It’s not a hurricane or even a tropical storm. But a small knot of ignorance is twisting through the Florida state senate. Late last week, Stephen R. Wise (R-District 5) filed Senate Bill 2396, which if passed, would require ‘[a] thorough presentation and critical analysis of the scientific theory of evolution.’ Like other ‘academic freedom’ bills that aim to smuggle creationism back into the classroom, this bill would let educators teach the supposed scientific controversy swirling around evolution. ‘There is no controversy among scientists’, says Dr. Genie Scott, executive director of the National Center for Science Education (NCSE). ‘Evolution is a proven science, backed by a mountain of evidence. Naturally, scientists continue to test and expand the theory, to debate the patterns and processes of evolution. But telling students that evolution is scientifically shaky is just flat wrong.’ Senator Wise hasn’t been shy about his intentions–before he introduced the bill, he admitted his goal was to promote the teaching of ‘intelligent design’ in Florida public schools. ‘If you’re going to teach evolution, then you have to teach the other side so you can have critical thinking,’ said Wise in an interview with the Jacksonville Times-Union. But when […]