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Calgary Herald Still Pimping for the Fraser Institute

March 21, 2010 in Education by askeptic | No comments

Journalistic Integrity Sacrificed to Promote Statistical Nonsense

It’s back!

Once again the Calgary Herald has decided to sacrifice journalistic integrity  by dedicating a full section, 14 pages, to promoting a load of hokey statistical nonsense masquerading as sound research.  I am speaking of course of the annual Fraser Institute’s Report Card on Alberta’s Elementary Schools. This means the equally trashy, Report Card  on Alberta’s Secondary Schools, is not far behind.

Too bad. Read the rest of this entry »

More Bill 44 nonsense from the Herald

September 13, 2009 in Education, Religion by askeptic | No comments

In a brief editorial published September 08, 2009 entitled: Quebec proves Bill 44 is right, the Calgary Herald once again demonstrated why its masthead should be changed to Canada’s Largest Christian Daily. Currently, the masthead reads Proudly Calgary Since 1883 and A Division of Canwest Publishing Inc.  I assume 1883 represents the currency of the ideas that come from Canwest. Read the rest of this entry »

Speaking of Grades, Bishop Henry . . .

May 6, 2009 in Education, Evolution, Religion, Skeptic News by askeptic | No comments

Bill 44 has been producing quite a stir here in Alberta.

This is the bill that will either allow parents to remove their children from such controversial subjects as evolution or will not permit parents to remove their children from such subjects as evolution — depending upon who in the government you talk to. The Premier says parents will have that right, the Minister responsible says parents won’t. Half the Conservative caucus is speaking out in favour of the Government’s position (although they are split on which government position), while the other half of caucus is running for cover. The opposition is against it, although here again, just what ‘it’ is, isn’t clear. Read the rest of this entry »

Latest Update: Monkeys Are Back In Alberta Education

May 6, 2009 in Education, Evolution, Religion, Skeptic News by askeptic | No comments

Did ASkepticRTN cause the Alberta government’s turnaround?

It was on the weekend that AskepticRTN delivered its critique of the Alberta Government’s Bill 44  (see AskepticRTN, Education in Alberta: No Monkeys Please). Copies were sent to the politicians involved, as well as all the newspaper columnists mentioned in the post.

I guess we had an impact. First, we got flooded with e-mail. I love e-mail. It lets me know I actually have some readers out there and I like that. One regular reader, Ian, actually submitted a comment. That’s great too. Ian always gives me constructive criticism. Read the rest of this entry »

Education in Alberta: No Monkeys Please.

May 2, 2009 in Education, Evolution, Religion, Skeptic News by admin | 2 comments

You think the Alberta media is dumb about science? Just wait to you get a load of our politicians!

It’s called Bill 44. Last year the Alberta Provincial Government promised a review of human rights legislation in the province. Much of this review was driven by the actions of The Alberta Human Rights and Citizenship (AHRC) Commission with respect to Ezra Levant. A publisher of a local Alberta magazine, Mr. Levant, reproduced those infamous Danish cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammad. A complaint was lodged and Mr. Lavant was hauled in front of the Commission for promoting hate or something like it.  Read the rest of this entry »

When Nigel Hannaford gets science, watch out!

March 31, 2009 in Education, Evolution, Religion by admin | No comments

You are into a whole new world of dumb

Sorry Nigel. I almost missed your latest desperate attempt at  trying to look like you know what you are talking about in the Tuesday March 24, 2009 edition of the Calgary Herald.

The piece, entitled When science gets religious watch out, Nigel trots out the same tired argument so in vogue with the (nonthinking) members of the media. Specifically, that the question of how life evolved on earth is a religious, rather than scientific question. We addressed the lunacy of this argument earlier in (see ASkepticRTN: First Alberta science ) as have many others. Even the title of Nigel’s piece tries to turn truth on its head, implying that science is meddling into the affairs of religion when the Gary Goodyear affair, about which Nigel was writing, was about religion meddling in science.

So what does happen when religion, or in this case the religious, meddles in things scientific? The answer is to be found in Nigel’s column. Nigel tries to display his knowledge of science and ends up sounding as dumb as I would lecturing the Pope on Catholic interpretations on the holy trinity. I am not so dumb as to try. Nigel on the other hand . . . Read the rest of this entry »

The Bible as Science Text

August 31, 2008 in Education, Skeptic News by admin | 1 comment

In Alberta, schools can teach kids whatever they want, as long as they do it in the name of religion.

It would be fair to say that the news story came as a bit of a shock — to me anyway. It may come as a shock to readers as well.

The CBC reported on May 02, 2007 that Mitford Middle School, a public school in the Rocky View School District in the Town of Cochrane, just west of Calgary, would launch a Christian-based education program. Having public schools teach religious dogma is bad enough, but as it turns out, things actually get worse.  Follow up news reported on the CBC on May 03, indicated that as part of this program, creationism will be taught in science class as science. Read the rest of this entry »

Leadership in Alberta Science

September 29, 2007 in Education, Evolution, Skeptic News by admin | No comments

Promote Pseudo-Scientific Nonsense and You Can Win an AS&Tech Award

Every year The Alberta Science and Technology Foundation hands out awards for achievements in science by Albertans’. I always look forward to the AS&T award announcements.

This year, one of the nominees for the Leadership Award is Dr. Marvin Fritzler. His selection is, I believe, well represents the state of science in Alberta. This is, after all, the same Dr. Marvin Fritzler that signed the petition A Scientific Dissent From Darwinism, which is part of a public relations campaign by the Discovery Institute to have Intelligent Design taught in science class. (See AskepticRTN: Intelligent Designers Lead Alberta Science Policy?). Read the rest of this entry »

Thanks to Calgary High School Biology Teachers

May 7, 2006 in Education, Evolution, Skeptic News by admin | No comments

We were busy here at ASkepticRTN

Boy, this is the first time we here at a ASkepticRTN have had an opportunity to write about ourselves. We are all a giggle here at the numbers of people visiting our little hole in the wall website. Our number of visitors started to take off in the late fall of 2005 and built up through the balance of the year and in early 2006.

The reason? Well, evidently I have some Calgary High School Biology teachers to thank. Read the rest of this entry »

Is Intelligent Design Leading Alberta Science Policy?

December 20, 2005 in Education, Evolution, Skeptic News by admin | 1 comment

Okay, now I am beginning to understand why Alberta science policy is what it is.

Dr. Marvin Fritzler, who holds the holds The Arthritis Research Chair in the Faculty of Medicine, has been appointed Chair of the Alberta Science and Research Authority (ASRA). The ASRA’s mission:

“is to enhance the contribution of science and research to the sustainable prosperity and quality of life of Albertans. The ASRA functions as the senior science and research body of the Government of Alberta and works collaboratively with government departments and agencies and other stakeholders to maximize the effectiveness of science and research as an integral component to the success of the province in the global economy.” http://www.fp.ucalgary.ca/bmb/news/news.html

Having an institution such as ASRA seems like a good idea. There ought to be an opportunity for somebody to represent science in the halls of government, and here in Alberta, Canada, that somebody is Dr. Marvin Fritzler. Dr. Fritzler is also a signatory to A Scientific Dissent From Darwinism, which is part of a public relations campaign to have Intelligent Design taught in science class. Read the rest of this entry »

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