Essay:Motivations for the Theory of Evolution

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There are several unique incentives or motivations for the Theory of Evolution. These fall into four categories:

1. Financial incentives.
2. Ideological incentives.
3. Political incentives.
4. Historical incentives.

Despite these significant incentives, belief by the American public in the materialistic evolution taught in public school remains at about 13%, relatively unchanged for at least 20 years.

Financial

While judicial interpretations of the Establishment Clause prohibit any funding of religious arguments, positions or beliefs, the Theory of Evolution enjoys millions of dollars in annual funding by government.

This means that millions of persons, from university professors to graduate students to government researchers to public school teachers, receive paychecks funded in whole or in part by continued support for the Theory of Evolution. If Congress or the President embraced a view that the theory were false, and cut off that funding, then the paychecks of these thousands of persons would decrease or disappear entirely.

In addition, non-profits groups such as the ACLU rely on private donors to defend and promote the Theory of Evolution. The Thomas B. Fordham Institute is another non-profit that expends, and presumably raises, substantial monies by promoting the teaching of the Theory of Evolution. The salaries of individuals such organizations could decline if the theory were declared to be false. In litigation over Intelligent Design in Dover, Pennsylvania, the court ordered a payment of over $2 million to the lawyers who defended the Theory of Evolution, and payments under such order contribute directly to the salaries of attorneys and staff workers at such firms.

Many graduate students in anthropology and related fields need topics and funding for doctoral work, and the Theory of Evolution fills that need. If the theory were recognized to be false, then these graduate students would be left without work and jobs.

The financial incentives may exceed $1 billion annually, and will cause a greater support for the theory, particularly among academics and government workers benefiting from the money, than would exist in the absence of these incentives.

Ideological

Atheists and many agnostics have an ideological need for the Theory of Evolution. No amount of evidence contrary to the theory would convince someone who believes, first and foremost, that there is no God. This is an ideological motivation for the Theory of Evolution: it has to be true because the belief system of the person does not permit any other explanation.

The converse is not true for persons of faith. Evolutionists are quick to claim that Christianity might, in theory, allow for theories of evolution. Whether that is actually true is debatable, but supporters of the Theory of Evolution claim it to be true. But there is no such freedom of belief by an atheist.

The artificial increase in support for the Theory of Evolution out of necessity by atheists is directly proportional to the number of atheists. In circles where atheists have a large percentage, such as universities, the support for the Theory of Evolution is inflated the most by this incentive.

Political

There is a very high correlation between belief in the Theory of Evolution and:

opposition to classroom prayer (nearly 100% correlation)

support of abortion (about 80% correlation)

support of gun control (about 70% correlation)

The more a state imposes the teaching of evolution in its schools, the more liberal that state votes on Election Day. Tennessee is an example of a state that kept evolution out of its schools for most of the 20th century, including winning the Scopes trial to ban the teaching of human evolution. It has consistently been one of the most conservative states on Election Day, and even rejected its own native son Al Gore in 2000, causing him to lose the election.

Indiana is an example of a state that was traditionally conservative, but after embracing the teaching of evolution in its schools became increasingly liberal. This state elected Dan Quayle, one of the most conservative senators, in 1980 and 1986. But now it has a Democratic senator in his place and in 2006 it lost 3 conservative Republican incumbent congressman, more than almost any other state. Conservative congressman John Hostettler lost by a 61%-39% margin.

Historical

Nearly all Americans are taught to accept the Theory of Evolution as children, before critical thinking is developed. Once accepted for years, it can become difficult for some people to question that as an adult and admit that they were misled by people they trusted, or admit that they were wrong for much of their life.

When a student does well in school, then it can become even more challenging to look at what he learned objectively and critically. The good school performance becomes an essential part of his self-esteem, and to admit that his self-esteem is based on a falsehood is simply too difficult for many people.

Percentages still low

Despite all of the above, the belief in the materialistic Theory of Evolution by American adults has remained at only about 13% for several decades.

Authorship

--Aschlafly 19:58, 9 April 2007 (EDT)