What Do Americans Believe?
Today being Charles Darwin's birthday, the WBP thought this would be a good opportunity to examine a polarizing issue in our society. Anytime faith-based beliefs are challenged by the scientific community, and those whose thought patterns support theories from this sector,there are bound to be adamant individuals on both sides.
Syracuse University actually offers a course on the debate and the SU website offers a good example of the common arguments, an evolutionist's thoughts can be read here and a creationist's views can be seen here.
Each side offers convincing arguments, though a third page refutes the claims of the evolutionist, but certainly the majority of American society accepts the scientific principles of evolution? The answer may surprise you.
From the National Science Foundation (nsf.gov):
An ongoing Gallup survey, conducted most recently in 2004, found that only about a third of Americans agreed that Darwin's theory of evolution has been well supported by evidence. The same percentage agreed with the alternative statement that Darwin's theory was not supported by the evidence, and an additional 29% said they didn't know enough to say . . . In response to another group of questions on evolution asked by Gallup in 2004, about half (51%) of those surveyed agreed with either of two statements compatible with evolution: that human beings developed over millions of years either with or without God's guidance in the process. However, 45% agreed with a third statement, that "God created human beings pretty much in their present form at one time within the last 10,000 years or so." These views on the origin of human beings have remained virtually unchanged (in six surveys) since the questions were first asked in 1982.
Hence, if you think Darwin's theory is thoroughly supported by science you are in the minority and have been since 1982. At the least this information may help explain how Bush could have been elected to a second term.
5 comments:
Your link is live on RochesterPundit.blogspot.com. Let me know when you put ours up.
And you call yourself a Republican, hs.
;)
Actually, it's the good Col. Shackleford who's the Republican, albeit a logical one who sees the shortfalls of his own party.
Good for him. It's up to people like him to reclaim the party and bring it back to sanity.
I read elsewhere that Americans rank last (or next to last) among all countries in our understanding of science. This is a very unpleasant and unfortunate state of affairs. The world will surpass us in scientific discoveries, which will mean less $$$ for American industries.
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