Darwin Would Be With The VAST MAJORITY in
Wanting "Strengths and Weaknesses" Taught!
Highlight 1: All demographic groups
support strengths and weaknesses language
by what would be called "historic
landslide" margins if it were an election.

According to the poll, Democrats(82%)
and liberals (86%) are even more likely
than Republicans (73%) and conservatives
(72%) to support the academic freedom of
teachers and students to discuss the
"strengths and weaknesses of
evolution."[1]
Highlight 2: Support for teaching
evidence against evolution is increasing,
not declining.
The poll also shows a dramatic 9-point
increase over 2006 in the percentage of
likely voters who agree that "Biology
teachers should teach Darwin's theory of
evolution, but also the scientific
evidence against it." Support for that
position has jumped to 78%, up from 69%
in 2006. The percentage of likely voters
who favor teaching only the evidence for
evolution suffered a corresponding
decline of 7 points, from 21% in 2006 to
just over 14% this year.[2]
Highlight 3: Young Adults are FAR less
likely than any other age group to favor
teaching evolution as unquestioned fact.
When asked if they agreed with the
statement that biology teachers should
teach "only Darwin's theory of evolution
and the scientific evidence that
supports it"-the position typically
advocated by pro-Darwin activists and
academic partisans-0% agreed among those
in the 18-24 year-old age bracket![3]
Highlight 4: Non-religious people
overwhelmingly support teaching both
sides.
Individuals identifying with no
Christian or Jewish denomination favor
the freedom to discuss evolution's
"strengths and weaknesses" by nearly
82%.[4]
Highlight 5: College graduates support
teaching both sides MORE than those
without college degrees.
College graduates (84%) support the
freedom to discuss evolution's
"strengths and weaknesses" more than
those without a college degree.[5]
Highlight 6: Voters of all political
persuasions, includi
ng
Democrats, Liberals, and Republicans,
support teaching strengths and weaknesses
by landslide margins.
Democrats (82%) support giving teachers
and students the freedom to discuss
Darwinism's "strengths and weaknesses"
even more overwhelmingly than
Republicans (73%). Self-identified
liberals (86%) favor the freedom to
discuss evolution's "strengths and
weaknesses" more than conservatives
(72%).[6]
Highlight 7: Overwhelming majority agrees
with Darwin's own words regarding teaching
both sides.
QUESTION: Charles Darwin wrote that when
considering the evidence for his theory
of evolution, "...a fair result can be
obtained only by fully stating and
balancing the facts and arguments on
both sides of each question." Do you
strongly agree, somewhat
agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly
disagree with Darwin's statement?
Strongly agree 45%
Somewhat agree 31%
Total
Agree 76%
Somewhat disagree 6%
Strongly disagree 12%
Total Disagree 19%
Not sure 5%
Three-quarters (76%) say they agree with
Darwin's statement, while about a fifth
(19%) say they disagree. [7]
In light of this report, it seems
reasonable to ask who the eight
"teach-evolution-only-and-as-fact" members
of the SBOE are representing and why they
have voted to censor the discussion of
"strengths and weaknesses" from the
classroom. Perhaps you should write
them and ask them. Replies may prove
interesting.[8]
[1] Report on 2009 Zogby Poll about
Evolution and Academic Freedom, Center for
Science & Culture, Seattle, Washington.
[2-7] ibid.
[8] SBOE members voting with the
Darwinists, ACLU, and secular humanists to
censor weaknesses from the TEKS standards
were Rick
Agosto
(San Antonio), Lawrence
Allen
(Houston), Mary Helen
Berlanga
(Corpus
Christi-McAllen-Brownsville), Bob
Craig
(Midland-Odessa-Lubbock-Amarillo), Pat
Hardy
(Ft Worth, Weatherford), Mavis
Knight
(Dallas), Tincy
Miller
(Dallas), and Rene
Nunez
(El Paso),
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teachboth@strengthsandweaknesses.org