Cannot call an Idiot an Idiot

Kitsune · Post by **Kitsune** » 2005-12-01 04:52pm

Creations are Fundies and are idiots in my opinion. Now they cannot be called Idiots

University Cancels Class on Creationism

By JOHN MILBURN, Associated Press Writer 33 minutes ago

TOPEKA, Kan. - A University of Kansas course devoted to debunking creationism and intelligent design has been canceled after the professor who planned to teach it caused a furor by sending an e-mail mocking Christian fundamentalists.
ADVERTISEMENT
[0]

Twenty-five students had enrolled in the course, originally called "Special Topics in Religion: Intelligent Design, Creationism and Other Religious Mythologies," which had been scheduled for the spring.

Professor Paul Mirecki, chairman of religious studies, canceled the class Wednesday, the university said.

Mirecki recently sent an e-mail to members of a student organization in which he referred to religious conservatives as "fundies" and said a course depicting intelligent design as mythology would be a "nice slap in their big fat face."

He later apologized, and did so again Thursday in a statement issued by the university.

"I made a mistake in not leading by example, in this student organization e-mail forum, the importance of discussing differing viewpoints in a civil and respectful manner," he said.

Chancellor Robert Hemenway said Mirecki's comments were "repugnant and vile."

"It misrepresents everything the university is to stand for," Hemenway said.

The class was added to the curriculum after the Kansas Board of Education decided recently to include more criticism of evolution in science standards for public school students.

State Sen. Kay O'Connor, a Mirecki critic, said the university did the right thing.

"I'm glad they decided to listen to the public. The public response was so negative because of what seemed to be so hateful coming from the KU professor," said O'Connor, a Republican. "I am critical of his hatefulness toward Christians."

Link

VT-16 · Post by **VT-16** » 2005-12-01 04:59pm

The public response was so negative because of what seemed to be so hateful coming from the KU professor," said O'Connor, a Republican. "I am critical of his hatefulness toward Christians."

There's that good old "persecution-complex" again.

Kitsune · Post by **Kitsune** » 2005-12-01 05:02pm

What is bad is that I am generally a conservative and it outrages me

Superman · Post by **Superman** » 2005-12-01 09:30pm

The truth sure hurts.

Metatwaddle · Post by **Metatwaddle** » 2005-12-01 09:34pm

Fuck. They canceled the entire class because he called those people fundies? I'm glad Oxford doesn't run that way, or else Richard Dawkins would be out of a job...

Kitsune · Post by **Kitsune** » 2005-12-01 09:37pm

The only I can say is "It is Kansas" and hope it is not spreading

SCRawl · Post by **SCRawl** » 2005-12-01 09:47pm

To be fair, I think that this professor should have shown more sense. It's one thing to offer a course which appears to be intended to piss off the fundies. It's another to rub their nose in it before the course has even started.

Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely in the camp that wanted to see this course taught. I loved that creationism was going to be taught as mythology. If this guy had just kept his e-mail civil for another few months, he could have been in a much better position to gloat, and we would all have been better for it.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2005-12-01 10:10pm

Would you expect a historian to teach a class about Holocaust Denial without referring to the deniers as liars, racists, and possibly delusional? Fundies score 2 of 3 on that count (and 3 of 3 in some cases); what's wrong with pointing it out?

SCRawl · Post by **SCRawl** » 2005-12-01 10:29pm

Darth Wong wrote:Would you expect a historian to teach a class about Holocaust Denial without referring to the deniers as liars, racists, and possibly delusional? Fundies score 2 of 3 on that count (and 3 of 3 in some cases); what's wrong with pointing it out?

I would absolutely expect the historian to make these references. I might even expect this historian to make derogatory remarks towards Holocaust revisionists, since (a) they deserve them, and (b) there aren't enough of them to make a fuss. Fundies clearly fall into category (a), but in today's climate, in Kansas, (b) becomes a bit of a problem.

Mirecki recently sent an e-mail to members of a student organization in which he referred to religious conservatives as "fundies" and said a course depicting intelligent design as mythology would be a "nice slap in their big fat face."

That's clearly incendiary. Whether or not they deserve it, you're just asking for a response when you gloat like this. As I said earlier, it would have been different if he had done so after the first run of the course had been completed. Instead, he jumped the gun, and was probably told by the chancellor to drop the course.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2005-12-02 02:13am

Calling a spade a spade in class is one thing- purposefully antagonizing a Christian social group that most likely not populated by hard-core fundamentalists is quite another.

Boundaries for good taste exist, and they're all the more important when you're fucking staff.

wautd · Post by **wautd** » 2005-12-02 02:34am

Kitsune wrote:Creations are Fundies and are idiots in my opinion. Now they cannot be called Idiots

Maybe because it's rude to call 5 year olds idiots. For grown-ups otoh, idiot is an understatement

VT-16 · Post by **VT-16** » 2005-12-02 03:24am

what's wrong with pointing it out?

Media + Heated politics = Shitstorm

While I'd like nothing more than to see Fundies get ridiculed in public, there's no way you're gonna do that today and not get the above.

wautd · Post by **wautd** » 2005-12-02 04:28am

good read

Kitsune · Post by **Kitsune** » 2005-12-02 04:51am

wautd wrote:good read

Thanks, it puts even more perspective on the situation

Molyneux · Post by **Molyneux** » 2005-12-02 07:56am

Whoever leaked that email should be charged with something. What, I'm not exactly sure of...is there an offense for releasing private documents to the public?

I wonder if SOMA has a list of the people on their listserv...

wautd · Post by **wautd** » 2005-12-02 08:35am

I think it would be illegal to do in my country anyway (privacy law). Might be wrong tough

tharkûn · Post by **tharkûn** » 2005-12-02 10:31pm

Would you expect a historian to teach a class about Holocaust Denial without referring to the deniers as liars, racists, and possibly delusional?

I had one who did, at least during the period in which he covered Holocaust Denial as part of a larger class. It was entirely 'This guy say this, which conflicts with this, this, and these historical documents'; complete and utter demolition with absolutely no possible basis for an appeal to motive or conduct fallacies.

Whoever leaked that email should be charged with something. What, I'm not exactly sure of...is there an offense for releasing private documents to the public?

No. No more than if you write a regular letter and I leak it to the press.

Braedley · Post by **Braedley** » 2005-12-03 01:21am

He could claim defamation of character, as his image has obviously been hurt.
At first I thought it was a letter to a fundementalist group, which I feel would warrent the cancellation of the class, but no, it was to a private email list who share his opinions (with the obvious exception of the mole). I would deffinately take that course if something like it were offered here (maybe at the neighbouring university, but I doubt it).

As a side note, this guy would be great for dealing with fundy trolls.

Braedley · Post by **Braedley** » 2005-12-03 01:28am

Edit: There are a number of courses offered by this other university which may cover the same material, however the paperwork I'd have to go through in order to take a course at STU, coupled with the fact that the course probably wouldn't take the smae stance just doesn't make it worth while.

Nova Andromeda · Post by **Nova Andromeda** » 2005-12-03 01:30am

--I don't suspose I missed the link to the actual e-mail? I'd like to see what the guy actually wrote and not just selected bits written by people who hate his guts.

SCRawl · Post by **SCRawl** » 2005-12-03 08:38am

Braedley wrote:He could claim defamation of character, as his image has obviously been hurt.

You can only claim defamation if it isn't true. The harm to his image comes from the fact that his own words have been released to the public. This is in and of itself unfortunate, but I don't believe that it's actionable.

Braedley · Post by **Braedley** » 2005-12-03 10:10am

SCRawl wrote:
Braedley wrote:He could claim defamation of character, as his image has obviously been hurt.
You can only claim defamation if it isn't true. The harm to his image comes from the fact that his own words have been released to the public. This is in and of itself unfortunate, but I don't believe that it's actionable.

It's been 2 and a half years since I took my law course. I was bound to forget something.

StarDestroyer.Net BBS

Cannot call an Idiot an Idiot

Cannot call an Idiot an Idiot

Re: Cannot call an Idiot an Idiot