Schools-chief candidates are proof Darwin was wrong

Intelligent life has evolved continuously on Earth for millions of years, except among certain individuals within a geographic subset of Homo sapiens known scientifically as Politicus arizonis. Arizona politicians. Specifically, Republican politicians. Even more specifically, four of the five Republicans running for superintendent of public instruction.

These four candidates, including current Superintendent Diane Douglas, all favor teaching the watered-down version of creationism called “intelligent design” in science classes within Arizona public schools.

More than 30 years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court said teaching creationism (religion, essentially) in public schools is unconstitutional. A federal judge also has rejected intelligent design.

Still, when asked if she supported the notion, Douglas said, “Should the theory of intelligent design be taught along with the theory of evolution? Absolutely, and then our children, to be critical thinkers, have to follow the trails where they take them.”

I believe the trail she’s speaking about leads to ignorance — not just about science, but about the law.

It is a sad thing when the state’s highest education official doesn’t pay attention to court rulings or understand a basic scientific principle like evolution.

In his book “On the Origin of Species,” Charles Darwin proved evolution is a fact. He then proposed the theory of natural selection as a way to describe how evolution occurs.

The late paleontologist, professor and science writer Stephen J. Gould explained this way:

“Evolution is a theory. It is also a fact. And facts and theories are different things, not rungs in a hierarchy of increasing certainty. Facts are the world’s data. Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts. Facts don’t go away when scientists debate rival theories to explain them. Einstein’s theory of gravitation replaced Newton’s in this century, but apples didn’t suspend themselves in midair, pending the outcome. And humans evolved from ape-like ancestors whether they did so by Darwin’s proposed mechanism or by some other yet to be discovered.”

Douglas would like to alter the state’s science standards, to dumb down the scholarship and play up the theology.

Three other Republican candidates — Frank Riggs, Bob Branch and Tracy Livingston — agree with her. Only Republican Jonathan Gelbart, who has had a long connection to the academically achieving Basis schools, disagreed, saying, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to have government bureaucrats teaching religious ideas in our public schools.”

Gov. Doug Ducey agrees, saying, “Evolution will remain part of the education curriculum.”

But how well can we expect evolution to be taught if Douglas or another Republican creationist gets the superintendent’s job?

Back in the 1980s, the education lobbyist for then-Gov. Evan Mecham told the state House Education Committee, “If (a) student wants to say the world is flat, the teacher doesn’t have the right to try to prove otherwise . ... The schools don’t have any business telling people what to believe.”

Those of us who were in Arizona back then held out hope that our politicians would evolve.

And they have, I suppose, though not by any standard that could be described as intelligent design.

How well can we expect evolution to be taught if Douglas or another Republican creationist gets the superintendent’s job?