Life in the Big Tent...

Mike - first, let's be clear upfront - your columns on the Dover Panda trial have been positively BRILLIANT. I rarely laugh out load at columnists (the last time I did was for your alter ego Dave Barry), but I must confess to spluterring coffee all over the table at the COlonial when I learned that Cows Think In Spanish!.

Keep up the good work - don't lose focus. It is rare when something so substantive occurs in our sleepy little town (well, there was the Whack-a-mole thing, but that's been a while now).

And be advised that your BOSSES should PAY you what you are WORTH, which is a lot. They should not let you stray to some other paper. Stay in York and keep slinging it.

I can't wait to see what you conjure up over the Stadium, and the City Taxes, and of course the Final Float in the Halloween Parade (maybe it could feauture an aborted Panda?).

I have to agree with Jim there... I have bookmarked your page so that I can keep updated on this fiasco and I wholly appreciate your levity with this ridiculous matter.

If only the creationists could actually see how completely foolish this has become.

What gets me is that they want religion taught in school, however I doubt many of them have considered who will be doing the "teaching" of this "faith" to their kids.

They seem to think it fits into a science class, so they seem to actually WANT a science teacher teaching their children about "faith" or rather intelligent design? Not to mention that teacher could be of a completely different faith than they are. And what about teachers whose own beliefs conflict with what they are being forced to "teach"?

If it's simply enough for the teacher to tell the kids there is a God, or rather that intelligent design is a valid theory, then what is stopping them from doing that at home where they can control the answers, something by the way, they won't be able to do once it's moved to the classroom?

Personally, I would not want some random teacher influencing my child's theological development (especially considering some of the teachers my son has had).

It is beyond me why this is so important in the first place... Don't these people take their kids to church?

Of course this topic could fit nicely into a philosophy class. I personally think it would be great to have a class that discusses ALL (or most, they probably wouldn't have time to do all) the world's religions, past and present. I think that sort of class would be very beneficial to high school students, give them some exposure to something other than what they grew up with and give them an opportunity to have meaningful discussions with their peers of other faiths.

Thanks again for your column and keep up the good work, it does indeed give me a good laugh and I look forward to it.

I feel I must continue the lovefest here. Education--and curiosity more generally--is something I take very seriously. I very much enjoy your light, yet thoughtful, approach to this subject. As a Kansas Citian living less than two miles from Kansas and its stupendously challenged School Board, I wish some folks around here could read your column. Keep up the good work and may gravity be kind.