Crazy Texas Textbook Wars Continue To Rage

It’s Texas again, or should I say still.  At one time I was amazed at the ignorance that seemed to pervade the Lone Star state, but not any more.  Now, it’s more like…ho hum…Texas is at it again.

The Religious Right continues to wage war against science and the collateral damage is the children who might be forced to read such nonsense as creationism, complete with a 6,000 year old earth and dinosaur riding ancestors.  At least one reviewer wanted a special section devoted to “creation science,” suggesting of course that a religious theory is actual science.

At issue this time are proposed textbooks that could be used statewide starting next school year. With midnight looming last night, some state education board members singled out a biology textbook by Pearson Education, one of America’s largest publishers. Many of their concerns pertained to the theory of evolution. After a lengthy debate that got testy at times, the board voted to have three of its members pick a trio of outside experts to further scrutinize the book.

State law approved two years ago means school districts can now choose their own books and don’t have to adhere to a list recommended by the Board of Education—but most have continued to use approved books. Concerns about the Pearson book, raised by a citizen review panel, have included how long it took Earth to cool and objection to lessons about natural selection because “selection operates as a selective but not a creative force,” according to reviewers. The board will take final votes in January.