Texas–Dumber than a steer!

I caught a segment of The Young Turks on Current TV in which Cenk Uygur talked about the Texas GOP Platform. I found what he was saying astounding, so I searched for the platform at the Texas GOP website. Here are the two planks that Cenk mentioned in their entirety -

“Controversial Theories – We support objective teaching and equal treatment of all sides of scientific theories. We believe theories such as life origins and environmental change should be taught as challengeable scientific theories subject to change as new data is produced. Teachers and students should be able to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these theories openly and without fear of retribution or discrimination of any kind.

Knowledge-Based Education – We oppose the teaching of Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) (values clarification), critical thinking skills and similar programs that are simply a relabeling of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) (mastery learning) which focus on behavior modification and have the purpose of challenging the student’s fixed beliefs and undermining parental authority.”

The first one on Controversial Theories seems innocent enough until you really think about it. The key phrase is “scientific theories.” It’s a coded way of getting “Intelligent Design” (ID) or “Creationism” taught in schools as a legitimate scientific theory. That’s the problem. Time and again, courts have said that ID and it’s off shoots, is not science. It is religion dressed up like science. Notice they singled out life origins and environmental change. Of course life origins is what ID wants to wedge their way into public school science classes. And environmental change is code for global warming which many Texans don’t buy because it’s always been friggin’ hot in Texas.

But the kicker, to me, is the part entitled “Knowledge-Base Education.” The GOP flatly opposes “critical thinking skills” and anything that challenges “the student’s fixed beliefs.” Wow! In other words don’t teach kids to think for themselves and possibly question what Ma and Pa told them about things like, oh I don’t know, evolution and climate change!

At a time when we need students to think critically about all subjects, Texas is bound and determined to move things backwards. The educational system in Texas will probably implode on it’s self because eventually there will be no one left that knows anything about anything.

If the Texas GOP platform isn’t dumb enough, then there’s this gem -

“Voter [sic] Rights Act – We urge that the Voter [sic] Rights Act of 1965 codified and updated in 1973 be repealed and not reauthorized.” We Texans don’t need those black folks voting.

Dumber that steers.Think about it - except you folks in Texas. You don’t have to think.