroy their land and ecology so that we can drive around in our cars. Louisiana is paying the steepest price these days. Their coastline is eroding away and the lower part is sinking into the ocean. They all but lost New Orleans to the hurricane and now this massive oil spill. Quite the national sacrifice.
Posted by: Pyre
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May 22, 2010 3:34 PM
Monado #87: "Letting lies go unchallenged is wrong."
Or, as Yevgeny Yevtushenko wrote:
Posted by: Numad
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May 22, 2010 3:35 PM
"In Canada, to be "Politically Sensitive" the educational standards allowed Quebec's textbooks to say that Quebec contributed more money to Canada than it received back, a straight-up lie. Several years ago, Quebec's accumulated hurt pride and sense that they weren't getting anything for their membership in Confederation almost resulted in their seceding from the country, which would have resulted in Balkanization and economic disaster all 'round. "
This suggestion of a cause and effect relationship between textbooks and the Indepence movement in Quebec is also a straight-up lie.
The apocalyptic prediction isn't far off, either.
Posted by: ogremkv
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May 22, 2010 3:38 PM
@ raven (90)
Except for the fact that the new silicon valley is in Austin (the one decent part of Texas). Dell, Freescale semiconductor, IBM all have major (are or entirely located) presences in Austin. Samsung has a major factor in the area as does (I believe Siemens). Don't forget AMD.
We have two Nobel laureates in the UT Physics department.
That being said, the rest of the state is logging, petrochemicals, and farming/ranching (two of which are not idiot industries).
Just trying to defend something of Texas' dignity.
Posted by: Nepenthe
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May 22, 2010 3:50 PM
@Raven 92
Every religion needs a sacrificial lamb, no? It seems like American jingoism has Louisiana bleeding on the altar.
Posted by: Andrew Hall
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May 22, 2010 4:00 PM
I was on Statemaster.com and Texas ranks 24th on the Best Educated list. Vermont is #1. I say we let Vermont determine the standards for text books.
http://laughinginpurgatory.blogspot.com/
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
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May 22, 2010 4:06 PM
Oh, I know: I live in Alberta. We've had the same conservative government in power continuously since 1971. We've even got our very own Creation Museum.
The irony that the most bible-lovin' areas of both countries depend on oil that requires old-Earth geology to find is unsurprisingly lost on the dumbshits that make up a significant proportion of my neighbours. Then again, the oil companies only need a handful of geologists to do their prospecting; but they do need a shitload of young, dumb, and full of cum (see: Prostitution in Fort McMurray) rig-pigs to get the oil out of the ground.
If it weren't for the anti-Arab bigotry and the occasional rainfall, this place could be Yemen.
Posted by: grudgedk
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May 22, 2010 4:13 PM
I don't see what the big deal is. So in 50 years the US (or at least large parts of it) are going to be the intellectual equivalent of Saudi Arabia. The world can live with that, proper progress will simply happen in Europe and Asia instead.
Look on the bright side! At least it'll solve all the illegal immigration issues America is (apparently) facing, as there will be no incentive for anyone to move to the US, as they will have to work for the same shitty wages as white trash American workers.
Posted by: Christopher
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May 22, 2010 4:24 PM
Our intellectuality is sagging (we lag behind many countries in education), and now our economy is getting worse, competitively.
http://images.businessweek.com/ss/10/05/0519_most_competitive_countries_2010/4.htm
We're now #3 in the world for competitive economies, behind Singapore and Hong Kong. Australia and Taiwan are rising fast, too. Malaysia just broke into the top ten.
Posted by: James F
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May 22, 2010 4:36 PM
Meathead #89 wrote:
+1,000 Pac-Man 30th anniversary points
grudgedk #99 wrote:
Plus, a Christian theocracy with nuclear weapons would offset Pakistan! I'm confident nothing bad would happen.
Seriously, though, the theocrats can have my beloved country when the pry the Pipetman from my cold, dead hands.
Posted by: Nebula99
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May 22, 2010 4:49 PM
Unfortunately, I'm too patriotic to just take a deep breath and deal with this. If I thought Europe would be the heir to the US, that would be fine, but it looks like its going to be China, and ceding world power to a country that doesn't even have democracy & free speech is too much for me to accept. I want America to stay in power, because much as I mistrust it, I mistrust the other competitors even more.
Posted by: cjmackay01
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May 22, 2010 6:07 PM
Demonstrates just how patient they are prepared to be. They've been building their theocracy since the 1920's; I wonder how far they've got in planting their cells?
Posted by: Alverant
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May 22, 2010 6:11 PM
Did anyone else notice the WSJ poll never mentioned any biblical values that was used to found this country?
Posted by: James F
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May 22, 2010 6:11 PM
cjmackay01 #103,
Well, they've got Liberty University and Regent University so far. Dens of willful ignorance.
Posted by: abb3w
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May 22, 2010 6:17 PM
Danish: Judging from the TFN reports, some of the more sane members of the board actually managed to save Jefferson but lost Maddison.
"Madison". Bears repeating, if only to count the small blessings honestly.
The loss of Madison is likely non-trivial, as fundies can wave their hands, point to the references to "Nature's God" in the Declaration, ignore the Virginia Statute as state action, and then dismiss "Separation of Church and State" from the Danbury Baptist letter by pointing out Jefferson was in France while the Constitution and the Bill Of Rights were drafted.
Still, as an old UVA nevergrad, I'm glad TJ is back in.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 22, 2010 6:28 PM
Unfortunately, I'm too patriotic to just take a deep breath and deal with this. If I thought Europe would be the heir to the US, that would be fine, but it looks like its going to be China, and ceding world power to a country that doesn't even have democracy & free speech is too much for me to accept. I want America to stay in power, because much as I mistrust it, I mistrust the other competitors even more.
hey, why not let the Kiwis rule the world?
New Zealand is the land of hobbits and elves, after all.
Posted by: Xplodyncow
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May 22, 2010 6:35 PM
Finally, Texas has taken an important step in securing its borders, stemming the tide of "facts" from the reality-based community. Take that, Arizona.
Posted by: Rey Fox, Bird Caller Guy
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May 22, 2010 6:40 PM
"If it weren't for the anti-Arab bigotry and the occasional rainfall, this place could be Yemen."
Don't forget the testicle-clenching cold. And the tuques.
Posted by: chaseacross
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May 22, 2010 6:46 PM
This is a sign of distress on the part of these people. Movement conservatives are always threatened by the pernicious influence of rational thought and sophistication. This is a desperate attempt to further insulate their poor progeny from the outside world. And of course, it will ultimately fail. Whig history may have fallen out of fashion, but I agree with Stephen Colbert: history has a liberal bias. The trend of the country, and of the world, is towards freedom and reason. This is not because, as conservatives would believe, America and American values are divinely inspired or sanctioned. Rather, it's because freedom and reason work, and the society that cultivates a free-thinking population will reap the material benefits. If Texas wants to cripple its schoolchildren, they wil suffer for it. Thankfully modern textbook buying practices have dramatically reduced the influence of Texas on the the textbook buying of other states. This decision will only further diminish that influence.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 22, 2010 6:50 PM
Finally, Texas has taken an important step in securing its borders, stemming the tide of "facts" from the reality-based community. Take that, Arizona.
ROFLMAO
that one made my morning.
thanks
Posted by: 'Tis Himself, Quel Dommage
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May 22, 2010 7:20 PM
And orcs.
Posted by: jcmartz.myopenid.com
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May 22, 2010 7:34 PM
Now we're fucked.
Not directly related to this post, but it seems appropiate: http://www.calamitiesofnature.com/archive/377.jpg
Posted by: Gordy
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May 22, 2010 7:47 PM
Let me guess: Nineteen Eighty Four's not on the reading list for English classes, right? The Ministry of Truth is way too close to home for them ;)
Posted by: Meathead
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May 22, 2010 8:10 PM
@101: I'd love to take credit for the comment about the bird but actually Brownian wrote that. My blockquote fail made it look like part of my comment which only starts at "The real problem is...".
Posted by: skeptifem
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May 22, 2010 8:16 PM
Uh, I hate to break it to everyone, but the the rest of our kids are being lied to with the way that history is taught now. The revisions made to our history in mainstream textbooks are just as offensive as the ones texans are trying to make. Where is the outrage at the revisionist history that we all learned in school??
Posted by: Shplane, some shit in french
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May 22, 2010 8:25 PM
Motherfucking god fucking damn fucking fuck shit dicks fuck.
Doesn't this violate some sort of Separation of Church and State kind of thing? I mean, surely there's SOMETHING in our laws somewhere that says they can't pull this shit.
If not, there needs to be.
Posted by: jidashdee
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May 22, 2010 8:27 PM
@Nubula
This might just be because I'm into the sauce already and feeling a tad reflective and forgiving, but...
I wouldn't worry too much about China. I think the communists will find prosperity much harder to deal with than adversity. They've got a growing middle class and a healthy economy. Before long there will be people with too much time on their hands, and that leads to a few things, one of which is thinking, and thinking leads to a desire for more freedom. Their Thomas Paine should be along directly.
Posted by: Meathead
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May 22, 2010 9:05 PM
@#111: There does seem to be a sort of a "competition" going on lately in the Red States to see who can be the most reactionary. Maybe one will step up and bring back debtor's prisons or workhouses.
Posted by: Meggle
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May 22, 2010 9:06 PM
I love the way the USA cripples the education of its children, I see it as a competitive advantage for our country.
Posted by: skeptifem
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May 22, 2010 9:43 PM
I grew up with normal school books.
I went through every black history month without knowing who Malcom X was. I knew who MLK was and that was it, really. I didn't learn that te FBI monitored these 'dangerous' people. Any outrage?? Anyone??
The only womens rights organizers I learned about were a few suffragettes (during womens history month, naturally). The 60's and 70's did not seem to exist outside of things like the vietnam war and peace protests. The ideas of the people in the protests were not discussed at all.
I was in high school when hijackers flew planes into our country, and I never learned anything about our history in the middle east from school. I had to go look it up myself. What the heck is history and school for if it isn't to give people the information they need to understand our current world?? The media certainly didn't provide people with this either.
I learned about the killing of president kennedy, without any word whatsoever about the death he was responsible for, and the programs that he oversaw that actively oppressed americans. I learned about the cuban missile crisis as the original story went, not how it is in light of the declassified information. I didn't learn what we did to cubans during his presidency.
Actually, the racist imperialism of many of our presidents are left out of history books. The fact that our country has long thought that they have some kind of ownership over our hemisphere (and took it out on latin america) was kept from me, even though it is a LONG standing theme.
I learned about Watergate and how free and great our press is, but not COINTELPRO, which was found out around the same time, that showed how the FBI could murder and harass citizens for wanting civil rights, and that 3 different presidencies allowed this to go on.
I learned about the industrial revolution and how great it was, but not about how bloody and horrible the labor rights struggle in our country was and how many people died during that period of time. I knew nothing about political positions outside of conservative and liberal (meaning democrats, republicans, and libertarians). The anarchists and communists of american history were banished from my books.
I learned about the founding fathers and how great they were. It wasn't until later that I read what some of them had to say about forming government and found out that they were a bunch of elitist (the real kind) jerks, and that a country where the richest whitest dudes run everything was revolutionary at the time, but not something we should get teary eyed over. As a woman I don't know how I am expected to admire those men. I also didn't think about how the slave that thomas jefferson slept with didn't have the right to say no to his advances, and that women in general didn't have that right until the 1970's. I was completely ignorant of the history of women and the legacy of oppression that exists for me. I had to discover it the hard way, and it was very painful.
I learned about hitler, pol pot, stalin, and other murderers that are worthy of contempt. I never learned the crimes of our country, like our support of slaughter in east timor or several latin american countries (to name a small sample).
I never learned that communists used capitalism on their people the same way that our politicians communism- to scare people, to make them silent. I learned about how bad all the propaganda was in those countries, but never about the origins of the PR industry and american contributions to it.
I learned how our government works on a basic level, but the influence of major businesses was not discussed. The way that funding predicts winners was never told to me in school. Alternative forms of government were never discussed. We are "the best". Capitalism was never critiqued at any point in time either.
I never learned all the activities that the CIA are responsible for, and how it is basically terrorism. I never learned that our country was convicted of terrorism against nicauraga in the world court. I never learned that america could be a force for evil at all, I learned that our faults were either because of a few bad apples, or because everyone was racist/sexist at the time, or because we meant really well but were misguided. I was absolutely lied to in that respect every single time.
These are, in my opinion, absolutely the most pressing issues for youth to learn of. These are things that we, as americans, can have some effect on and can prevent if we know about what our country is up to. There is an actual toll on others for our ignorance, for our complacency in state violence.
Where is your outrage for the way things are without texas adding to the pile? You should have some if you want to be consistent. The truth is that the official thruth- which people high up on the ladder get to decide for the rest of us- is never going to undermine itself. All of the references to 1984 are kind of hilarious in the context of wanting to revert history lessons to what I was taught. As if so many important things haven't been doomed to the memory hole when it comes to acceptable text book writing for the rest of us.
Posted by: 朴競花/박경화 (Gyeong Hwa)
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May 22, 2010 9:50 PM
Consistant with what the US did in Mỹ Lai, Wounded Knee, and No Gun Ri. But I'm sure that's not the "biblical value" that they wanted to hear.
Posted by: Chgo_Liz
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May 22, 2010 9:56 PM
The whole thing makes sense, in a way.
If Texas ensures that its own citizens are unable to get into college (or for the few who do manage it, they are seriously disadvantaged by having to do extensive remedial study to catch up with what all the other students have been learning since age 5 or 6), then these ignorant young adults will only be able to work at the sorts of jobs that illegal aliens currently do.
So, this move by the state board of "education" is simply a way to make their state less enticing to illegal immigrants, because local yokels will be filling all the dead-end jobs.
It's cheaper than building a wall, and more effective.
Posted by: TimKO,,.,,
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May 22, 2010 9:59 PM
Textbooks (the kind made from atoms) will be a thing of the past in a matter of years anyway.
Posted by: Dagobert
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May 22, 2010 10:08 PM
I wonder how this will affect the SAT subject test scores (especially for history). Parents will have to hire tutors, I suppose.
Posted by: Jadehawk, cascadeuse féministe
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May 22, 2010 10:23 PM
well, since Lynna didn't take me up on the offer, I still have a brother and a cousin tosell off to the highest biddermarry off. interested?Posted by: Steven Dunlap
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May 22, 2010 10:25 PM
@70 BrianX
We're looking at 1984 with "20-20 hindsight." in 1949 Fascism had just fallen (or so one might think at the time). The influence of the Soviet Union was on the rise (it would peak in the late 50s). Eric Blair remained a dedicated socialist all his life. FWIW he based the work of his main character and the "Ministry of Truth" on his experiences working for the BBC during the war, witnessing the wartime censorship. He grew increasingly anti-communist especially after the Spanish Civil War leading to his writing a cautionary tale in support of his socialist ideals.
It's very sad that he died before the events played out. I would have loved to have read Orwell on Joe McCarthy, Castro, Richard Nixon and Vietnam as well as lots of other persons and events. Bear in mind he died in Jan. 1950 at the age of 46. The rise of right-wing regimes in the 1950s, the former colonies obtaining independence and even the Korean War took all place after his death. Just imagine what he could have written had he lived even 20 more years.
More to the point: the Texas SBOE and its assault on reality include the lovely euphemism "Atlantic Triangle Trade." Unfortunately I can not find my copy of 1984 and so can not quote directly from his essay about language in the appendix. I recall he included euphemism as a form of lying. Even if this re-wording fails just the fact that they tried it speaks volumes about their character and (lack of) integrity.
Posted by: https://me.yahoo.com/a/aQ6t7I54sNBHV6efJl3uHsmfQPg-#b9f18
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May 22, 2010 10:34 PM
As of 9:27 pm
Votes Percent
Yes 1,134 9.6%
No 106,201 90.4%
(That me.yahoo thing really sucks. I'm going to change it something more attractive.)
Posted by: paul.henri.thiry
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May 22, 2010 10:38 PM
Science, social studies, teaching to the test, inadequate state funding...there's a reason our child is not attending public school. And we live in a little bastion of blue.
The 2011 legislative session will, I believe, be a troubling one for public education in Texas. There's talk of an 18 billion dollar deficit, the franchise tax isn't raising as much as projected, and, well, Texans Republicans seem to hate public educationalmost more than they hate taxes.
Posted by: Mattir-ritated
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May 22, 2010 11:24 PM
Colleges in general don't discriminate against homeschooled kids per se, they discriminate against kids who've been educated with science and history texts based on religious propaganda. When homeschooled kids apply to college, they generally submit descriptions of coursework done, texts read, etc., and many colleges refuse to accept work done with creationist science texts. I suspect better colleges would also be loathe to accept kids from Father God's Creationist Academy, even if it was a state-accredited high school.
I don't live in Texas, but the comments have convinced me to find out who my state and county Board of Ed members are asap.
Posted by: Orange Utan, Librarian of Death
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May 23, 2010 12:48 AM
@me.yahoo
Bobby Tables
Posted by: iDeclare
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May 23, 2010 2:38 AM
Thanks, Texas, for giving more ammunition to those of us who are atheists and homeschool.
Posted by: monado
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May 23, 2010 2:55 AM
Numad, nope. It might be a mistake but not a lie, I think it was a contributing factor. And have you noticed what happens to the economies of countries that split up? The Quebec dairy farmers thought we'd go on buying their overpriced milk, which is a subsidy of farmers on the backs of consumers and in this case basically yet another bribe to stay in the country.
Posted by: Numad
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May 23, 2010 3:14 AM
Monado,
"I think it was a contributing factor."
I know you do. It is a wonderfully self serving notion, after all.
"And have you noticed what happens to the economies of countries that split up?"
Various things, in the long run, actually. There's some irony, to me, that you denounce these things as "bribes," while you trot out visions of Apocalypse, much like those egineered and promoted (at great public cost) at the time. That would be "the stick," which I guess is a more palatable way of subverting democracy.
But this is all hardly on topic, and a subject rehashed so many times for me that it only seems like a waste of time. I'll just step out.
"It might be a mistake but not a lie[...]"
Really, an error can be indistinguishable from a lie. See the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq for details.
Posted by: defides
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May 23, 2010 3:22 AM
I've said it before.
You Texans - you are going to have to pull your shit together and vote these wingnuts out of office.
As for the rest of you Americans - you need to have a serious word with your publishers. If they are going to produce one set of textbooks that comply with the Stupid being promulgated by fools from only one State, then it is the publishers who are causing the problem for the other states, not Texas.
Texas has half the population of England, but we get our own textbooks from our publishers. What's going on?
Posted by: BdN
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May 23, 2010 4:37 AM
Damn! Hadn't noticed the National Post had changed its layout...
Posted by: paulmurray
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May 23, 2010 5:08 AM
"Five million schoolkids get screwed in Texas"
Jesus - I didn't know the catholic church had that many priests.
Posted by: One Furious Llama
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May 23, 2010 5:50 AM
@137 LOL, nice one Paul.
However, the poll seems broken, I can't vote... says it's not available at the moment.
I guess somebody caught on and is now furiously trying to fix it. Shame.
Posted by: Rorschach
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May 23, 2010 5:58 AM
The comic is well done ! One thing that always irks me with this whole affair is the argument that those evil science journalists should have had better knowledge of the matter, to realise that the study was flawed.
Well, holy FSM, it shouldn't take a science journalist to know that data on 12 individuals are anecdotes, and no friggin' study in the first place !
I didn't know btw that the kids were subjected to colonoscopies and lumbar punctures, and that the ethics committee wsnt aware of this, I'm sure there is potential for a lawsuit here somewhere.
Posted by: Rorschach
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May 23, 2010 6:02 AM
Argh, wrong thread sorry......
Posted by: Rorschach
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May 23, 2010 6:29 AM
Here is Colbert's take on the whole mess :
I's on Edjukashun
Posted by: dutchdoc
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May 23, 2010 10:17 AM
Can't we start a movement that gets hotels to go along with placing books into every hotel room, that explain all the stuff that's missing from these textbooks?
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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May 23, 2010 11:02 AM
Er, not really. It would be unconstitutional if they were mandating sectarian religious instruction. But while the First Amendment protects religious freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly, it doesn't require schools to teach accurate history. As long as the history taught doesn't amount to an "establishment of religion" - which this doesn't - it's perfectly constitutional to lie to children.
This is why Kitzmiller v Dover turned on whether or not ID was essentially religious in character. It's beyond doubt that ID is bad science, but that in itself doesn't make it unconstitutional. The legislature could mandate all schools to teach that photosynthesis is caused by exploding penguins, and this would be perfectly constitutional. Rather, it only becomes the concern of the courts if the law amounts to a method of getting sectarian religious teaching into schools by the back door.
There is a reason for this. The courts would be an improper forum for deciding what should and shouldn't be on the curriculum; judges are not qualified to make that decision. They can determine whether or not a given curriculum amounts to a stealth establishment of religion, and must rule it unconstitutional if it does; but if they conclude that it doesn't, they are not entitled to rule a school curriculum unconstitutional merely on the grounds that it is inaccurate. If they did so, they would be usurping the prerogatives of the elected legislature.
Posted by: johno
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May 23, 2010 12:09 PM
i don't know how it happened, but, thankfully, there is a paradigm shift in difference between powerful people in the UK and in the USA. thank the cosmos i live in the UK, because i would be scared sh!tless at my powerlessness living in Texas as a random taxpayer.
Posted by: Mattir-ritated
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May 23, 2010 12:15 PM
photosynthesis is caused by exploding penguinsOh Walton, I so want this meme to catch on.
(Dashing off to revise the homeschool biology curriculum for next year.)
Posted by: ntrygg
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May 23, 2010 12:45 PM
I'd like to think that the companies that publish the history and science textbooks have a sense of putting actual history and science in the textbooks,
but I fear that these companies may well be owned, in part, by the kind of folks who aren't interested in teaching reality, but who are interested in framing what is deemed to be reality.
It seems too often in US politics that the people who own portions of majorities in companies often impact legislation and policy in a way that benefits their companies.
perhaps the way to tackle these school issues is to first enact election reforms - limiting donations, donor disclosure - politicians having to put their company holdings in a blind trust - and maybe not being allowed to vote or push for legislation that's a conflict of interest with their business holdings....
nina
http://ntrygg.wordpress.com
Posted by: Flex
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May 23, 2010 12:46 PM
judges are not qualified to make that decision.
Apparently, neither is the Texas SBOE.
Posted by: Anti_Theist-317
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May 23, 2010 1:15 PM
PZ said: "There's not much we can do at this point, except keep up the pressure"
*Skip down to the "*" for what we can do - if you like.
I think that is absolutely wrong and absolute bullshit. However, most likely he is right. What he did not mention and oughta mentioned is most likely we will all have forgotten about this issue by no later than the close of next week.
This is obvious a political, religious and personal motivated agenda. It demonstrates a real and current threat of religion. Whether the theist(christian) is your friend, your parent, your boss, your co-worker or your spouse. Whether they are passive, moderate or extreme. If they are a true christian their religion and their god must always in every situation come before all else. If their god is real who can blame them? This is what their god demands and they must submit. Yes, yes I know your mommy is a passive theist and you really love the articly Kenny Miller wrote. However, the truth of the matter is those who do not stand on their side of the fence, if they have the balls to admit it or not, are their enemy. Those of us who do not such the dick of Jesus Christ are going to rot, suffer and be tortured in hell while Kenny Miller laughs at us all. Despite the fact some theists have on occasion put the goood of the people, their nation or the religion of others before themselves such actions clearly violate the rules, laws and commands of their god. Although they are capeable of good actions on occasion such actions are them being led astray, slipping or simply falling. God commands with non ambigious timeless message respect for her(him) must always trump that of other faiths, people and nations - period.
The true commitment of the theist, if they are a true theits(if they are not then re fucking consider) must always be to their god not you. I know it is hard to imagine since most likely your mommy or spouse is a theist.
I am always shocked when PZ or some main stream non-theist is shocked by the actions of a main stream theist. It is always, "I am shocked he put his god first". LOL gimme a fuckin break. If their god is real obvious it is only logical it should come first - before everything. The problem is, it aint.
****************
So what can we do? This is all about money, right? School book publishers which do not adopt the changes to the liking of the Texas School Board might lose money. Let's determine how much money that will be. Set up a charity/fund or group to help offset the cost of money these publishers might lose. Even if it is only 1, 2, 5, 10 % money matters.
Let's do it. Shoot me a note. Let's tell 'em all even if they are your parents or friends to fuck off and take their god and agenda with them.
Most likely though we all, myself tossed in there, will forget about this by next week and accept it for fear it might offend our christian mommy or daddy.
Hello_tnt@hotmail.com
Posted by: David Marjanović
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May 23, 2010 1:34 PM
8.5 % (1192 votes) yes
91.5 % (12906 votes) no
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 23, 2010 5:41 PM
@Anti-theist-317
What the fuck?
Theists aren't 'on opposite sides of the fence.' They're not The Enemy, or some faceless mod of mooks.
They're our friends and family.
Where the hell do you get off demonizing them? Where do you get off calling 90 odd percent of humanity 'the theist,' like they're some sort of annoying insect?
You're as bad as a fundamentalist.
Actually, I prefer a fundamentalist. At least no one will assume a fundie speaks for me.
In short, get stuffed, you hate-mongering asshole.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 23, 2010 5:45 PM
They're our friends and family.
see: "Civil War; history of"
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 23, 2010 5:54 PM
@Ichthyic
So, what. You want to go to war with the theists?
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 23, 2010 6:16 PM
So, what. You want to go to war with the theists?
I see I need to spell out certain things for you.
*holds hand*
you see, for ages now, people with strongly held beliefs have had impacts on those around them.
sometimes, those beliefs are irrational, but accepted.
sometimes, those beliefs are even harmful, but accepted.
usually, this is because they are held by people we call friends and family.
and yet, when enough people begin to realize what the implications are of allowing those harmful beliefs to be accepted, action is taken to try and curtail the impact of those beliefs.
hence, the civil war is just one example of this.
perhaps, you would care to explain how the acceptance of irrationality in the form of religious belief is a good thing, simply because they are held by people we care about?
what if we are talking about people who wanted to go to war with Iraq?
If my father wanted to drop nukes on Iraq to wipe out the populace, should I accept that as reasonable because he is my father?
I'm not saying "strike your neighbor down", what I AM saying is that ideas can be, and have been, important enough to consider that they outweigh familial or friendly ties.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 23, 2010 6:23 PM
So, what. You want to go to war with the theists?
...and...
we already ARE at war with many theists. It's not a physical war, so much as a war of ideas, but it has all the aspects of a war, nonetheless. It's become obvious that even those professing "compatibility" make their arguments from a base of illogic. Even people who are staunch anti-creationists, like Ken Miller, make horribly illogical arguments when speaking of how religion and science are "compatible". I mean seriously, he starts sounding like Deepak Chopra FFS.
frankly, I prefer using ridicule over guns.
example argument in favor:
http://www.iwp.edu/news_publications/detail/ridicule-an-instrument-in-the-war-on-terrorism
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 23, 2010 7:30 PM
Where do you get the idea I approve of religious nuttery, pray tell?
I simple find Antitheists' dehumanizing of theists to be very scary.
Posted by: https://me.yahoo.com/a/poGtykozldDg7PjtNNtb2p6kWRvR2WlhRqEIbQ--#06e49
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May 23, 2010 7:33 PM
I'm 15 and I live in Oklahoma. The changes in Texas will almost certainly be the same ones we'll see here. I couldn't be more upset. I'm considering organizing a group of students to correct the errors in the books when they come in. It's a sad day when WE are the one's that need to teach the schools something.
Posted by: badgersdaughter
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May 23, 2010 8:04 PM
to #156:
When the teachers are too scared and have too much to lose to teach the truth, sometimes the students are the ones who have to fight the propaganda. Sometimes some students have to stand up and tell the truth so other students can have the courage to think. It's not entirely safe, but it's often safer for you to do it (and often easier for you to get away with it) than a teacher, who has far more invested in a home and family and is much more under the scrutiny of the school administration and the government.
That's not to say that the teachers are off the hook. I'm just telling you what my father told me about being a student in Budapest when the Russians came rolling into town in 1956 to enforce Communist rule.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 23, 2010 8:12 PM
I simple find Antitheists' dehumanizing of theists to be very scary.
actually, sarcastically as it was put, I rather think the person you are responding to understands this as well:
Most likely though we all, myself tossed in there, will forget about this by next week and accept it for fear it might offend our christian mommy or daddy.
don't mistake sarcasm for a lack of understanding.
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 23, 2010 8:16 PM
Gosh and gee wiz, Ichthyic! I've never seen sarcasm before! Why, my virgin ears are redder than a subs' arse at a spanking competition, they are!
I caught the sarcasm. Unfortunately, I don't think the dehumanizing bits are sarcastic.
Like I said. Sccccaaarrryyyy.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 23, 2010 8:18 PM
Frankly, I find myself unable to fully respond to skeptifem's criticism at #121.
There is something to be said for the irony of focusing on Texas' attempts at revisionist history, when much of what we were taught growing up was already revisionist history.
still, I guess one has to start drawing the line somewhere, making policy precedents that help to at least prevent abuses in the future.
I'm thinking maybe this will be a spark in that, and as such, in and of itself, worth debating even in light of past abuse.
....
I caught the sarcasm. Unfortunately, I don't think the dehumanizing bits are sarcastic.
I do.
what's more, I think they aren't relevant to the argument being made.
Posted by: Peter H
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May 23, 2010 11:19 PM
"Letting lies go unchallenged is wrong." emphasis mine
The most salient, simple observation in this thread. It should be appended to any thread begun in response to rationality and logic under attack.
As to the so-called poll, 8% yes and 92% no.
Posted by: amodeo65
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May 24, 2010 12:31 AM
You all seem so upset because the textbooks are lying. They don`t contain propagands. This is indoctrination. The Texas board is raising a bunch of clones both in state and out of state. This is beyond bias.
Posted by: Leigh Williams, Feminist, OM
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May 24, 2010 2:03 AM
DrScottRobinson @33:
The kids are noticing, believe me. Girl Twin, age 16, has asked for two things from me this summer: an extensive tutorial in grammar and composition, and an overview, with readings, of American history 1760-1800. I'm definite on Padover's Jefferson, Miracle at Philadelphia, The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin, and James Madison: A Biography. She has asked to write essays on the readings!
Also up for both twins this summer: Why Evolution Is True. I may put Boy Twin onto Your Inner Fish afterwards.
skeptifem, you might be glad to hear that Girl Twin and I had a long talk about Sally Hemings' relationship with Thomas Jefferson last night, which came up after a discussion of how meaningless the concept of race is biologically sparked by this article: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-mozingo-third-20100518,0,7375837,full.story).
Posted by: jonas.salomonsson
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May 24, 2010 8:31 AM
There you go, a resounding NO from sweden. I really hope it helps!
Posted by: Endor
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May 24, 2010 9:01 AM
Does the texas substandard education effect the ability of these kids to get into college (out of state)? Or get a job?
Posted by: Peter H
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May 24, 2010 9:04 AM
Sooner or later school boards elsewhere will begin asking, "Is it a textbook or a Texasbook?"
Posted by: Ing: PhD Trollologist
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May 24, 2010 9:11 AM
"Where do you get the idea I approve of religious nuttery, pray tell?
I simple find Antitheists' dehumanizing of theists to be very scary."
Yes, Theists NEVER dehumanize atheists by say insinuating they believe to be tortured forever.
Get bent.
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 24, 2010 10:53 AM
@Ing: So, we do as they do?
We're better than some fundie. We're the good guys, yuh?
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawn7-9w9CqJXGm-MqDw2jo0NYRqkT1fY2jQ
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May 24, 2010 7:39 PM
The really sad thing isn't the state of education of people in Texas, because if we're really honest I think we could all agree that humanity as a whole would be better served if we just walled that state off. Let's just write it off and pour our sweat, worry and effort into a place that looks like it might contribute someday.
What's really sad is that Texas, being such a big waste of space influences a lot of school book manufacturers. Which means that one of the stupidest states in the US influences the education of a vast majority of kids in the US.
And now excuse me while I go weep quietly.
Posted by: dexadog
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May 24, 2010 8:27 PM
I have to let you guys in on a big fat fact: TEXAS HAS BEEN DICTATING CURRICULUM CONTENT SINCE BEFORE THE 1970's. How do I know? I was a textbook designer for a major publisher back then. A major high school American Lit. text we were working on kept getting delayed for revisions STRAIGHT FROM THE TEXAS BOARD, and hell yes, the publisher made them. If TEXAS didn't like a writer's politics or religion - GONE. They even had final say over illustrations! The cost of producing texts went crazy. Some publishers quit producing texts. Quality writers refused to contribute.
Other states get forced into buying the texts because that's what publishers offer: they don't publish versions for each state! You can thank TEXAS assholes for doing their part in destroying American education for the last 50 years.
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 24, 2010 8:31 PM
We're better than some fundie. We're the good guys, yuh?
*yawn*
I thought I explained this to you already?
enough with the strawman army you are trying to erect.
Posted by: Kieranfoy, Faerie Godfather of Death, GMKSC, OED
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May 24, 2010 8:58 PM
I must have missed the explanation amidst all the pretending that he wasn't dehumanizing people.
Care to run it by me again?
Posted by: Ichthyic
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May 24, 2010 8:59 PM
Care to run it by me again?
not particularly, since you have eyes.
Posted by: paulgermana1
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June 1, 2010 5:04 AM
You are so right. Fascism is the New Gestapo. They don't have to discriminate against a specific race. Hating the poor pretty much covers all the bases. Isn't that sad? I would assert that the same people who killed The Jews are patronizing them now. Of course they won't openly say where they think The Jews are headed when they die; but they sure like blowin' in their ears itchy ears. I think that things have begun to get out of hand everywhere. Deregulation has taken it's toll and proven that THE REAL Democracy has been hi-jacked by those on the right.