Dover decision is in

[MartinM]

From the Panda's Thumb:

The ruling should be available shortly, but I have just been informed by Robert Pennock, who testified at the Dover trial, that he has been told by the ACLU’s lead attorney that the ruling is a win for the good guys. Whether that win is big or small will depend on the wording of the decision. I’ll update as soon as we have the full text.

Decision can be found here, though I haven't got it to load yet.

 

[Grizzly]

Hurray! A win for science.

 

[MartinM]

From the conclusion of that decision:

The proper application of both the endorsement and Lemon tests to the facts of this case makes it abundantly clear that the Board’s ID Policy violates the Establishment Clause. In making this determination, we have addressed the seminal question of whether ID is science. We have concluded that it is not, and moreover that ID cannot uncouple itself from its creationist, and thus religious, antecedents.

...

To be sure, Darwin’s theory of evolution is imperfect. However, the fact that a scientific theory cannot yet render an explanation on every point should not be used as a pretext to thrust an untestable alternative hypothesis grounded in religion into the science classroom or to misrepresent well-established scientific propositions.

...As stated, our conclusion today is that it is unconstitutional to teach ID as an alternative to evolution in a public school science classroom.

Those who disagree with our holding will likely mark it as the product of an activist judge. If so, they will have erred as this is manifestly not an activist Court. Rather, this case came to us as the result of the activism of an ill-informed faction on a school board, aided by a national public interest law firm eager to find a constitutional test case on ID, who in combination drove the Board to adopt an imprudent and ultimately unconstitutional policy. The breathtaking inanity of the Board’s decision is evident when considered against the factual backdrop which has now been fully revealed through this trial. The students, parents, and teachers of the Dover Area School District deserved better than to be dragged into this legal maelstrom, with its resulting utter waste of monetary and personal resources.

To preserve the separation of church and state mandated by the
Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, and Art. I, § 3 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, we will enter an order permanently enjoining Defendants from maintaining the ID Policy in any school within the Dover Area School District, from requiring teachers to denigrate ordisparage the scientific theory of evolution, and from requiring teachers to refer to a religious, alternative theory known as ID.

 

[Forever42]

Woohoo! I just read this on CNN and I'm thrilled!

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/12/20/intelligent.design.ap/index.html

"But, he wrote, 'our conclusion today is that it is unconstitutional to teach ID as an alternative to evolution in a public school science classroom.'"

 

[Mystman]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/12/20/intelligent.design.ap/index.html

yay

edit: lol, too late

 

[MartinM]

From section 4 of the decision, entitled "Whether ID is Science:"

After a searching review of the record and applicable caselaw, we find that while ID arguments may be true, a proposition on which the Court takes no position, ID is not science. We find that ID fails on three different levels, any one of which is sufficient to preclude a determination that ID is science. They are: (1) ID violates the centuries-old ground rules of science by invoking and permitting supernatural causation; (2) the argument of irreducible complexity, central to ID, employs the same flawed and illogical contrived dualism that doomed creation science in the 1980's; and (3) ID’s negative attacks on evolution have been refuted by the scientific community. As we will discuss in more detail below, it is additionally important to note that ID has failed to gain acceptance in the scientific community, it has not generated peer-reviewed publications, nor has it been the subject of testing and research.

 

[Spaceman_Spiff]

The breathtaking inanity of the Board’s decision is evident when considered against the factual backdrop which has now been fully revealed through this trial.

Bwaahahaaaa. That's a perfect description.

 

[Mystman]

Too bad that judge doesnt have an "add to reputation" button.

 

[sparklecat]

Too bad that judge doesnt have an "add to reputation" button.

Quite. I was just thinking that I needed to send him a fan letter. This from a Republican, Bush-appointed judge, too.

 

[cerad]

The breathtaking inanity of the Board’s decision is evident when considered against the factual backdrop which has now been fully revealed through this trial.

Come on Judge. Don't hold back. Tell us what you really think.

 

[MartinM]

And the inevitable response is now available also.

 

[NPH]

Come on Judge. Don't hold back. Tell us what you really think.

He is kind of harsh in some of his words, isn't he?

It is ironic that several of these individuals,
who so staunchly and proudly touted their religious convictions in public, would time and again lie to cover their tracks and disguise the real purpose behind the ID Policy.

That looks almost good enough to become my new signature

 

[Phred]

Exactly as the judge predicted. The ID proponents are proclaiming this to be the work of an activist judge.

 

[NPH]

And the inevitable ID response is now available also.

LOL, Judge Jones called the very first line of that response!

Those who disagree with our holding will likely mark it as the product of an activist judge. If so, they will have erred as this is manifestly not an activist Court.

[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The Dover decision is an attempt by an activist federal judge to stop the spread of a scientific idea

edit: beat me to it
[/font]

 

[LogicChristian]

Exactly as the judge predicted. The IDiots are proclaiming this to be the work of an activist judge.

At least the judge was able to preempt some of that. Although I doubt many people will read the actual decision.

 

[Mystman]

And the inevitable IDiotic response is now available also.

"[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=+1]Dover Intelligent Design Decision Criticized as a Futile Attempt to Censor Science Education[/size][/font][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"

these guys are hilarious. The people doing the critisizing are also the people publishing the article. Why the theatrics with all the quoting of a "important" person? (who is the head of the frikking organisation publishing the article?)
[/font]

 

[Pete Harcoff]

What I find funny about the Discovery Institute response is the bizarre line they seemed to straddle over this whole Dover trial. On the one hand, they denouced trying to insert ID into schools and labeled the Dover policy as "misguided". On the other hand, they had a number of their fellows slated to act as expert witnesses for the defense (although several withdrew), then put out a criticism of the ruling that they should have known was coming.

What they should have been criticizing is the school board's lame attempt at getting ID into schools, that ID was invariably going to be tied up as a religious idea and that these so-called critiques of evolution have obvious religious motivation, as well. This was largely seen coming, so I don't know why it's such a surprise.

 

[GoSeminoles!]

Don't forget that Judge Jones was appointed by W.

 

[MartinM]

Don't forget that Judge Jones was appointed by W.

And is Christian.

 

[KerrMetric]

by realising that liars reap what they sow in court.