Thanks Taffy, but the whole idea of a common ancestor producing two distinct species sounds a bit shaky. Is this where the "Missing Link" comes in?

I thought George Dubwuya was the missing link.
It just proves to me that people will believe what they want to believe no matter what the scientific facts.

I saw a documentary the other day on on crop field geometric patterns.The believers flew into a violent rage attacking the human creators of this phenomena because they wanted to believe that aliens are visiting our planet.Their source of power and credibility was being stolen by these damn crop artists.

I hope that there is some form of greater consciousness however I don't see the traditional religions as a trustworthy source of facts or ethical teachings.The covering up of paedophilia has destroyed any crediblity they had.

Intelligent Design is just a back door attempt to link religion to the tried and tested rigors of science.

For such a perfect and powerful being,god has produced a lot of shoddy religions.In the last 40 yrs we have seen the concept of god go from hell fire and brimstone to the loving and caring one of today.Well which is it?Is god suffering from a personality disorder?

In truth, god can be whoever we want him/her to be.Our real dilemma is that belief in god in the past has kept a lid on our excesses and maintained morality in the masses while the elite kicked up their heels.We can't have the masses falling off the tracks since no work will be done and the birth rate will plummet.There is also an economic and survival imperative here too.That is the real dilemma for us all today.Can we have morals and ethics without the concept of god to keep us all in line?This is why we are seeing the rise of the religious right.People are no longer scared of god and our societies are in moral decline.ID is just an attempt to give religion credibility once again by having it taught with science.

Grey, I can see you are not taking this seriously.

Me: "What is your source for this statement: 'Actually kenny, over 80% of the american population believe that ID is correct.' I'm guessing USA Today, but I could be wrong."

You: "Pericles – Yeah, the USA/CNN/Gallup poll was the one I was thinking of…"

So, it would appear that you simply dreamed up the statistic. Am I right? Can you give us one reason to take you in the least bit seriously, when you simply invent stuff to suit yourself?

Swilkie,
If you were to teach the amazing features of natural Creation like the things David Attenburg [spell?] without the evolutionary line, I know my 5 year old grandson would be captivated. He attends Kindergarten in a religious Private school, last term in science he studied the planetary system and concepts of space exploration, this term he is studying energy in its various forms. Science fascinates him, yet he knows nothing of evolution. He is taught to worship God for an amazing intelligent Creation.

I note you say, quote, "My prediction is that if ID were to be taught wholesale in junior public school, more 'marginal learners' will switch off & tend away from science & lessen their respect for the education system. We will have a poorer education system when we need improvements."

No wonder parents and teachers are choosing Private Religious schools in droves.

Swilkie
Quote "My prediction is that if ID were to be taught wholesale in junior public school, more 'marginal learners' will switch off & tend away from science & lessen their respect for the education system. We will have a poorer education system when we need improvements."
Actually mate you are dead right. When creationism was first taught in Queensland schools the brightest kids saw through it. They handed in papers arguing against creationism. The teachers response? The students were given more, & more & still more homework to convince them to come to the teachers pre-ordained conclusions. NOTE: the students had already shown that they completely understood the concept of creationism, they just rejected it.
One teacher even told one of these students that he [the student] had to choose between his intellect & his faith. The kid came home turned to his mother & told her "If choosing God means getting rid of my ability to think then I'm no longer interested in God!!"
Conclusion: All children suffer when creationism is taught, either that or they learn to play the game, keep their thoughts hidden & give the teacher the politically correct line. Better known as hypocracy. What a lovely way to teach children morality.

Philo: Congratulations on having a bright and inquiring grandson. You must be very proud of him and I'm sure that everyone here wishes him the brightest future.

Based upon my NSW educational experience this debate concerns high school science education, so "junior public school" probably means junior high school, years 7 to 10. I don't believe that I was taught anything about evolution in primary school. I remember a talking with a kid in year 6 about "eggs from space"; a imaginative discusion but not aware of the concept of evolution at all. Maybe we learnt about dinosours. Maybe these days it's different?