Chairman of the State Board of Education, Don McLeroy, proudly proclaims that he is a young earth creationist meaning that he believes God created Earth between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago. I have no problem with his religious beliefs but I do have a problem with someone who denies the validity of numerous fields of scientific study and conclusions making decisions about how science is taught in Texas classrooms.
In order for Mr. McLeroy to believe in a young earth he must therefore deny the study of geology and plate tectonics from which we know that the earth is many millions of years old not just a few thousand. He must also deny the conclusions of archaeologists, paleontologists and anthropologists who have determined that the earliest humans reached the shores of Australia about 50,000 years ago, five times as long ago as Mr. McLeroy thinks the earth has existed.
Mr. McLeroy also has to believe that the method of determining the age of organic materials known as carbon dating is incorrect by an astronomical amount. Speaking of astronomy Mr. McLeroy must then also deny the validity of much of what is known about the rest of the universe as it is generally accepted that the universe and earth are both many millions of years old.
What with so much of science denied by Mr. McLeroy he seems to me to be singularly unqualified to be making decisions about how Texas school children are taught science.