Florida State Senator Pushing for ‘Free Flow of Ideas’ in the Classroom.

The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that state legislation authored by Sen. Ronda Storms (R-Valrico) to allow classroom teachers to “mention religious theories about human origins, such as creationism and intelligent design, without fearing retribution… was approved 7-3 by the Senate Judiciary Committee and now goes to the full chamber for consideration, although no date has been set. The measure awaits its first hearing in the House.”

The report also states that Senator Storms, “said she filed the bill after hearing cases of students and teachers who felt “muzzled” and unable to discuss alternate theories on the origin of life. She said teachers have suffered retribution from school authorities and students have been the target of ‘denigrating comments’ from other teachers.”

Those “denigrating comments,” were not just coming from the teachers; they were coming from elsewhere in the Orlando Sentinel, as well. Over in the entertainment section of the online paper, a blogger responds:

Stuff like this is why Ben Stein’s little movie matters.

Teachers have been “muzzled” from unloading their Bob Jones/Oral Roberts/Liberty University ignorance of science on their students? News to me. I had an ultra-fundamentalist chemistry teacher in high school, a real card carrying cultist, and he’d let fly with his prostelyizing nonsense every now and then, encouraging much rolling of the eyes amongst his classes.

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Let me guess. Students who stand up and demand equal time for the Flying Spaghetti Monster (”Why not? We have just as much proof as you!”) will be heard, or “expelled?” (more)

See, that’s the beauty of it. In a classroom where there is a free-exchange of ideas, neither a student nor a teacher would be expelled simply for pointing out the logical flaws in any particular theory, whether it be creationism, intelligent design, darwinism, or pastafariansm.