“Send Him to Gitmo”: Trump Urges Execution of Saipov - Trump's shoot-from-the-hip comment is a gift to the defense - why does Trump want to help terrorists?
Questioning Evolution: The Push to Change Science Class Retro Report By CLYDE HABERMAN NOV. 19, 2017
RETRO REPORT By RETRO REPORT 10:47 Raising Doubts about Evolution… in Science Class Video A growing skepticism of science has seeped into the classroom, and it’s revived attacks on one of the most established principles of biology – evolution. By RETRO REPORT on Publish Date November 19, 2017. Photo by
“Evolution Mama” is a sassy song dating back many decades, probably best played on a banjo, maybe with a kazoo in the background. “Evolution mama,” it goes, “don’t you make a monkey out of me.” That certainly captures the sentiments of religious groups and like-minded politicians who believe Charles Darwin was talking through his hat and there is no way that humans are descended from lower animals.
Darwinism has long been under siege in parts of the United States, even if its critics have practiced their own form of evolution, adapting their arguments to accommodate altered legal circumstances. This installment of Retro Report shows the enduring strength of the forces that embrace the biblical account of Creation or reasonable facsimiles of it. For some of them, the rejection of broad scientific consensus extends to issues like climate change and stem-cell research.
If anything, science skeptics, like the Seattle-based Discovery Institute, may feel emboldened in the era of President Trump, who shares their doubts on some matters and has acted on them. Last month, for instance, Mr. Trump nominated a coal lobbyist as deputy administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. To be his senior White House adviser on environmental policy, he chose a Texas official who has described global warming as “exaggerated nonsense.”
Retro Report, a series of video documentaries examining major news stories of the past and their continuing relevance, looks at the granddaddy of anti-evolution cases: the so-called Scopes Monkey Trial, held in 1925 in the buckle of the Bible Belt. John T. Scopes, a high school substitute teacher, was charged in Dayton, Tenn., with violating a state law that prohibited the teaching of human evolution in state-funded schools. The trial was epic, with two titans going against each other: William Jennings Bryan for the prosecution and Clarence Darrow for the defense. For all the courtroom fireworks, the outcome was never in doubt. Mr. Scopes was swiftly found guilty and fined $100 (equivalent to about $1,400 today).
His conviction was overturned on a technicality. And, in time, the law that he broke was struck down, with courts casting it as religious in nature and thus a violation of the First Amendment’s proscription against “an establishment of religion.”
The anti-evolution spirit, however, never died. Creationism — a belief that God brought about the universe pretty much along the lines set forth in the Book of Genesis — thrived in school curriculums in some states. But that idea also failed to pass judicial muster. The Supreme Court concluded in 1987 that requiring it to be taught in public schools as if it were a science ran afoul of the establishment clause.
A similar fate befell a creationist stepchild, intelligent design, which holds that the universe is so intricate, so complex, that it has to be the handiwork of a master architect. While God is not explicitly identified as the designer, the implication is hard to miss. In a pivotal case, Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District, a federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled in 2005 that introducing intelligent design in biology classes as an alternative to evolution unconstitutionally advanced “a particular version of Christianity.” At heart, the judge said, intelligent design was “creationism relabeled.”
And so, once more, the anti-Darwinists were forced to evolve. What emerged were state laws with descriptions like the “science education act” and the “academic freedom act.” One of the earliest and most successful of these endeavors, the Louisiana Science Education Act of 2008, carried echoes of a “wedge strategy” advocated by the Discovery Institute — a step-by-step program to “reverse the stifling dominance of the materialist worldview and to replace it with a science consonant with Christian and theistic convictions.”
The Louisiana law permits public schoolteachers to use materials critical of established scientific thought, with “evolution, the origins of life, global warming and human cloning” singled out as targets. No blatant advocacy of creationism or intelligent design is authorized. But those concepts make their way into classrooms all the same, as a means of fostering “critical thinking skills, logical analysis, and open and objective discussion of scientific theories.”
In other words, it’s O.K. in Louisiana for schools to, as some put it, “teach the controversy.”
“Often the theories that are presented as solid are not as solid as they’re presented,” Stephen Meyer, director of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture, told Retro Report.
Georgia Purdom, a molecular geneticist who is also a creationist, offered much the same view. “I am a scientist, and I have looked at the science, and I see that it confirms God’s word,” Dr. Purdom said. “But I would also then like to be able to teach evolution, what the evolutionists believe, and then the problems with that. Because there can only be one truth. They both cannot be true.”
As more mainstream scientists see it, Louisiana has disingenuously slipped creationism into schools through a back door (with perhaps an added advantage of being able to cast the law’s opponents as nothing more than intellectually intolerant of countervailing thought). There is another concern, said Kenneth R. Miller, a molecular biologist at Brown University. A new generation, he said, is being taught that “the scientific method and the scientific community is not to be trusted.”
Thus far, the Louisiana law is proving to be bulletproof. No court case has been brought against it, even if Dr. Miller says somewhat dismissively that this is only because “the First Amendment protects you against imposition of religious ideas in the public schools — it doesn’t protect you against the introduction of stupid ideas.”
And Louisiana does not stand alone. Tennessee, home of the Scopes trial, passed a comparable law in 2012. Efforts along the same line have been tried in other states, including Mississippi, Alabama, Indiana, South Dakota, Missouri, Florida and Oklahoma.
Those legislative moves, in the main, have had limited success. But given the prevailing political climate, the anti-evolution camp may have reason to believe that the wind is at its back and more triumphs lie ahead. If it wishes, it could borrow another line from that old song. This one says, “Evolution mama, don’t you think you got me up a tree.”
A video documentary accompanying this essay is at nytimes.com/us
The video with this article is part of a documentary series presented by The New York Times. The video project was started with a grant from Christopher Buck. Retro Report, led by Kyra Darnton, is a nonprofit video news organization that aims to provide a thoughtful counterweight to today’s 24/7 news cycle. Previous episodes are at nytimes.com/retroreport. To suggest ideas for future reports, email retroreport@nytimes.com.
President Donald Trump says he is "disappointed" with the Justice Department and won't rule out firing Attorney General Jeff Sessions if Sessions won't investigate Democrats.
Full Broadcast 3Nov17 Real News with David Knight GUESTS: • Roger Stone - Sessions caves again, recusing himself from Uranium One investigation • Dr. Bonner Cohen - EPA’s Pruitt shuts down rigged research grants & “Waters of US” tyranny TOPICS: • Twitter deletes Trump’s account for 11 minutes, “progressives” cheer censorship • Flu vaccine damage awards soar by 1,000% • Millennials love Marxists as monument tree in UNC-CH is firebombed
[from Alex Jones and his merry band of batshit bullshitters]
Friday, Nov. 3rd 2017: Trump: DOJ Should Investigate Dems - Donald Trump said Thursday that the Department of Justice should investigate John Podesta and other Democrats. Senior editor of The New American [John Birch Society] Bill Jasper joins the program to discuss the ongoing battle between alternative media and the MSM and how and why ANTIFA should be analyzed the exact same way as every other revolutionary Communist group throughout history, and Roger Stone is in studio to talk about the now shattered Trump-Russia collusion narrative. Documentary filmmaker Gabe Hoffman analyzes the most recent pedophiles pouring out of Hollywood and explains how his new film "An Open Secret," exposes the predatory Hollywood elite.
Yvette D'Entremont ( http://scibabe.com/ ) is a former analytical chemist turned science communicator whose website, writings and speeches tackle pseudoscience, woo, quackery, and those promoting it.
Today's War Room show featured all the favorites: laughing at liberals, calling out fake news, videos of liberal insanity, hot takes on current news, and even a radical communist taking us to the Twilight Zone. Gerald Celente breaks down the recent economic news, and Lee Ann McAdoo join us to discuss her take on the latest in the collapse of Hollywood.
[from Alex Jones and his merry band of batshit bullshitters]
Donald Trump is obstructing justice in plain sight
All In with Chris Hayes 11/3/17
Trump has been calling on the Justice Department to prosecute his political opponents – over a couple Fox News scandals involving a uranium deal and the financing of the DNC. Duration: 4:24
California businessman Tom Steyer is putting some of his billions into an ad campaign calling for Donald Trump to be impeached, along with petition for impeachment that now has over 1.5 million signatures. Duration: 4:19
The Trump administration wants us to believe George Papadopoulos was a forgettable, low-level advisor. New video shows him representing the Trump campaign at the RNC. Duration: 8:41
National Climate Report: Man-made climate change is real
All In with Chris Hayes 11/3/17
The Trump administration has publicly denied the report's conclusion, but agreed to sign off on the findings because they didn't want a fight while they're trying to pass tax reform, reports the New York Times. Duration: 2:23
Rachel Maddow shows how Donald Trump's ignorance about the bounds of presidential propriety is interfering with the U.S. justice system and his desire to replace Jeff Sessions with a more sympathetic attorney general. Duration: 23:33
NYT: Carter Page met Russian officials, informed Trump campaign
The Rachel Maddow Show 11/3/17
Mark Mazzetti, Washington investigations editor for the New York Times, talks with Rachel Maddow about breaking news that Donald Trump campaign advisor Carter Page met with Russian officials and informed the Trump campaign about those meetings. Duration: 6:50
Officials slow with info on severity of disease in Puerto Rico
The Rachel Maddow Show 11/3/17
Rachel Maddow shows how difficult it is to get clear information from authorities on the severity of the leptospirosis cases in Puerto Rico as Americans there struggle to find clean drinking water. Duration: 5:48
Pace of Russia probe may be too fast for some members of Congress
The Rachel Maddow Show 11/3/17
Rachel Maddow reports on the questionable background of Ike Kaveladze, who appeared before the House Intelligence Committee, a background that committee member Rep. Tom Rooney does not appear to have researched. Duration: 4:06
House Intel committee speeds up on Trump Russia investigation
The Rachel Maddow Show 11/3/17
Kyle Cheney, Congress reporter for Politico, talks with Rachel Maddow about the sudden flurry of interviews by the House Intelligence Committee in the Trump Russia investigation. Duration: 2:39
Lawrence: Pay attention when Trump says 'believe me'
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 11/3/17
In a new interview, President Donald Trump says "believe me" that he's not involved in any collusion, nor is he under investigation. Lawrence O'Donnell argues that the President frequently says "believe me" when he’s not telling the truth. Duration: 7:06
Ex-Watergate lawyer: Russia probe heading 'right toward' Trump
The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell 11/3/17
Fmr. Watergate prosecutor Nick Akerman says the steps that Robert Mueller is taking in his investigation indicate the probe is ramping up and will likely lead straight to the questioning of Trump himself. E.J. Dionne & Daniel Dale also join Lawrence O'Donnell. Duration: 6:32
New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman joins Lawrence O'Donnell to discuss why Friedman says President Donald Trump doesn't connect the dots. Friedman also explains why he calls the president's strategy in Niger "nuts." Duration: 8:01
High stakes for Trump as he departs for first Asia trip
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 11/4/17
President Trump departed for his first trip to Asia today, and at the top of his to-do list: address the growing threat of North Korea. This comes as he is dealing with plenty of stress domestically. Our expert panel reacts to the delicate situation Trump is in. Duration: 6:33
Meacham: Under stress, Trump returns to 'battle' against Clinton
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 11/4/17
Facing a growing Russia investigation, President Trump turns his frustrations towards his own Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his former opponent Hillary Clinton. Ali Velshi is joined by former Bush 43 Chief Ethics Lawyer Richard Painter and Presidential Historian John Meacham to discuss. Duration: 6:56
General: Trump's Tweet on Bergdahl sentence is 'shameful'
The 11th Hour with Brian Williams 11/4/17
Army deserter Bowe Bergdahl was spared from jail time today, which didn't sit well with President Trump. Ali Velshi is joined by General Barry McCaffrey to discuss the president's reaction, which McCaffrey sees as "shameful behavior". Duration: 2:24
I Don't Know It For a Fact | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Published on Nov 3, 2017 by Real Time with Bill Maher
"Long before Donald Trump was ""hearing things,"" Bill Maher was making baseless assertions in a segment called ""I Don't Know It For a Fact...I Just Know It's True."
Graeme Wood: ISIS | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Published on Nov 3, 2017 by Real Time with Bill Maher
"The Way of the Strangers: Encounters with the Islamic State" author Graeme Wood joins Bill to discuss the recent terror attack in New York City and the fight against ISIS.
In Asia, Trump Might Meet 'Pen Pineapple Apple Pen' Guy
Published on Nov 4, 2017 by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
The President's Asia trip involves meetings with the world's most powerful leaders: China's President Xi, Japan's Prime Minister Abe, and YouTube's viral fruit-pen combiner Pikotaro.
Earlier today @realdonaldtrump’s account was inadvertently deactivated due to human error by a Twitter employee. The account was down for 11 minutes, and has since been restored. We are continuing to investigate and are taking steps to prevent this from happening again. https://twitter.com/TwitterGov/status/926238960594178048
Ricketts Shuts Down Local News Sites DNAInfo And Gothamist In Wake Of Union Vote Billionaire Joe Ricketts shut down the local news websites DNAInfo and Gothamist at 5:00 p.m. yesterday, hanging out the internet equivalent of a gone-out-of-business sign on the front door. Both sites -- and Gothamist’s companion sites in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington -- all point to a memo in which Ricketts said he was shuttering the business with regret. [...] https://www.forbes.com/sites/paulfletcher/2017/11/03/ricketts-shuts-down-local-newsites-dnainfo-and-gothamist/
U.S. Republicans seek special counsel's removal from Russia probe WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Three Republican U.S. lawmakers called on Friday for Robert Mueller to resign as special counsel investigating Russia and the 2016 U.S. election, the latest in a series of conservatives’ criticisms of the FBI and Justice Department during the probe of how Moscow may have influenced the campaign. Representatives Matt Gaetz, Andy Biggs and Louis Gohmert accused Mueller of a conflict of interest because he was director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation when former President Barack Obama’s administration approved an agreement allowing a Russian company to buy a Canadian company that owned 20 percent of U.S. uranium supplies. President Donald Trump’s fellow Republicans have been calling for an investigation into the Uranium One deal, amid news of Mueller’s first indictments of Trump associates as the special counsel investigates allegations that the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow. [...] http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-congress/u-s-republicans-seek-special-counsels-removal-from-russia-probe-idUSKBN1D31W8