If you follow the creationist news stories from around the country, you get a lot of the same exact thing over and over again, and it is hard to identify the novel or persistent elements in the flow of information. But increasingly it is clear that Bill Foster of St. Petersburg Florida is somewhat novel and starting to look persistent.
Foster was a relatively typical family values fiscal conservative kind of city council member. Term limits have forced him out of his job, which is too bad because maybe he would have just continued along that course minding his own business and not doing too much harm. But it now seems that he has his eyes on higher office (the mayor's seat looks attractive, apparently). This comes at the same time as a fight over evolution v. creationism in Florida, and this has prompted Bill, who until now could be kind of stupid and still get re-elected as a city council in a hick town in the south (St. Petersburg, see below).
But now, mix political aspirations with an open discussion of evolution vs creation science, and Bill has to go and open his mouth. The famous Bill Foster Letter to the School Board, reproduced here for your reading pleasure, is a regurgitation of Answer in Genesis with some Discovery Institute poured on it like out-of-date store bought gravy on four week old leftovers. Foster exposes a startling lack of simple logic and consistency that even a right-leaning creationist would be embarrassed by. Bill Foster is the kind of guy that places like the Discovery Institute ... the creation science / intelligent design / creationism think tank in Seattle ... try to pretend don't exist because it embarrasses them so, makes them look so ... so ... well, so like they actually are!
Pharyngula and Thoughts from Kansas, fellow Sblings have more.
If you are a Floridian or even a St. Petersburgian you may take offense at this Yankee calling you a bunch of hicks.
Deal, baby.
You are the one living in the state that is, well, full of hicks. You're the one living in the state that keeps helping to elect Republican presidents, even if it must be done illegally. Don't come complaining to me about it.
We, here in Minnesota, we had a creationist Department of Education director and we got rid of her. In fact, we sent her to Florida, where I believe she still languishes to this very day!
As a blogger, I feel that it is my job to point out that you'all are a bunch of yahoos. It is your job to make me look stupid for saying that. And Florida, you do have a reasonable chance of doing that. You did, after all, not hire Yecke to be your education chief!
If you are a Floridian, and you want to help make a difference in your own slack-jawed backwards looking state, why don't you visit, join, and support the Florida Citizens for Science?
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Heh, I've been to Minnesota, so I'm assuming your comment about a state being full of hicks is intended to be completely ironic. Right?
From my experience, there are very few states that aren't completely full of hicks. (rednecks, hillbillies, small-town yokels, whatever you want to call them)
I believe there are no hic's in Rhode Island.
I started responding here but decided it would be better to write a full entry instead, posted as An Open Letter to the Authors of Certain Science Blogs.
Summary: Perhaps everyone would be served better if you made positive suggestions of ways to effectively fight the regressive forces of theonomy that are damaging civil, secular society in certain geographical areas, rather than generalizing and insulting all the people in those areas.
I'd like to work with you on this provided you stop referring to me/Floridians/everyone-living-south-of-Illinois as hicks with your generalizations. Insulting a group of people doesn't buy you anything; the people who deserve it don't care, and you alienate precisely the people you want as allies.
It's your call...
Bob,
I've left a comment on your post.
Greg