Dear Friend of First Freedom First,
Let's keep the party going! February 12 is Darwin Day, in honor of the life and work of Charles Darwin. His book, On the Origin of Species, established evolution as the dominant scientific explanation in nature. The importance of this one book cannot be overstated, so let's each celebrate Darwin Day by getting one additional First Freedom First signature.
Born February 12, 1809, Charles Darwin achieved lasting fame with his scientific theory of natural selection. Today there are forces at work to dispel his theory in favor of a non-scientific concept called 'Intelligent Design', which is simply a fancy name for creationism.
Opponents of academic integrity have changed their terminology in an attempt to conceal from the public their true intent, which is to preach a religious message to public school students. They would like evolution to be replaced by intelligent design, or to at least have "equal time" for their point of view. To make matters worse, some public officials have been open to their arguments - including President Bush. At a press conference in 2005 the president said that he favors teaching intelligent design "so people can understand what the debate is about."
Fortunately, the courts have not been as easily persuaded. Americans United for Separation of Church and State and its allies won an important federal court ruling against 'intelligent design' creationism in Dover, Pa., public schools in 2005 - but the challenges continue. And as we all know, the courts alone cannot be counted on to defend our rights. That's where First Freedom First and public activism come in.
The first "Darwin Day" celebration was organized by a humanist group in Palo Alto, CA, in 1995. Darwin Day activities now take place at colleges and universities, schools, libraries, and museums all over the country. These events provide a wonderful opportunity to not only celebrate Darwin's birthday, but to engage in public outreach and discussion about science, evolution, and the importance of evolution education.
The Interfaith Alliance and other religious groups have worked to dispel the notion that people must choose between religion and modern science. More than 500 churches are organizing Darwin Day events this year. Evolution Sunday was celebrated in churches all across the country.
So let the celebration continue, let's keep the party going by getting one for one! One more signature on the First Freedom First petition in celebration of a man who made one of the most significant contributions to science ever!
Sincerely,
The First Freedom First Team
Beth Corbin and Bethany Moore of Americans United for Separation of Church and StateDonna Red Wing and Eric Shutt of The Interfaith Alliance Foundation
"What makes us special and different from other countries is that our right to decide whether and how to worship is a private matter protected by the Constitution."
— http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?key=282845009&url_num=9&url=http://www.firstfreedomfirst.org/
First Freedom FirstP.O. Box 1496Washington, DC 20013
A partnership ofThe Interfaith Alliance Foundationand Americans United forSeparation of Church and State
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http://english.arts.unsw.edu.au/downloads/staffpgs/ew_biologically.pdf
Darwin was obsessed with barnacles; there are cone-shaped barnacle shells that contain bizarre inhabitants, cream-coloured shrimplike creatures, hanging upside down, glued to the rock by their heads, fishing for plankton through the hole in the cone with feathery feet. There are stalked barnacles that cluster on driftwood, a seafood delicacy.
In 1835 he collected a conch shell on a Chilean beach and noticed that there were hundreds of tiny holes in it, which interested him more than the species of the shell itself. He suspected that some small creature had made the holes, although he could see none. Later, under a microscope, he spotted the culprit: a minuscule, soft-bodied inhabitant cemented into the hole by its head and waving its jointed legs in the air. Anatomically it resembled an acorn barnacle. But that creature was defined by its cone-shaped shell.
Barnacles are usually hermaphrodites, each having both male and female organs.
Many of the specimens that he had been dissecting were infested with tiny parasites. He had been picking these off and throwing them away. But then he realized his mistake. These tiny ‘parasites’ were, in fact, the male of the species. The females looked like ordinary barnacles, but the males were completely different in bodily shape. They were microscopically small and they lived within the female body. The male, or sometimes two males, at the instant they cease being locomotive larvae become parasitic within the sack of the female and thus fixed and half embedded in the flesh of their wives and can never move again.
Regards,
Coral
oh now, there's a poem in there. i know there is.
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