The theory of evolution is an intelligent design for a universal system of constant creation. The belief in a living, single, universal, omnipresent unity to the whole universe requires evolution. My faith is uncertain at times and I am certain that human consciousness is fallible but I will not believe in a dead God. I do know that the EPR thought experiment does describe the ground of being for a living unity of the universe.
Again, evolution is intelligent design for constant creation.

@ Mugsy

To use Nels' point of the angels crying, tears contain salt.

Tom,

Sorry for being off topic...this might be important.

For holding out the possibility of a public option or a single payer health care plan yesterday President Obama called out Dennis Kucinich BY NAME to help the President pass his health care bill with out such a plan. I don't remember the President calling out Senator Lieberman or any of the other Blue Dog Democrats BY NAME when they turned down the public option during there voting on health care in the senate. In my mind this is hypocritical and shows me where the President stands. Kucinich is on the correct side of health care. Senator Lieberman and the blue dogs were not.

Arlan

@Charles: "But why are there still monkeys?"

Maybe they're the ancestors of the young conservatives.

@Mugsy How do they reach the surface in fresh water? Same way as in salt water. What makes you think aquatic mammals can't swim in fresh water? Yes, salt water is more buoyant, but so what?

@Mugsy: besides, what about freshwater aquatic mammals like otters, and freshwater frogs and turtles? they could have all swum along behiind the ark in a long caravan.

@Arlan Boll: That was because Senator Lieberman was extorting out of the Senate the precise bill that the White House desired. Joseph is carrying water for the Obama Administration just like he did for the GWBush Administration.

@rewinn "…it’s like saying “George Washington had wooden teeth, therefore wooden teeth is the best form of dentistry!”"

I understand the wooden teeth users are forming a splinter group.

Nels,

Re: your idea to have progressive "trade shows." The right wing has already figured this out. Hence, their CPAC convention, for one, which Thom attends every year.

Creationists data mine scientific writings all the time. They take a simple question presented.........and they scream.......aha we got you. The simple answer to this, is simply read the answer to the question proposed. It's usually there. Where's the evidence for ID. Creationists are left with the only thing that they have, attack..........attack........evolution. They haven't a shred of evidence for their own beliefs.

Again, everybodies favorite Democrat, Dennis Kucinich, pledged to get out of both NAFTA and WTO during his '08 presidential primary campaign.

@mathboy: re: Tower of Babel: I believe Donald Trump bought it and put it in his back yard.

"There are good days and there are bad days, and this is one of them." - Lawrence Welk

Google-- An index to creastionists claims. Their arguments are explained with a teasure of references.

Mr. McHugh can shroud his position in whatever 'scholarly' nomenclature he wants. But there is an objective reality, regardless of what a human being says about it. Does Mr. McHugh deny that when his hand hits a table, it makes a noise? Does he deny that the light reflecting off of that same table provides agreement, independent of me, that it is in fact there? As Alan Watts wrote, and I agree, "I have no desire to remove from anyone a truth he/she holds dear." But the fact remains that the Japanese did bomb Pearl Harbor, Lincoln was murdered, and the Sun did in fact appear this morning...whether or not I witnessed, believe, or deny such phenomenon.

Ironic that after years of Christian railing against the "relativists," they wish to assert that reality is about what you believe, rather than what is verifiably true, regardless of any human being's view of the matter.

Darwin never said anything about Humans coming from Monkeys, so the Christians can knock that off, thank you.

I don't say we didn't evolved from Monkeys, Apes actually, I just say people should stop sticking Darwin with that one

Nels,

No, I didn't mean that progressives shouldn't do just because so-called conservatives do it. I just was observing that they actually were using a variation of that good idea of yours. ;-)

Meanwhile, in an alternative universe, Mitt Romney wins in Nov'08 and pursues the exact same policies as Obama, to universal acclaim:

http://daggatt.blogspot.com/2010/03/president-romneys-first-year.html

(Truly a worthwhile read!)

Frank,

I don't have statistical data on homeschooling, just a lot of anecdotal information from my work as a professional educator who has done academic evaulations of home-schooled students for the past 13 years.

In Colorado, parents who want to homeschool their children must file a notice of intent with their local school district or an independent school each year, and every other year they must submit either standardized test scores or a letter from a qualified evaluator testifying that their children are making adequate academic progress, according to their abilities.

In my experience, parents who have teaching credentials or higher education degrees do not necessarily make better teachers of their own children. In addition, I have found that even the most conservative homeschooling parents give their children lots of enrichment opportunities in their community--including field trips to scientific and cultural sites, classes offered by schools and other institutions, and interaction with other children in the community and in homeschooling support groups.

There may be abuses of the system, as there are in all systems (including public schools who advance children without knowing whether or not they're really learning what have been taught), but there is accountability built into the laws which govern homeschooling in most states.

I think the whole argument that it's either Evolution or creation is a myth in itself. It's like the two party system that we are all victims to. One side or the other. The idea of those who call themselves creationists that people used to hang out with the same dinosaurs people are digging up and that the world is only a few thousand years old, is in fact absurd and it seems to come from this inability to self reflect on the idea that any and every Bible is the literal word of God, verbatim.
Hard to argue with anyone who is fixed on that point of view. But to say that scientists have figured it all out is also a fallacy that keeps fanning the flames of the Christian bible thumpers. Every decade or so, the scientific outlook changes in significant ways.
In short, I can imagine a God who created the universe and built in a handy survival mechanism called evolution. In fact it's not just a survival mechanism, but the whole point of creation may be to evolve from the most inert form into the most conscious and advanced form to eventually awaken to God consciousness and unification with God and therefore all creation. This process could take millions of years for each soul, and there's no reason to think that Earth is the only and first planet. Now I'm not saying anyone needs to believe what I believe, but I think people should consider that there is some middle ground and that people who belive in God have to make room for science because it's has a lot to do with how we relate and interact with the world. Just as science needs to make room for God unless they can prove there is no such unifying entity. I would even say that modern physics is closer to doing just that, because they can't explain what they are observing without admitting there are forces out there that we do not yet understand that bind us all together.
To answer the question, I do think a parent or teacher is severely limiting the scope of a child by totally omitting any education of evolution. I actually had a teacher in 6th grade who'd yell out "I don't believe in that." as she was teaching us a bit about evolution. It used to really tick me off and I'd get into it with her.
Creationism that we've been discussing is man made and not supported by actual science so it should be in church and mentioned in comparative religion classes, but not presented as if half of all people believe it. I think it's very important to teach how the modern bible came about and the council of Nicea. Christianity can be a great religion without the Earth existing for some ludicrous set period of time. It's just not important to live the life of service and sacrifice that Jesus tried to teach.