The Oklahoma Legislature – Backward and Ignorant
There are a handful of state legislatures that are competing for the title of Most Backward and Ignorant State Legislature in the USA. Right now, it appears the Oklahoma lawmakers are in the lead.
Earlier this month, biologist and atheist Richard Dawkins gave a speech, for free, at the University of Oklahoma. The state legislature wasn’t too happy about news of his impending lecture, so they passed a couple of resolutions which condemned Dawkins and evolution. Do follow that link and read the text of the resolutions. It boggles the mind that people who are selected to govern could be so blatantly ridiculous.
Dawkins went ahead with his lecture, leading off with a bit of ridiculing of the Oklahoma lawmakers who voted for the silly resolutions (the video of the introduction is embedded below). Now, the Oklahoma legislature is investigating the U of O for allowing Dawkins to come and speak.
…on the day of Dawkins’ speech, Oklahoma State Representative Rebecca Hamilton requested substantial information relating to the speech from Vice President for Governmental Relations Danny Hilliard. Representative Hamilton’s exhaustive request included demands for all e-mails and correspondence relating to the speech; a list of all money paid to Dawkins and the entities, public or private, responsible for this funding; and the total cost to the university, including, among other things, security fees, advertising, and even “faculty time spent promoting this event.”
Rick Farmer, the director of committee staff for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, also wrote the University on March 12, requesting confirmation that Dawkins had indeed waived all compensation for the speech.
This is what happens when you let a bunch of religiously-motivated idiots govern. We’ve seen several state legislatures pass bills requiring that “intelligent” design be taught in science classrooms. Now here we have a witch hunt. This is a clear violation of free speech. It’s to state legislatures like that of Oklahoma that you can look to for examples of what will happen if we get too many Sarah Palins in the federal government. The only way to guarantee religious freedom is to keep the religious where they belong — out of government and in their houses of worship.