Scopes redux all over again (cont.)
By Jack Cashill
(cont.)
In Topeka, the parents weren’t about to be humored. The kind of people who would gladly give up a day of work for two minutes before a state board come prepared. Many seemed well schooled in the sophisticated arguments raised against evolution by what’s called the "intelligent design" (ID) movement. They posed question after question that the educators could not or would not answer. The only rationale offered for this silence was one prof’s remark that "intelligent design theory has roots in Christian creationism" and is thus beneath an educator’s dignity.
For sure, most proponents of intelligent design do believe strongly in the Judaeo-Christian God of western heritage. Others, however, follow no particular faith at all, political or religious. Well represented in Topeka was still another faction, often called young-earth creationists, who believe in the world’s origin as described in Genesis.
Inevitably, when the champions of evolution pick a fight with anti-Darwinians, they steer clear of the ID heavyweights in the academic community and lay into the young-earthers, already reeling from years of rabbit punches by their opponents starting with Clarence Darrow's savaging of creationist William Jennings Bryan at the Scopes trial. In the liberal hierarchy of demonization, the young earthers rank high and are allowed to stand in the popular imagination for all who might challenge Darwinism.
At Topeka, as happens often, Darwinian propagandists accused the entire ID movement of rejecting “evolution,” another little bit of deceit. ID partisans across the board acknowledge evolution. Some believe that all living thing share a common descent, guided, of course, by a higher intelligence. And all believe in micro-evolution: that is, evolution within a species, guided or otherwise. Certainly, everyone in Kansas knows that cattle can be bred to become fatter. But with the possible exception of some science educators, no one in Kansas believes that cattle can be bred to become elephants. (Headline from Topeka Capital-Journal on morning of hearing: "Driver injured, 10 cows killed in crash.")
