Coragyps

I got this from a newsgroup I'm on:
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House Bill 1447 by Rep. Charlie Howard (R-Sugar Land) has been scheduled
for a hearing in the House Public Education Committee next Tuesday, March
18 at 2:00 p.m. in the Capitol Extension Auditorium, E1.004.

H.B. 1447 would allow the State Board of Education (SBOE) to edit textbook
content and reject textbooks based on Board members’ personal political and
religious beliefs rather than on factual accuracy. A recent Texas Citizens
for a Sound Economy alert revealed that “New [Religious Right] SBOE Member
Terri Leo from Houston has been instrumental in getting this legislation
filed.” This legislation is hand-crafted and backed by Religious Right

Board members and groups, including Phyllis Shclafly’s Eagle Forum, Texas
Citizens for a Sound Economy and Heritage Alliance PAC (formerly FreePAC).
View the full bill text online at:
http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlo/7...t/HB01447I.HTM
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Contact information for committee members:

Chair Kent Grusendorf (R-Arlington), 512-463-0624
Vice-Chair Rene Oliveira (D-Brownsville), 512-463-0640
Rep. Dan Branch (R-Highland Park), 512-463-0367
Rep. Glenda Dawson (R-Pearland), 512-463-0707
Rep. Harold Dutton (D-Houston), 512-463-0510
Rep. Rob Eissler (R-The Woodlands), 512-463-0797
Rep. Bob Griggs (R-N. Richland Hills), 512-463-0599
Rep. Scott Hochberg (D-Houston), 512-463-0492
Rep. Jerry Madden (R-Richardson), 512-463-0544

Texas textbooks have long been a target for censorship by religious social
conservatives, who aim to delete information they disagree with and inject
their own political ideology and religious values.

In Texas, a handful of religious extremists have actively lobbied for
textbook censorship on a number of issues over the years. Religious Right
groups in Texas have tried to censor:

*** Evolution: they lobbied for evolution to be either wholly
eliminated from biology textbooks or taught on par with creationism (1993
testimony on file at TEA)

*** Global Warming: they successfully lobbied to ban an environmental
science book for its coverage of global warming, which they called
“anti-free enterprise” and “anti-Christian” (2001 testimony on file at TEA)
In an effort to make the review process less vulnerable to the ideological
whims of extremists on the State Board of Education, the Texas Legislature
passed reforms in 1995 that curbed the authority of the Board. Since then,
the Board’s control over textbook content has been limited to only “the
criteria for textbook adoption set out in the code: physical
specifications, essential knowledge and skills elements, and factual
errors” (A.G. Opinion No. DM-424).

The outcome of textbook editing and selection in Texas has a national
impact, as Texas books often serve as a model for many other states. As
the nation’s second largest textbook consumer, the revenue at stake for
textbook publishers in Texas is tremendous. The $570 million Texas expects
to spend on books next year offers ample financial incentive for publishers
to make revisions demanded by a small, but vocal, group of extremists who
have the power to get a book rejected.

For more information contact the Texas Freedom Network
Heather Alden
Outreach Director
Texas Freedom Network
512-322-0545 phone
512-322-0550 fax
www.tfn.org
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C'mon, Texans! It's time for a phone call!

Toto

That's some code speak:

That means you can't discriminate against their worldview?

Valentine Pontifex

Here is a better link to the bill.

Albion

Global warming is anti-Christian? Someone had better tell the Sun that Jesus wants it to cool down a bit.

Arvel Joffi

Would it do any good for some someone not living in the state wrote a letter to your representatives? I'll happily write a letter if it's not a waste of time.

Lynn of the Prairie

Textbooks are so bad because of being watered down to satisfy a few wowsers in TX most especially Mel and Norma Gabbler of Longview. Those two have done their best to ruin public education here, not that it was ever close to California quality anyway.

In the book Class by Paul Fussell, Fussell discussed lower-middle class mispronounciations and mentioned Mel Gabler (not by name) as having said, on William F. Buckley's show the word "promiscuity" and pronouncing it "Promis-kitty". Fussell noted Buckley had to clarify what he meant 'because the poor ass didn't know what he was talking about'.

That State Rep (Charlie Howard?) who's the sponsor is a Religious Reich nut who has ten kids. Somebody should've given him a 38 caliber vasectomy long ago.

Deadbeat

"Hey, Apollo! Yo, Aps! Yeah, Jesus wants to know if you can just cool it for a couple thousand years. ... I dunno, something about Texans not tanning particularly well .... yeah, I know. Whatcha gonna do?"