It's hard to imagine a lower point for an American political party. At last night's Republican presidential debate, one of the moderators asked John McCain if he believed in evolution.
"Yes," said McCain.
Then came the follow up – a jaw-dropping moment that should make all thinking Americans flee from the Republican party like Dirk Nowitzki from a big shot. "I'm curious," said the moderator, "is there anybody on this stage who does not believe in evolution?"
Three – THREE – of the ten Republicans running for President of the United States of America raised their hands. Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas and former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas don't believe in evolution. Just like that. As if they'd been asked if the earth were round. (Watch it here).
And it's not just those three, it's the entire party – because at a Republican presidential debate, the question isn't considered ridiculous. It's actually a matter of some debate. Remember, the leader of the party, the "commander guy", President George W. Bush, believes the jury is still out on evolution.
No, Mr. President, the jury has reached a verdict and it is unanimous. Evolution is – what's the word here – fact. It's not an issue where thoughtful people can disagree. You either believe in scientific certainty or you don't.
This certainly does not mean there is no God, or even that God didn't create the universe. That is all possible, all believable. But if you want to be president of the greatest country in the world, of the most powerful nation in history, accepting evolution as scientific fact is a must. But among the Republicans now leading their party off a cliff, this remains an open question.
With that in mind, here are some other suggested questions for upcoming Republican debates:
● "Do you believe in the Tooth Fairy?
● "Do you think professional wrestling is real?
● "Do you doubt the theory of gravity?
● "Do you watch Fox News?"
If you answered "yes," to any of these questions, you're either a member of Bill O'Reilly's family, a sixth grader, or a Republican presidential candidate.
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Evolution Is Not Up For Debate -- Except at Republican Debates
Posted May 4th 2007 10:42AM by Ben Mankiewicz
Filed under: Politics, Elections, Young Turks, Republicans
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Reader Comments ( Page 3 of 3)
31. Just because a few people have rejected that evidence on account of their beliefs does not equate to NO evidence (http://www.religioustolerance.org/evscience06b.htm). MORAL JUDGEMENTS and BELIEVABILITY are irrelevant to science UNLIKE RELIGION. Scientists accept theories not out of faith, but because they work and because they are useful. Even if it's LAUGHABLE to THEM that the universe is billions of years old, astronomers would still use that scientific fact to make predictions. Evolution, unlike CS or ID, helps to explain why zebra mussles are such a threat and why the emerald ash borer is destroying trees all over the Mid-west and what we can do about it (find natural predators or quarantine). If you don't like food, refuse to eat it. If you don't like a scientific theory, than refuse to benefit from it. That includes vaccines and almost anything in medicine nowadays.
antidense at 4:25AM on May 20th 2007
32. I once had a student who told me that she didn't believe all of this evolution stuff. When asked why, she gave a rather uninformed reply that it went against her somewhat casual religious views. I asked her to consider many of discoveries of science, such as gravity (mentioned in this blog) disease transmission, and any number of medical breakthroughs. I then asked her whether she considered these to be things that God created and that humans had considered with the talents that He had given them. She said yes, that made sense. Then, why, I asked, could God not have created evolution? The really shocking response was that she had never considered that. No one had ever suggested it to her. Unfortunately, some people who claim to hold strong opinions do so for the sake of keeping themselves important.
Oh, and one more thing. If you read Genesis, then isn't Eve guilty of incest? Think about it. Maybe we shouldn't be taking all that is in the Bible as literal.
Thomas at 11:13PM on May 29th 2007
33. To say that it is a must for the President to believe in evolution is wrong. Not only is it a theory, but the lies behind it are destroying this country. I don't know who it was that was stating that republicans want abortion, but they appearently know nothing about politics. Don't get me wrong, I am not big on politics myself, but I know that liberals push these absurdities more than anyone else. My main focus on this topic is on science. EVOLUTION IS NOT SCIENCE! As soon as someone can find evidence to back-up the THEORY, let me know. By the way, bacteria becoming medicine is not a valid statement to confirm molecule-to-man evolution. The account in Genesis is no story. The Bible does not destroy evolution, but from a scientific standpoint, there is no flaws in how the Bible describes the events of the world. If you are a Christian you cannot say that one part of the Bible is wrong and another is right. You say you believe in God and His son Christ and call Him perfect, yet you call His word completely wrong. I could only hope that our next President does not believe in this lie.
baritone39355 at 12:58AM on Jun 7th 2007
34. #10 Jack, your points are right on. However, if you could spell..... It would go a long way. I know of what I speak of, I have always been a horrible speller.
Patty at 11:54PM on Jun 16th 2007