| snugs |
http://www.kansas.com/mld/eagle/liv.../printstory.jsp
Professor beaten; attackers cite KU creationism class
Associated Press
LAWRENCE - A professor whose planned course on creationism and intelligent design was canceled after he sent e-mails deriding Christian conservatives was hospitalized Monday after what appeared to be a roadside beating.
University of Kansas religious studies professor Paul Mirecki said that the two men who beat him made references to the class that was to be offered for the first time this spring.
Originally called "Special Topics in Religion: Intelligent Design, Creationism and other Religious Mythologies," the course was canceled last week at Mirecki's request.
The class was added after the Kansas State Board of Education decided to include more criticism of evolution in science standards for elementary and secondary students.
"I didn't know them," Mirecki said of his assailants, "but I'm sure they knew me."
One recent e-mail from Mirecki to members of a student organization referred to religious conservatives as "fundies," and said a course describing intelligent design as mythology would be a "nice slap in their big fat face." Mirecki has apologized for those comments.
Lt. Kari Wempe, a spokeswoman for the Douglas County Sheriff's Department, said a deputy was dispatched to Lawrence Memorial Hospital after receiving a call around 7 a.m. regarding a battery.
She said Mirecki reported he was attacked around 6:40 a.m. in rural Douglas County south of Lawrence. Mirecki told the Lawrence Journal-World that he was driving to breakfast when he noticed the men tailgating him in a pickup truck.
"I just pulled over hoping they would pass, and then they pulled up real close behind," he said. "They got out, and I made the mistake of getting out."
He said the men beat him on the head, shoulders and back with their fists, and possibly a metal object.
Wempe said Mirecki drove himself to the hospital after the attack.
Mirecki told the student newspaper, the University Daily Kansan, that he spent between three and four hours at the hospital. He said his injuries included a broken tooth.
"I'm mostly shaken up, and I got some bruises and sore spots," he told the Lawrence Journal-World.
Wempe said Mirecki described the suspects as two white men between 30 and 40 years of age. One of the men was described as wearing a red, visorlike ball cap and wool gloves. Mirecki said the men left in a large pickup.
Wempe said the department would investigate "every aspect," but couldn't discuss specifics.
Andrew Stangl, president of the Society for Open Minded Atheists and Agnostics at the university, described the attack as "bizarre and terrifying." He said Mirecki, who is the group's faculty adviser, was adamant that the beating was related to the recently canceled course.
"That absolutely shocked me," he said, "because people don't do that in a civilized society."
State Sen. Kay O'Connor, a Mirecki critic, said there is no excuse for someone physically assaulting the professor -- regardless of their politics.
"I have zero tolerance for thugs," she said. "There is never an excuse to behave in such a manner. This was just thugs. They used a flimsy excuse, if they had one, to behave as thugs. They can talk about the ID (intelligent design) course if they want to, but that's not an excuse." |
|
|
| oldraven |
Well, if his sole purpose of creating this class was to be a "slap in the big fat faces" of those who believe in the religion he's teaching about, then he deserved a pot shot.
It's pretty disgusting for a proffessor of religion to be so intolerant.
This does show how hypocritical those fundametalists are, but this prof. is a cocky bastard who needs a little respect. Anyone that biased against a faith has no place teaching about religion at all. |
|
|
| snugs |
quote:
Originally posted by oldraven
This does show how hypocritical those fundametalists are, but this prof. is a cocky bastard who needs a little respect. Anyone that biased against a faith has no place teaching about religion at all.
To play devil's advocate:
Intelligent design literally is part of a mythology... and referring to it as such really is a slap in the face of the fundamentalists who fervently believe that it is the truth, not mythology.... as for their average weight, well its a statistically safe bet to say that they're a little on the pudgy side. :p
Seriously though, I'm surprised they didn't burn the guy alive. I think the impetus for the course may be more of a reaction to Kansas deciding to teach intelligent design along with evolution in their science classes (sort of a fair and balanced deal)... the fact that it would piss of a whole bunch of true believers could be effect rather than cause. |
|
|
| oldraven |
quote:
Originally posted by snugs
To play devil's advocate:
Intelligent design literally is part of a mythology... and referring to it as such really is a slap in the face of the fundamentalists who fervently believe that it is the truth, not mythology.... as for their average weight, well its a statistically safe bet to say that they're a little on the pudgy side. :p
Seriously though, I'm surprised they didn't burn the guy alive. I think the impetus for the course may be more of a reaction to Kansas deciding to teach intelligent design along with evolution in their science classes (sort of a fair and balanced deal)... the fact that it would piss of a whole bunch of true believers could be effect rather than cause.
Well, if they teach creation as though it were Mythology, then evolution should be taught as the theory it is, not as truth. |
|
|
| snugs |
quote:
Originally posted by oldraven
Well, if they teach creation as though it were Mythology, then evolution should be taught as the theory it is, not as truth.
I agree, though that in itself is a controversy. Some say that they've proven evolution on a living micro scale, while others claim there is sufficient evidence in the fossil record, while others claim that they're all out to lunch and God did it.
These debates always remind me of that portion of HHGTTG (hitchhikers guide to the galaxy) where the philosophers are arguing about Deep Thought.
------------------------------
A sudden commotion destroyed the moment: the door flew open and two angry men wearing the coarse faded-blue robes and belts of the Cruxwan University burst into the room, thrusting aside the ineffectual flunkies who tried to bar their way.
"We demand admission!" shouted the younger of the two men elbowing a pretty young secretary in the throat.
"Come on," shouted the older one, "you can't keep us out!" He pushed a junior programmer back through the door.
"We demand that you can't keep us out!" bawled the younger one, though he was now firmly inside the room and no further attempts were being made to stop him.
"Who are you?" said Lunkwill, rising angrily from his seat. "What do you want?"
"I am Majikthise!" announced the older one.
"And I demand that I am Vroomfondel!" shouted the younger one.
Majikthise turned on Vroomfondel. "It's alright," he explained angrily, "you don't need to demand that."
"Alright!" bawled Vroomfondel banging on an nearby desk. "I am Vroomfondel, and that is not a demand, that is a solid fact! What we demand is solid facts!"
"No we don't!" exclaimed Majikthise in irritation. "That is precisely what we don't demand!"
Scarcely pausing for breath, Vroomfondel shouted, "We don't demand solid facts! What we demand is a total absence of solid facts. I demand that I may or may not be Vroomfondel!"
"But who the devil are you?" exclaimed an outraged Fook.
"We," said Majikthise, "are Philosophers."
"Though we may not be," said Vroomfondel waving a warning finger at the programmers.
"Yes we are," insisted Majikthise. "We are quite definitely here as representatives of the Amalgamated Union of Philosophers, Sages, Luminaries and Other Thinking Persons, and we want this machine off, and we want it off now!"
"What's the problem?" said Lunkwill.
"I'll tell you what the problem is mate," said Majikthise, "demarcation, that's the problem!"
"We demand," yelled Vroomfondel, "that demarcation may or may not be the problem!"
"You just let the machines get on with the adding up," warned Majikthise, "and we'll take care of the eternal verities thank you very much. You want to check your legal position you do mate. Under law the Quest for Ultimate Truth is quite clearly the inalienable prerogative of your working thinkers. Any bloody machine goes and actually finds it and we're straight out of a job aren't we? I mean what's the use of our sitting up half the night arguing that there may or may not be a God if this machine only goes and gives us his bleeding phone number the next morning?"
"That's right!" shouted Vroomfondel, "we demand rigidly defined areas of doubt and uncertainty!"
Suddenly a stentorian voice boomed across the room.
"Might I make an observation at this point?" inquired Deep Thought.
"We'll go on strike!" yelled Vroomfondel.
"That's right!" agreed Majikthise. "You'll have a national Philosopher's strike on your hands!"
The hum level in the room suddenly increased as several ancillary bass driver units, mounted in sedately carved and varnished cabinet speakers around the room, cut in to give Deep Thought's voice a little more power.
"All I wanted to say," bellowed the computer, "is that my circuits are now irrevocably committed to calculating the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything -" he paused and satisfied himself that he now had everyone's attention, before continuing more quietly, "but the programme will take me a little while to run."
Fook glanced impatiently at his watch.
"How long?" he said.
"Seven and a half million years," said Deep Thought.
Lunkwill and Fook blinked at each other.
"Seven and a half million years ...!" they cried in chorus.
"Yes," declaimed Deep Thought, "I said I'd have to think about it, didn't I? And it occurs to me that running a programme like this is bound to create an enormous amount of popular publicity for the whole area of philosophy in general. Everyone's going to have their own theories about what answer I'm eventually to come up with, and who better to capitalize on that media market than you yourself? So long as you can keep disagreeing with each other violently enough and slagging each other off in the popular press, you can keep yourself on the gravy train for life. How does that sound?"
The two philosophers gaped at him.
"Bloody hell," said Majikthise, "now that is what I call thinking. Here Vroomfondel, why do we never think of things like that?"
"Dunno," said Vroomfondel in an awed whisper, "think our brains must be too highly trained Majikthise."
So saying, they turned on their heels and walked out of the door and into a lifestyle beyond their wildest dreams. |
|
|
| Tech2 |
quote:
Originally posted by oldraven
Well, if they teach creation as though it were Mythology, then evolution should be taught as the theory it is, not as truth.
I"ve never been to school in Kansas, but having taken a science course one time, it should be pretty clear that you can't prove a theory, only disprove it. If you "believe" in evolution you don't need any evidence at all. The thing is, the (unproven, not yet disproved, but much revised) theory of evolution is the best way to explain the evidence.
And this should be no threat to religious people either, because they just have to believe. Why is there evolution? It's all part of god's plan. You don't need any evidence to believe god made stuff.
Why not teach creationism in schools? Go ahead. Just do it in a religion course. After all, we don't have to teach ALL theories in school science classes. |
|
|
| 2003specv |
| Intelligent design...... fawking whackos.:rolleyes: |
|
|
| Bad Egg |
The guy was an asswipe and deserved a punch in the face. That being said, it isn't a typically Christian behaviour to lay down roadside beat downs. I don't remember Jesus laying the smackdown in any of my kiddie Sunday School classes.
Sounds suspiciously like a little attention seeking for the prof who had an agenda against the Intelligent Design Theory being taught. It may have been a bible study group gone amok, or it may have been a prof who cut someone off, got a beating, and is trying to make mileage for his cause out of it.
Snugs, once again you have commented on fat American Christians. You seem to have a obsession with body image. Could this be a byproduct of the bodybuilding diet and hours spent contemplating your navel in the mirror? You need to relax and have an Italian Donut - one of the ones with chocolate... |
|
|
| 95EagleAWD |
| Chuck Norris would beat up Jesus... |
|
|
| S2KPWR |
| hrmmm, now who would win in a fist fight, Jesus or Superman? |
|
|
| sparkycivic |
quote:
Originally posted by oldraven
Well, if they teach creation as though it were Mythology, then evolution should be taught as the theory it is, not as truth.
that's the idea behind all this in the first place. the mericans decided that if evolution deserves to be taught in a classroom, then creationism should have a fair chance for the kids' attention too. aparently, some people on both sides don't like to share:drama: |
|
|
| snugs |
quote:
Originally posted by Bad Egg
Snugs, once again you have commented on fat American Christians. You seem to have a obsession with body image. Could this be a byproduct of the bodybuilding diet and hours spent contemplating your navel in the mirror? You need to relax and have an Italian Donut - one of the ones with chocolate...
 |
|
|
| oldraven |
quote:
Originally posted by 95EagleAWD
Chuck Norris would beat up Jesus...
Tinky Winky could beat up Jesus, seeing as he wouldn't fight back. He wouldn't even let his disciples defend him when the Romans came for him.
And the Fat comment came from the proff's email quote. |
|
|
| Bad Egg |
quote:
Originally posted by snugs
.... as for their average weight, well its a statistically safe bet to say that they're a little on the pudgy side. :p
I was pointing out a theme that seems to keep coming up in these American threads. I am puzzled by how that qualifies as stalking, but diet induced paranoia could be the culprit. |
|
|
| oldraven |
quote:
One recent e-mail from Mirecki to members of a student organization referred to religious conservatives as "fundies," and said a course describing intelligent design as mythology would be a "nice slap in their big fat face."
|
|
|
| Bad Egg |
You are a loyal Hobbitt, oldraven. I think that is an excellent character trait to have. |
|
|
| oldraven |
quote:
Originally posted by Bad Egg
You are a loyal Hobbitt, oldraven. I think that is an excellent character trait to have.
I have big hairy feet too. :thumbup: Wanna see? |
|
|
|
