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It was not satire.<br>
<br>
I worked alongside NCSE and AAAS on this problem for several years,
when ID was first getting a foot-hold. I certainly appreciate what
Eugenie, Kevin, and many others are doing. However, it requires
eternal vigilance and the problem doesn't seem to shrink so much as
it shifts, much like a blob of mercury. It pops up in one state,
everyone goes all out to deal with it, and two seconds later, it
pops up in another state. Ben Carson, for crying out loud. A highly
educated man who could conceivably be our next president (head
explodes):
<meta charset="utf-8">
<span style="color: rgb(40, 27, 33); font-family: sl-Apres,
helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal;
font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal;
line-height: 24.5455px; orphans: auto; text-align: start;
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widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
display: inline !important; float: none; background-color:
rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span>“I
personally believe that this theory that Darwin came up with was
something that was encouraged by the adversary.” The Adversary is a
nickname for the devil; it’s the actual translation of the word
“Satan.” <br>
<br>
I was grateful to not have to do this kind of work anymore. <br>
<br>
Yes of course museums and scientists must educate. That's very
different from the concept that you can "persuade the general
public." <br>
<br>
And then there's Megan Fox's insane "audit" of the exhibits at the
Field Museum. <br>
<br>
Ellen<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">Ellen Paul
Executive Director
The Ornithological Council
Email: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:ellen.paul@verizon.net">ellen.paul@verizon.net</a>
"Providing Scientific Information about Birds<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.nmnh.si.edu_BIRDNET&d=AwMD-g&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=MAEnomyqnUZJcpR207JBmmUCa9JJj1aKqXWotPEebT0&s=IV962IrKcVly99rY3jHasckkR35WWLffyoEduVjeOPs&e=">"
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/BIRDNET"</a>
</pre>
<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 10/27/15 11:40 AM, Brown, Matthew A
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote
cite="mid:CEC68134-F7A8-4E5B-B771-EDC5356A1C5C@utexas.edu"
type="cite">
<pre wrap="">This is spot-on satire, but it is probably worth pointing out for the sake of our younger members (who may be less cynical than you and I) that the reason so many people accept evolution or understand the importance of museums is because many, many individuals dedicate their time to education. Be it groups like the National Center for Science Education testifying before Congress or the Texas School Board, Kevin Padian’s testimony during the Dover trial, a teacher in a classroom, or museum docents talking to families on the exhibit floor- each of these avenues has the power to change one mind. Even if we can’t win over everyone, it remains our job to try.
Regards,
Matt
Interested in creating undergraduate research opportunities? Want to participate in the legacy of the Works Progress Administration?
Please support our crowdfunding campaign today- <a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__hornraiser.utexas.edu_texasfossils&d=AwMD-g&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=MAEnomyqnUZJcpR207JBmmUCa9JJj1aKqXWotPEebT0&s=MQ6zcHvq-MGxwzjUnULs9A2n-o_8TwwQZLuG5vUgt94&e=">https://hornraiser.utexas.edu/texasfossils</a>
Matthew A. Brown
Director of Museum Operations, Vertebrate Paleontology Laboratory
Lecturer, Department of Geological Sciences
Jackson School of Geosciences
The University of Texas at Austin
R7600, Austin, TX 78758
Office:(512)232-5515
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:matthewbrown@utexas.edu">matthewbrown@utexas.edu</a>
jsg.utexas.edu/vpl
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">On Oct 27, 2015, at 8:54 AM, Ellen Paul <a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="mailto:ellen.paul@verizon.net"><ellen.paul@verizon.net></a> wrote:
I respectfully disagree.
You won't ever convince the "general public." All you will do is draw more attention to something that will draw even more heat. You don't really think the antis will just sit there and keep quiet, do you? Mark Bekoff and his posse will suddenly go silent? No way. You will just see more blathering in HuffPost, WashPost, and elsewhere.
And it will go to a general public that is uneducated and lacking in critical thinking ability. A public campaign is just as likely to end up with even more enmity.
This is not about information. This is about emotion. This is not about rationality. That's why I liken it to the creationist/intelligent design issue. Despite the best efforts of scientists - including organizations devoted to this one issue! - no minds have been changed. "Belief" in evolution remains at 30-35% over time. Heck, even the mushy middle, i.e., people who are not dogmatic about it - still thinks that hominids descended (love that word - we do seem to be proof that evolution is not directional and that newer is not necessarily better) from apes.
Give it up. You won't persuade the general public. You may persuade the few who have open minds. The very few.
And frankly, the museum community cumulatively doesn't have the resources (money, full-time staff) to deal with this issue on an ongoing basis. And heck - when they do put something out, they are clueless to the potential backlash that is made virtually inevitable by the internet. This isn't 1968, when you could get a nice piece in a newspaper and the antis could do little but sit back and fume and maybe write a letter to the editor.
That being said, it is great to post positive pieces like the one the Field put out about monkeypox and how the rodent collection at the Field helped the CDC to determine the source.
Ellen
Ellen Paul
Executive Director
The Ornithological Council
Email:
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="mailto:ellen.paul@verizon.net">ellen.paul@verizon.net</a>
"Providing Scientific Information about Birds
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.nmnh.si.edu_BIRDNET&d=AwMD-g&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=MAEnomyqnUZJcpR207JBmmUCa9JJj1aKqXWotPEebT0&s=IV962IrKcVly99rY3jHasckkR35WWLffyoEduVjeOPs&e=">"
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/BIRDNET"</a>
On 10/26/15 10:29 PM, Kevin Winker wrote:
</pre>
<blockquote type="cite">
<pre wrap="">Paul Sweet of the American Museum of Natural History recently emailed a small number of us remarking that we still have a lot of work to do to convince the general public that scientific collecting is still crucial. He's right in his observation that more could be persuaded if properly informed. To that end, I've put up a public PR piece on our site and recommend that we all look for additional ways to be proactive in this.
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__bit.ly_1GushYi&d=AwMD-g&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=MAEnomyqnUZJcpR207JBmmUCa9JJj1aKqXWotPEebT0&s=dANJ3_R5J-aluzGbAkAzpFl4BrNaUVVi1vP0z1CjrgA&e=">http://bit.ly/1GushYi</a>
Best,
--
Kevin Winker
University of Alaska Museum
907 Yukon Drive
Fairbanks, AK 99775
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