THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
OPINION
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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2005
WWW.KANSAN.COM
PAGE 9A
▼ GIVE 'EM HELL, RACHELLE
Evolution? Creationism? No more monkey business
It seems to me that everywhere you turn nowadays there's nothing but religious talk: on the TV, on the radio, in magazines, newspapers, in coffee shops or even among friends. The other day, I was watching "The Daily Show" with some friends, and Jon Stewart's guests for the top segment were from three branches of religious schools of thought talking about evolution versus creationism/intelligent design versus metaphysical magical appearance of humans and the universe.
Now to me, this is a very serious topic. Creationism and evolution have been at each other's throats for who knows how long, but today it's becoming even more apparent that we need to come to some kind of conclusion.
This is the most absurd debate in the world. Evolution in America is getting treated like Galileo and Copernicus were when they were crucified for their beliefs in the metaphysics and astronomy.
The debate is about teaching the intelligent design or evolution in schools, if children should have the right to learn one idea instead of the other and if there should be a way for people to opt out of the education of either depending on their religious standings.
RACHELLE HEROD
opinion@kansan.com
Funny thing is, without those two, the revelations and advancements made in society, technology medicine and mathematics would not have happened.
Thus, I feel that by depriving students and youth of the education of evolution, we will be putting ourselves back in a time where it is OK to burn people at stake for witchcraft or treason.
Granted, the discussion was for the most part light-hearted (ahem, the crazy metaphysical lady
— hello), but the sections where they were actually debating were a horse of a completely different color.
If you think about it, this debate has been going on for more than
50 years. People have been tried and persecuted for their beliefs for at least that long.
The Scopes Monkeytrial (1925) and Epperson v. Arkansas (168) both fought to combat unjust statutes stating violations of the First and Fourteenth amendments as a matter of separation of church and state and freedom of speech.
I believe there are logical debates and rationales for both sides. How else would you validate the fact; not theory, that humans share 90 percent of our genes with chimpanzees, according to True-Authory.com? Come on. As far as I know, there is no tenet in creationist ideals that make any type of correlation regarding how we are all so closely related.
In fact, I can honestly say that man and ape share a lot of the same characteristics. We both have opposable thumbs, we both have cognitive abilities and the capacity to reason. (If trained, primates can communicate using sign language to represent a host of ideas). We both have the innate sense of group protection, and if you look hard enough, you can
"Creationism and evolution have been at each other's throats for who knows how long, but today it's becoming even more apparent that we need to come to some kind of conclusion."
find humans who resemble and act more like primates too.
Ok, so maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but by looking at the social structure of animals we can see a lot of correlations.
In the animal kingdom, there is a definite pecking order (alpha males, beta females, drones, peons, outcasts, etc.) as well as a general definition of societal roles.
alpha male which is in charge of organizing, protecting, overseeing and being judge and jury for the clan. There is also a head (alpha) female which is in charge of caring, birthing, educating, etc. But, they too function together with the lower gorillas as a society.
The silverback gorilla has an
One thing that creationism is missing is the fact that we share so many of the same characteristics with those animals. Think about it. In the States, our alphas are Dubya (right-wing Christian conservative) and Mrs. Laura. I don't see how they could possibly think that we are not part of this primitive structure.
We are essentially the peons being told what to do and following the orders of the alpha, and whoever does not comply with alpha rule is sent out of the society, much like an outcast in the primitive world.
However, the problem today is that we are arguing who is outcast and who is alpha.
Obviously, in the debate on "The Daily Show," the crazy lady with the poor-we-magically-appeared theory is the outcast. I'm
not saying what she believes is wrong, just unfounded without material evidence.
Both evolutionism and creationism have evidence, however skewed it may be. On the other hand, what both sides of the debate have is a theory, plain and simple.
Do I believe one is more well founded than the other? Of course. But, that does not mean that the other can not hold water.
However, since the current political trend is toward an ultrconservative Christian right, what we will see is the mental numbing of society, depraved of scientific fact, fiction or theory.
We need to come to a rational explanation. We don't know what is going on. We should teach both evolution and creation theories to increase awareness and understanding across the board, agreeing to disagree and giving the children the right to decide what to believe with knowledge of both sides.
- Herod is a Lawrence senior in journalism.
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Wes Benson has a clever, articulate mind.
My left nut is better at quarterback than Brian Luke.
Apparently Jonathan Kealing didn't go to Late Night last year. There was a hypnotist last year. This one was way better.
Chicks usually only have sex with you if they like you.
A bug just flew into my face and kissed me.
Nick Reid,will you marry me?
My roommate is majoring in being a bad ass.
Hey, I know you saw me in the car today,
but you missed my finger.
You mess with 6-floor Ellsworth, we kill your dad.
'Cause real gangstas can't run fast.
So I just passed this really hot guy walking into Eaton Hall. He was really hot.
Go Astros!
I'd just like to say that I'm annoyed at all the people treating the Free for All like a person. It's an answering machine. You can't have sex with an answering machine! Well, okay, you can, but it's weird.
My soccer team has scored more points in the last two games than the football team.
Carlos Mencia sucks.
I don't know if the girl who keeps smiling at me on the bus is going to have sex with me or if she's just a tease.
*
Hey, Chris Raine, I don't ever want to hear you tell people to dress as a certain feminine hygiene product ever again.
so our football team is ranked 12th in the big 12, but our cross country team is 13th in the nation, so why is football getting so much publicity?
Does anyone else think it's funny that Albert "Poo-" jits the "crap" out of that ball? Go Cards!
It's a Monday night/Tuesday morning.
(10 second pause) PujolJ
PujolJ
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Clarity on charity requests
I am a native of New Orleans; I read the New Orleans papers that keep tabs on the situation and the slew of demands for more federal aid to the area. I also read The University Daily Kansan and its letters to the editor, rife with disgruntled Kansas tax payers who are fearful of diminishing federal programs and possibly culminating in federal taxes to pay for the reconstruction of my home city.
Since I was about 10 years old, I knew that if a hurricane hit the city directly, this would happen. It was no secret, and it is no secret that Louisiana failed to protect itself adequately. Louisiana needs to pull itself out of its own hole to some degree, but, the federal government and yes, you, the Kansas tax payers, should help us. The Federal government owes us. First, for its late and inadequate response to the hurricane. People lost their lives because the federal government was unable to overcome bureaucracy.
Governor Kathleen Bainaeux Blanco did little to help the federal government rescue the people of Louisiana, but I trust that the directors of FEMA and certainly
George Bush could push her around enough politically to get National Guard troops into the state to do what they should have done: declare martial law.
This, at the very least, would have expedited rescue efforts and slowed the looting. It is merely the social contract.
The people of Louisiana give up rights to the government; one of these is the right to all their money, which they give up by paying taxes. In return, the government agrees to protect the people. Pretty shoddy job of protection, if you ask me. Give us something for not being there when we needed you.
If a tragedy happening someplace where you only go to get drunk and have fun doesn't persuade you to think the government should step in at times like these, then let's bring the tragedy closer to home. Picture 200 tornados raging through Kansas in a single day, destroying hundreds of miles of farm land and killing your friends and family. Your house is gone, your parents' jobs are gone and not coming back, and you have no money and nowhere to live. The state would be as helpless as Louisiana is today, and those of you who want the federal government to keep its hands in its pockets would now be the first ones screaming for help.
If I put my ten bucks in the charity basket when it comes by, would that ease your hunger pains, put a roof over your head and stimulate a job market for your parents? Would you stop asking for help? We are a nation, and while we can't rally around the notion of defeating terrorists this time around, we still must rally around the salvation of our people.
If you don't really want to help, if you want to keep your money, then perhaps New Orleans will keep its port and the goods that come through it. And perhaps southern Louisiana will keep its oil and oil refineries. This notion sounds absurd because it is absurd. Louisiana will find a way to help itself, but it can't do it alone. Give the people of the South a break, or don't ask for favors when you need help.
♦ Jeff Briscoe
New Orleans
sophomore
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EDITORIAL BOARD
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SOUKING UP
Benefits of keeping the faith
When I came to the University of Kansas, I expected that the best part of being here would be the partying, the drinking and the football games.
I did not expect that, instead of keggers and visits to the Outhouse, I would find myself scheduling things around choir practice and talks with Sister Clara.
It was not until I came to here, of all places, that I understood what Paul meant when he said, "In Him, we live and move and have our being." (Acts 17:28).
It amazes me that stories like mine are in no short supply.
But, it is also amazing no one seems to care about these experiences.
Up until now, if one read The University Daily Kansan, they would think that op-eds such as "Shacking, the Great Escape" or "Slow Your RolePlaying" were somehow indicative of how students lived their lives once freed from their parents.
Of course, also thanks to the Kansan, we all know about how Wayne Simien came to find Jesus.
Wayne Simien provides for a more sensational story, but, still, the overall impression is on this campus anything goes.
Oddly enough, my experience here has been that most students do have some sense of decency and morality, regardless of their occasional failings.
It might seem to be somewhat presumptuous, at first, to assume that these values stem directly from their personal religious experiences.
But, from where else might they have come?
2
ANDREW SOUKUP opinion@kansan.com
"I did not expect that, instead of keggers and visits to the Outhouse, I would find myself scheduling things around choir practice..."
They certainly could not have sprung from the secular humanism that has now grown into a philosophy holding that anything goes as long as it's not motivated by some sense of obligation to anyone or anything.
Faith (sometimes faith for faith's sake) is important for so many reasons.
Often, those who do not believe make the argument that religion oppresses individuals.
It leads them to new frontiers.
Rather, faith inspires men to do great things. Religion did not oppress Michelangelo as he painted the Sistine Chapel. Religion did not oppress John Milton as he wrote Paradise Lost. Rather, faith gives men an avenue to fulfill themselves.
It inspires them to do heroic deeds and create works of music, art, sculpture and poetry.
Nihilism has yet to inspire man to build a great monument. No man has ever given
his life in the name of Materialism.
And, for some reason, I doubt that the story of primordial soup will ever supplant Genesis.
Ultimately, faith does not decrease our humanity, but rather increases it.
Even if we are only deluding ourselves, how does it help us to know that our lives are meaningless?
Faith plays on our emotions, our hopes, our fears and our reason the very things that separate us from the apes. ( Of course, I suppose one would have to believe that we are somehow different than apes for that to even be a valid argument).
Believing in something — practically anything — helps us find meaning for our lives.
Even if all my actions are in vain, should that thought somehow make me feel better? I, for one, would rather live in a false dream than a real nightmare.
Luckily, here at the University, we have a tremendous(if often disregarded)wealth of resources to fulfill our lives through faith.
There are no less than 27 different religious organizations registered with the KU Religious Advisors(and God knows how many that are not on the official registry).
With faiths ranging from Bahai'i to Judaism to Orthodox Catholicism, everyone should be able to find a spiritual home at the University.
I found mine at the St. Lawrence Catholic Canipus Center. Where will you find yours?
- Soukup is a Lakin junior in linguistics.