[Dayseed]

stratos stratos:

Brenda Brenda:

Romney is a flip-flopper.
Perry can't separate church and state. They should be proud.

Actually there is nothing that says he has to.

Well, there is a massive problem with that. Perry got elected on the promise he was going to cut harmful, ozone-eroding, abortion causing taxes and he did; despite being warned that it would result in a $26,000,000,000 deficit. (Yes, you read that number correctly).

Now, in 2011, Perry's Texas has a $29,000,000,000 deficit. What does he do? Throws his hands in the air and has a state-sponsored pray-in to have God fix the problem HE caused.

Was the prayer ecumenical? Sure, because everybody needs Jesus. Up yours atheists, Muslims, Jewish or Hindus.

He's in bed with moronic Christian groups that inform his policy on things like science curricula (see: Eviloution!) or abstinence only programs

Perry is a giant religious mistake who pays lip-service to the separation of Church and State. Make no mistake about it, if he could cram Christianity down your throat, he would.

[Thanos]

Only Democrat deficits run by Kenyan Muslim gay-loving usurper types are bad. Republican ones are always patriotic, God-fearing and, of course, appropriately hued in the correct heartland-ish manner.

[stratos]

A budget shortfall as high as $27 billion is projected as lawmakers work through the 2011 legislative session, according to estimates from economists

Jan 19, 2011 – Texas lawmakers unveiled a Spartan budget late Tuesday night that slashes $31 billion in spending to close the state's massive budget deficit.

See here in Texas we work towards a balance budget before it gets our of hand this year they found that we were going to be spending way more then what we were going to take in so what did the state legislators do, wow they cut spending Perry also agreed to release 3.2 billion in reserve money to get closer to a balanced budget. So NO we do not have a $29 Billion deficit, that is what was projected and they, the state legislators and Gov. Perry, worked towards not allowing that to happen.

He did not Throw his hands in the air and do a state sponsored pray in.

The science curricula was a very hot topic here in Texas when the new school books came out and guess what evolution is a freaking theory, how is it a theory you ask well when every other year if not sooner scientist find "new" evidence that changes what they have said was "fact" just a year or so earlier then guess what its a freaking theory. The vast majority of people just wanted the fact that it was a theory put in the books. As for Abstinence only programs wow guess what a lot of people,parents wanted that in the schools. Unlike your usual politician, perry listened to the majority and backed the abstinence only push.

In America it's supposed to be a Government OF the PEOPLE, By the PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE. Not the ohhh I make speeches that make me look like I'm on your side then just do what the heck I want and screw those who thought I was like them.

"Well, there is a massive problem with that. Perry got elected on the promise he was going to cut harmful, ozone-eroding, abortion causing taxes and he did"

Let me correct this for you.

Perry got elected on the promise he as going to cut abortion funding taxes in the state and he did. Wow he actually did what he said he was going to do. No wonder the Dem's don't like him.

As for the part on the oznone-eroding part truthfully I don't recall any time him saying something along those lines.

[Saffron]

$1:

The science curricula was a very hot topic here in Texas when the new school books came out and guess what evolution is a freaking theory, how is it a theory you ask well when every other year if not sooner scientist find "new" evidence that changes what they have said was "fact" just a year or so earlier then guess what its a freaking theory. The vast majority of people just wanted the fact that it was a theory put in the books. As for Abstinence only programs wow guess what a lot of people,parents wanted that in the schools. Unlike your usual politician, perry listened to the majority and backed the abstinence only push.

So, I guess you don't believe in the Theory of Gravity, either, but only in Intelligent Falling?
Furthermore, when will Americans wake and to the realisation that abstinence-only DOES NOT WORK?

[andyt]

stratos stratos:

The science curricula was a very hot topic here in Texas when the new school books came out and guess what evolution is a freaking theory, how is it a theory you ask well when every other year if not sooner scientist find "new" evidence that changes what they have said was "fact" just a year or so earlier then guess what its a freaking theory.

Could you give an example or two of this (must be lots if every other year they find new evidence) so I can better understand what you mean?

Texas has the 6th highest poverty rate in the US. Heaven forbid they should raise the taxes they lowered to pay for the deficit instead of cutting govt spending for the poor.

[stratos]

Theory of Gravity has been proven and scientist do not change the facts of it every year or so. Thus the Theory has been proven as a fact. As for abstinence not working show me a pregnant virgin. I've only found historical evidence of one.

[Brenda]

$1:

As for abstinence not working show me a pregnant virgin. I've only found historical evidence of one.

Evidence or hearsay?

[Saffron]

Hearsay.

[Saffron]

I love the one about using aborted baby cells to flavour Pepsi.

[andyt]

http://www.physorg.com/news85310822.html

$1:

Alternative theory of gravity explains large structure formation -- without dark matter

In the standard theory of gravity—general relativity—dark matter plays a vital role, explaining many observations that the standard theory cannot explain by itself. But for 70 years, cosmologists have never observed dark matter, and the lack of direct observation has created skepticism about what is really out there.

Lately, some scientists have turned the question around, from “is dark matter correct?” to “is our standard theory of gravity correct?” Most recently, Fermilab scientists Scott Dodelson and former Brinson Fellow Michele Liguori demonstrated one of the first pieces of theoretical evidence that an alternative theory of gravity can explain the large scale structure of the universe.

Those freaking scientists, will they leave nothing alone? Now they're even messing with the 'fact' of gravity.

$1:

The application of the terms "fact" and "theory" to evolution is similar to their use in describing gravity.[20]
The most obvious fact of gravity is that objects in our everyday experience tend to fall downwards when not otherwise prevented from doing so. People throughout history have wondered what causes this effect. Many explanations have been proposed over the centuries. Aristotle, Galileo, Newton, and Einstein have all developed useful models of gravity, each of which constitutes a theory of gravity. (Newton, for example, realized that the fact of gravity can be extended to the tendency of any two masses to attract one another.) The word "gravity", therefore, can be used to refer to the observed facts (i.e., that masses attract one another) and the theory used to explain the facts (the reason why masses attract one another). In this way, gravity is both a theory and a fact.
In the study of biological species, the facts include the existence of many different species in existence today, some very similar to each other and some very dissimilar, the remains of extinct species in the fossil record, and so forth. In species that rapidly reproduce, for example fruit flies, the process of change from generation to generation — that is, evolutionary change — has been observed in the laboratory.[21] The observation of fruit fly populations changing over time is also an example of a fact. So evolution is a fact just as observations of gravity are factual.

(wiki)

$1:

Abstract
The 16S rRNAs from nine rapidly growing Mycobacterium species were partially sequenced by using the dideoxynucleotide-terminated, primer extension method with cDNA generated by reverse transcriptase. The sequences were aligned with 47 16S rRNA or DNA sequences that represented 30 previously described and 5 undescribed species of the genus Mycobacterium, and a dendrogram was constructed by using equally weighted distance values. Our results confirmed the phylogenetic separation of the rapidly and slowly growing mycobacteria and showed that the majority of the slowly growing members of the genus represent the most recently evolved organisms. The 24 strains which represented 21 rapidly growing species constituted several sublines, which were defined by the following taxa: (i) Mycobacterium neoaurum and M. diernhoferi, (ii) M. gadium, (iii) the M. chubuense cluster, (iv) the M. fortuitum cluster, (v) M. kommossense, (vi) M. sphagni, (vii) M. fallax and M. chitae, (viii) M. aurum and M. vaccae, (ix) the M. flavescens cluster, and (x) M. chelonae subsp. abscessus. Our phylogenetic analysis confirmed the validity of the phenotypically defined species mentioned above, but our conclusions disagree with most of the conclusions about intrageneric relationships derived from numerical phenetic analyses.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1380284

[Dayseed]

stratos stratos:

A budget shortfall as high as $27 billion is projected as lawmakers work through the 2011 legislative session, according to estimates from economists

Jan 19, 2011 – Texas lawmakers unveiled a Spartan budget late Tuesday night that slashes $31 billion in spending to close the state's massive budget deficit.

See here in Texas we work towards a balance budget before it gets our of hand this year they found that we were going to be spending way more then what we were going to take in so what did the state legislators do, wow they cut spending Perry also agreed to release 3.2 billion in reserve money to get closer to a balanced budget. So NO we do not have a $29 Billion deficit, that is what was projected and they, the state legislators and Gov. Perry, worked towards not allowing that to happen.

Swing and a miss Stratos. The salient point you missed is that $29 billion deficit was caused by Perry. Also, taking money out of savings to pay your bills is not a balanced budget. They also could have left taxes where they were and prevented all those cuts.

$1:

He did not Throw his hands in the air and do a state sponsored pray in.

Yes he did.

$1:

The science curricula was a very hot topic here in Texas when the new school books came out and guess what evolution is a freaking theory, how is it a theory you ask well when every other year if not sooner scientist find "new" evidence that changes what they have said was "fact" just a year or so earlier then guess what its a freaking theory. The vast majority of people just wanted the fact that it was a theory put in the books.

If you're representative of Texan science education, your state is in deep shit. Firstly, you don't understand the meaning of "theory" within the science parlance. It doesn't mean "guess", it means "best explanation of all available evidence." Secondly, theory and fact are not equatable terms nor do theories graduate to facts. A fact is an observable, repeatable phenomenon. Water boiling at 100 degrees celsius is a fact. Water changing from liquid to vapour is a theory that explains why water boils at 100 degrees.

Now, we move on to the bigger fucking blunders in your post.

There have been no discoveries within the many disciplines that contribute to the theory of evolution that have overturned it or caused it to be significantly modified. I would like to know what these discoveries are, how you came to know about them and what they changed about the theory of evolution.

Simply put, evolution is the change in allele frequency within a given population with respect to time. That's the theory. I don't know what strawman version you were attacking, but it wasn't that.

Natural selection is the key to how (and why) allele frequencies change within a given population. Different environmental stressors influence allele expression. Mutations give the variation that give natural selection something to "act on".

I will grant you that there is a lot of research into how these environmental stressors can affect the rate of evolution, but it's akin to arguing whether or not Connolly can perform to a level to maximize Kessel's goal scoring; the Leafs are still a hockey team (cue jokes here).

Lastly, on the science front, science curricula should NOT be decided by popular vote. You and me having the same voice given completely disparate education levels is ghastly.

$1:

As for Abstinence only programs wow guess what a lot of people,parents wanted that in the schools. Unlike your usual politician, perry listened to the majority and backed the abstinence only push.

Which resulted in loads of teen pregnancies! Great job Perry! Abstinence only programs do NOT adequately prepare teens for the realities that will be before them when they're hard or wet and ready to go. By denigrating all other forms of birth control, when teens are presented with the opportunity, they forego everything else and have unprotected sex. By teaching them that the pill and condoms work, you prepare them to prevent pregnancies.

But hey, I guess the idea that science is decided by the loudest or most voices is a Texas staple. Enjoy being a world-wide laughing stock.

$1:

In America it's supposed to be a Government OF the PEOPLE, By the PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE. Not the ohhh I make speeches that make me look like I'm on your side then just do what the heck I want and screw those who thought I was like them.

Being married to an ideology isn't any better. In fact, I could make a case that its worse since it demonstrates an inability to flex with new information.

$1:

Let me correct this for you.

Perry got elected on the promise he as going to cut abortion funding taxes in the state and he did. Wow he actually did what he said he was going to do. No wonder the Dem's don't like him.

As for the part on the oznone-eroding part truthfully I don't recall any time him saying something along those lines.

I used this nifty thing I learned in books called "rhetoric" to embellish the conventional wisdom of Republicans that slashing taxes (or spending) is the panacea to all of the state's ills. He never mentioned ozone.

If you want, you can just go straight to answering the science related questions and skip the rest.

[DanSC]

The problem with Dark Matter, and Dark Energy, is that it just seems too easy. It seems to be similar to the idea of phlogiston.

[bootlegga]

Scape Scape:

A C and D student, who hates to govern, loves to campaign, and barely has a sixth grader's understanding of economics, will lead our nation into oblivion.--James Moore

Good find!