Tennessee Evolution Bill Becomes Law

The celebration of ignorance and granting of special rights to Christians continues unabated in Tennessee where a law opens the door for the teaching of creationism - i.e., religion by any other name - in the state's public schools. Opponents have rightly dubbed the law as "The Monkey Bill" although it would seem that the title might better apply to the state legislators who voted for the abomination and the state's spineless governor who refused to veto the measure. No doubt the Christofascists at The Family Foundation will put such a bill on their marching orders to the Virginia GOP for the 2013 session of the General Assembly. Here are highlights from Huffington Post on this idiocy:

A Tennessee bill meant to protect teachers who allow students to question and criticize "controversial" subjects such as evolution and climate change became law on Tuesday after Gov. Bill Haslam (R) declined to act.

The state legislature had sent the bill to Haslam earlier this month. He had until Tuesday to veto it, sign it or allow it to pass without his signature.

Critics of the legislation have dubbed it the "Monkey Bill" and charge that it is anti-science, backdoor approval of the teaching of religion in schools that reminds of the state's history with the Scopes Trial.

"It would open the door to creationism, it would open the door to climate change denial, and to other sorts of pseudosciences being introduced into Tennessee classrooms," Josh Rosenau of the National Center for Science Education told The Huffington Post last month.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the American Civil Liberties Union had also pressured Haslam to reject the bill, which they believed was an unconstitutional and unwise gateway for the teaching of creationism and intelligent design in public schools.

Most of the world is embracing modernity and the future even as the Christianists strive to make ignorance a principal hallmark of America. These people - and their political whores in the Republican party - continue to pose a clear and present danger to this nation.