Protectionists Condemn Government Intolerance

The National Chairman of the Australian Protectionist Party today condemned the recent announcement by the State Government of South Australia to ban the teaching of “Creationism” in all South Australian schools.

“The decision by the government is a gross violation of the right to religious freedom and should be condemned by all Australians, regardless of their stand regarding religion” Mr. Phillips said.

The Australian Protectionist Party recognizes our nation has a Christian heritage and supports the right of parents to have their children educated in the basic tenets of their Faith.

“Education is supposed to develop the minds of our children and open them to a myriad of possibilities, yet here our government is dictating to impressionable minds there is only one answer to our existence and that is the theory of evolution” Mr. Phillips continued, “The hypocrisy is clear for all to see considering this government supposedly celebrates diversity, yet denies parents the right to educate their children in a way that does not toe the government line”.

“The move by the Rann government to ban creationism, not only from State schools but also from the independent religious schools, is a despicable act one would expect from the authoritarian governments of a totalitarian state and an example of social engineering at it’s worst. It must be opposed by all Australians with a sense of decency and justice who value the freedom left to us by previous generations” Mr. Phillips concluded.


Statement issued by Mr. Andrew Phillips, Australian Protectionist Party
PO Box 1452 Mt Barker 5251
0403 699 086

Comments

  1. if you want your kids to learn Religion do it at home if your Christian Muslim or Jewish or send them to Religious school DO you really trust the government to teach religion @ school let the kids draw any pics they like let them wear what they like

    all religions Christian Muslim and Jewish teach it is the parents responsibility to make sure the kids religion

    Santa and the Easter bunny are ok for all

    if religion is taught at all it should be taught after hours by non state paid teachers

    • Terry Odgers says

      Religion has never been a mandatory subject at any state school. Any religious studies were usually kept to one period a week called scripture lessons. Every denomination had their special class to attend during this single period per week, usually on a Tuesday morning, and were taught by volunteers from local Churches.

      No tax payer dollars to my knowledge were ever outlayed by government to fund these lessons.

      We have government schooling for one reason. Parents are generally not adequate teachers and cannot be relied upon to give their children a basic education.

  2. as a athiest i dont have to much problem with christians believing god created them and them teaching that in religion classes as long as its not in a science class.

    creationism religious class and evolution in the science class as it should.

    • Joshua is Jesus in Hebrew; ironic isn't it? There is as much scientific evidence for Creationism as there is for Evolutionism and Evolution is also a faith – strongly held and protected by the media. Scientific process is non-discriminatory and mosts scientists will tell you that scientific outcomes are then APPLIED TO evolutionary THEORY. Should we all be told what to believe? Once it was anathema to challenge the motion that the world was flat. Now we know better. Read up on Creation Science and you will get a better picture of alternative analyses of scientific facts by some of the world's leading scientists!

      • I am sorry Amanda but that is just not correct. There is actually NO evidence for creationism. An old religious text filled with contradictions is not evidence of anything. Whereas in the past 150 years there has been built up a body evidence from many disciplines, including biology, DNA research, embryology and fossil evidence that all support evolution.

        It is clear you read the Bible. Have you bothered to read at least one good book on evolution by a reputable scientist? Not someone pushing a religious agenda through Intelligent Design (which US courts have ruled is simply Creationism with a new name).

        You are free to believe in the supernatural, but please do not call it Science.

        You don't drive a car on "faith" but rely on science to make the engine work. You don't get into a lift and expect invisible angels to pull you up. You enjoy the benefits of science every day.

        Lastly, evolution has been observed in real time. Heard of viruses?

  3. Grahame6thgen says

    Since i have been watching this site and commenting on things that matter, one consistency has come about for all us aussies that love this country.

    We all agree!!!!……… so are we just going to talk about these issues and more talk, or are we going to stand as one and start action and preservation of our great land. Our voices and unity need to be heard outside where it matters, instead of in a room on a computer! Stand or Lay down, its our time……… "NOW".

  4. The missing link is alive and well on this thread. I'm with you Jack and other rational secularists.

    • How can so many people continually ignore the facts of a discussion?

      The discussion here is not: Is creationism correct or is evolution correct?

      Furthermore,the issue is not one of whether creationism should be taught in schools in a secular society. The fact, as stipulated in the press release ,is the fact the Rann government has chosen to FORBID the teaching of Creationism in RELIGIOUS schools.

      Yes, many regard it as a "fairy tale"- that is your right. If that is the case, send your children to a state school where, rightly or wrongly, they can tell your children they descended from monkey creatures and single celled organisms-that is our right in a free and secular society.

      However, it is also the right of our fellow Australians who pay through the nose to have their children taught in Christian schools a curriculum based on the foundation of their faith (the same faith held by our nation's founders) to be able to legally teach their children, in their schools, the belief that a Creator created them and their universe.

      It does not matter whether we agree with them or not-if they wish to support a private school and want their children to be taught this belief, it is their right.

      If we do not defend this intrusion into the lives of our fellow Australians (not a public school issue-a privately funded and operated school issue), how long before the government dictates what you and I can say? They are doing so already in many states, curbing the criticism of immigration levels and composition under the guise of "race hate laws". This is an attempt to curb expression of what we believe, our concerns and our right to freedom of expression in regards to the kind of nation we wish to leave our children.

      So please, do not read into the press release what isn't there. Again, it is NOT demanding creationism be taught in PUBLIC schools, it is defending the right of religious people to belief what they want in THEIR OWN schools.

      • Guardian says

        Andrew, it seems to me not unreasonable that Christian schools should be allowed to teach what they want, even Creationism, but you seem to confuse the Christian belief that Man and the universe were created by God with the pseudo-science of Creationism which is an American phenomenon. Creationism is something cooked up by American fundamentalists to justify a literal reading of the Hebrew Bible. It is not part of our traditional Australian religious tradition. Were any of our Founding Fathers fundamentalists? I think not.

  5. These are public schools and thus must embrace public principles – one of those being secularity. We have separated religion from state and so it shall remain – especially in the public school class room.

    • The issue here, as stated in the press release, is not whether creationism vs evolution is correct, it is one of freedom of belief and government control.

      If the government wishes to dictate that only one theory is to be taught in the school curriculum, then so be it-as distasteful as many may find that decision.

      The issue here is the fact that a so called democratic government in a secular state has decided to interfere in the area of private religious schooling and declared it illegal to teach the basic tenets of their Faith, that being that a Creator is responsible for the existence of Man and the universe.

      It doesn’t matter whether we agree with the position held by Christians in our community or not-our nation has a Christian heritage and those in our community who wish to send their children to their own schools to be taught a curriculum with their Faith as the foundation of their curriculum (again, the religion of our cultural heritage-whether you decide to practice it or not), deserve to do it without government interference or the threat of being declared criminals for breaching this law.

      It starts with this, how long before they openly declare what we say as illegal?

      • Guardian says

        Err, Andrew, what's wrong with the government stipulating that the Theory of Evolution be taught in the science classes of its own government schools? It is afterall the only scientific theory accepted by the majority of biologists which explains the origin of life and its development on this planet. If the govenment didn't do this I think that it would be remiss in its duty to the Australian public. You're not seriously suggesting that Creationism be taught in government schools, are you?

        • Elwoodius says

          Guardian,

          the only scientific theory accepted by the majority of biologists which explains the origin of life and its development on this planet

          This is incorrect. Evolution does not explain the origin of life, only its, uh, evolution.

  6. Creationism is a joke!!! How can you teach a lie. Science proves it is wrong. Without any doubt no doubt at all we know creationism is false. To think the world was not created 4.3 billion years ago is just stupidity. You are accepting ignorance and foolishness. God has given us the power and ability to discover our beginnings, dont stand in the way. You cannot teach this lie within schools.
    Any way in science you are supposed to learn science. We are, the Australian nation is, a secularist nation, which promotes freedom of equality of religion and thought but embraces no religion as the most righteous. How can you teach this fairy tale in a class! Then you'd have to teach every other religions opinions, which are equally as false. Science is science – religion is not science. By all means teach religion, but in a religion class where students know what they are in for. This is ridiculous. This is not intolerance it is common sense. Would you want Islamic traditions of creation and mythical science to be taught also? If not then dont demand anything else – otherwise you are the intolerant one.

  7. localyokel says

    The Rann government would not do that to the Muslim schools. Muslims would cause trouble. When are Australians going to stand up for their rights?

  8. Isn't it interesting how Rudd diverts the attention of Australians by having a debate. It's not hard to see it is a cover up to divert attention from the fact that asylum seekers are now being infiltrated to the mainland. Then there's the $2.45 billion insulation failure and also the hundreds of millions of taxpayers dollars wasted on the school classrooms project where contracts were given to builders who grossly inflated the cost of building. Many of these classrooms were built at outrageous cost to the taxpayer which raises the question, "Why weren't the projects put up for tender?" Does he think he can just erase his governments atrocious mismanagement of taxpayers money? How can Australians trust this government?

  9. I think parents and school boards have the right to decide, not the government. Every schools' needs are individual. Parents and schools need to be given a choice instead of being bullied into curriculum which does not suit them or most importantly the students. I suppose bullying is what the ALP does best though as we see from Rudd tearing pieces off an air hostess for not having red meat on the menu, then using disgusting language on his staff and displaying his mastery of workplace bullying for the entire nation to see.

    • Elwoodius says

      No Seth,

      You don't get to choose what is correct.

      You can make value judgments in areas of morality or where the facts are unknown – you can probably decide for yourself what is "right" – but when the facts are known you don't get to choose that they're aren't.

      <del>There is no 'other side' to the evolution debate.</del> There is no evolution debate.

      The 'ban' prevents creationism being included in the science curriculum.

      This is perfectly sensible – and regrettably required if individual teachers and/or schools are willing to introduce it into science classes to satisfy their own ideology.

      • Elwoodius says

        Back to school for me.

        you don’t get to choose that they’re aren’t.

        should read

        you don’t get to choose that they aren’t.

  10. AustNationalist says

    I have no problem with the Rann Government taking this stance as science belongs in the science classroom, not religion. Christian schools can teach their brain numbing religion to stupefy their drones in their religion class but not in science.

    Science in science, religion in religion.

    • Nicholas Folkes says

      Evolution is not science but a theory. It can not be explained.

      If life is evolutionary science then where are these changes? Where's the missing link?

      As Einstein said, "science without religion is lame and religion without science is blind".

      • localyokel says

        Be patient the missing link shall come with time.

      • Jack Richards says

        Are you serious? You don’t understand the word “theory”. It doesn’t mean a “guess” or a “conjecture” or a “maybe” – it means it is a scientific “fact” until proven otherwise. For example, there is “germ theory” in medicine which proposes that germs cause disease. There are lots of “theories” in mathematics such as Pythagoras’ “theory” about the properties of right-triangles or the relationship between the diameter of a circle and its circumference – and there are plenty of “proofs” for the truth of these “theories”.

        Insofar as the missing link is concerned, it is not at all surprising that such a fossil has not been found. It is very difficult to become a fossil, particularly for a land-based animal. That’s why about 99.9% of fossils found are of aquatic creatures that died in mud.

        Insofar as teaching creationism is concerned, or religion of any sort in public schools, it has no place in a tax-payer funded educational system. I really object to my taxes going to Religious school systems – like the Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Seventh Day Adventists, Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians. Even the Hare Krishnas get a government hand-out of my tax money to perpetuate diveriseness and religious bigotry.

        Being an Atheist, to Hell with the lot of them I say.

        • Are you serious? You don’t understand the word “theory”. It doesn’t mean a “guess” or a “conjecture” or a “maybe”

          Actually, are YOU serious? You don't understand the word theory. It DOES mean a “guess” or a “conjecture” or a “maybe”. A theory can be an "educated guesswork or proposition", but it still is guessing, not facts (hopefully guesses that fit that facts).

          Go to http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/theory for some definitions:

          – a coherent group of general propositions used as principles of explanation for a class of phenomena

          – a proposed explanation whose status is still conjectural, in contrast to well-established propositions that are regarded as reporting matters of actual fact.

          contemplation or speculation.

          guess or conjecture.

          Evolution seems to be the best scientific theory so far, but it is still a theory. Check with those who have scientific backgrounds, as they would realise the difference.

  11. RomanGoddess says

    CONT:
    If people believe in god or want their children to be 'spiritual', do it at home…more importantly, if you want your children to abide by those spiritual teachings, be their leading example. Governments have no right to dictate spiritual beliefs, yes Barry. But no religion has the righ to dictate which doctrine is or isn't allowed in a public school. All or none. And with so many religions, perhaps none is the simplest solution.

  12. RomanGoddess says

    I'm sorry but I have to side with the atheists (hehe, ironic considering my online moniker! LOL)

    The school's job is to teach the necessities of education (reading, writing, 'rithmetic). Religion is a peripheral which is not important. Rebecca has it right – keep religious teaching to Sunday school or in the home. ALL religion, no exceptions. If they ban one, they have to ban all. OR do it smart and teach it more objectively, as a basis for comparison and as a more 'history based' topic. "Creationism" is only a myth anyway. There is more truth in the Darwinian theory than there is in the Biblical one. At least dinosaur bones are real. Anyway, the bible has been edited by so many successive kings/emperors/popes, it is probably a distortion from the original texts anyway. Why teach something so flawed and divisive?

  13. If anyone promotes war, intolerance, hatred, and lack of respect. It is Muslims.

    Yeah there are Christians who behave badly and immorally, the sex scandals are a perfect example. But thousands of Christians around the world aren't running around promoting violence and murdering civilians in the name of their religion.

    Islamic extremism is far greater threat to society than Christianity or any other religion. The fact that the majority of the world's terrorist organisations are Islamic extremists speaks for itself. And how many times has Israel been attacked by the Arab nations that surround it since it became an independent state. The Israeli's were defending their nation. I wonder why they have nuclear weapons, possibly it is because they are massively outnumbered by the Arab nations that surround and have had to defend themselves against Arab aggression for the past sixty odd years.

    The Palestinians or the other Arab nations cannot defeat Israel so they resort to terrorism, and they conveniently use Islam as their inspiration for aggression. I do not see thousands of Christians running around yelling out, "Jesus is great!", blowing themselves up for martyrdom.

  14. Hi Barry, I'm another Barry so don't get us mixed up. I think it's disgusting that this government would want to ban these teachings. I think that if the majority of parents are happy and the students are happy to learn Christianity then it should go ahead. I think that children need a spiritual dimension to their curriculum and then when they are adults they can decide what spiritual dimension they wish to follow. I think schools and parents have the right to make that decision, not governments. I'm sick and tired of these Labor governments thinking they have the right to tell people what's best for them. Australia is a democracy and these decisions are for the people to make, not the government. Governments have no right in dictating our spiritual beliefs and have no right in telling taxpayers how our schools are run.

  15. As an agnostic I support this stance. I think Christianity and its values, even with the inherent faults, has been part of the backbone of this country for hundreds of years. It's obvious to me the more liberal we become and the more we turn away from all that, the more of a decline we have seen in our overall state. I suppose a Christian would expect such a turn of events to continue as part of what they believe will happen in future as written in their scripture, but there's no reason to back away either.

  16. Religion is always encouraged among citizens. As long as schools are paid for through the taxes of a secular government, it will be the family's responsibility to educate their children in the ways of their religion. Send your children to private schools or Sunday school if you require formal religious education.

    More British citizens believe in ghosts and spirits than god. Does this mean that schools should begin teaching "Ghost Hunting 101" ?

    Faith does not belong in basic education.

  17. Why does APP encourage people to protest about Muslim schools, but are outraged by any curtailment of Christian schools? Both religions believe God created everything.

    No public schools teach creationism, so why is it necessary for any government to 'ban' it? (If it's a matter of them receiving public funding, then stop the funding, not the curriculum).

    Shouldn't private schools have the right to determine their own curriculum? School attendance is compulsory, but nobody is 'forced' to send their kids to a private religious school.

    Tony Ryan, if anyone's acting like fascists today, it's atheists.

  18. Freedom of religion means the freedom to practice your religion without restraint, providing it does not infringe on the rights of others. In a democracy, minority rights are protected but the minority will cannot be imposed on the majority. This means evangelism in any form.

    Please note, only 11% of Australians are practising Christians. Even that figure is the product of manipulative and pro-religion bias built in to the ABS questionnaires… yet another example of Christians infringing on our rights.

    We pay taxes for free, compulsary and secular education, and we do not want religious fanatics pushing their superstitious nonsense onto our impressionable children. All surveys show that the majority of Aussies want secular education and, if Christians or Muslims want to proselytise, you can do it on your time and with your money, in your own private schools.

    A greater issue is that 70% of taxpayer's education money is being stolen by Christians, at the expense of state schools. This is typical Christian hypocrisy.

    Your viewpoint is very disturbing. For some time I have noted an absence of objectivity in your rants about Muslims, entirely ignoring the even worse attitudes and behaviour of Christians. Write down a list of your objections to Muslims, then beside this, honestly question the Christian equivelent.

    There is virtually no difference.

    Both groups believe they have the right to force their beliefs on others; but Christians promote a lot more wars; in fact most wars.

    Clearly, the APP is a front for a dogmatic Christian sect, and this is outrageously dishonest behaviour.

    As the Christian-Judeo-Zionist lobby is measured as the primary pressure to aggressively attack Iran, in spite of independent media reporting that the Iran government was voted in with a 63% majority, and independent scientific opinion that exposes the accusation of having nuclear weapons as a fabrication; war is promoted anyway.

    There is no mention by Christians that Israel has at least 200 nuclear bombs and has aggressively attacked and invaded Palestine, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt… making it the most militarily aggressive government after the US. So much for Christian's pious reference to Thou shalt not kill.

    What I am saying is that Christians are playing a very prominent role in the deliberate creation of WWIII; which makes you one of humanity's public enemies.

    I lost family fighting such fascists in WWII, so I will not tolerate the emergence of neo-fascism once again. Either accept democracy or be identified as the enemy of democracy.

    • localyokel says

      tonyryan the APP is NOT a front for a dogmatic Christian sect, and I am not religious. Objective in my rants about Muslims? Now where did you get that from? Go and have a good read about what the APP represents first before you espouse your opinions.
      ALL Religions have created WARS and ALL religions were made by mankind. I don’t give a damn about who did what. Followers of ALL religion interpret their religious laws to whatever suits them.
      Australian children have so much work in their Curriculum and don't need the burden of extra Religious crap drilled into them. RELIGION SHOULD NOT BE TAUGHT AT ALL SCHOOLS. Christian Australians do have churches and should use them, if they want to choose to ignore the pedophilia scandals. Ban all religious schools instead of having taxpayers pandering to the fanatics out there. If this was done, Muslims would leave the country in droves.

  19. This policy should apply to all religions in Australia. Religions have always existed by their almighty faith anyway.

  20. localyokel says

    If the government wants to make such a motion then so be it. But this policy should apply to all of the other diverse religions Australia has. Religions have been around for a long time and will exist no matter what. History has shown us that.

  21. jovialau says

    I come from Western Australia.I have four children attending the local primary school,and have noted with some alarm for several years that certain obvious changes have been taking place.The most notable is that nativity scenes have disappeared altogether.Also references in paintings or drawings to Christ,the cross and anything to do with Christianity, have been conspicuously absent.The school has approx 350 pupils,and when I approached the principal with my concerns,she responded with…We have four Muslim children in attendance and don`t wish to cause them any offence!(Imagine the same concern for us were the position reversed!)It is said that people get the government that they deserve and I suppose the same goes with schools.Parents must wake up before it is too late.Indifference is playing straight into the enemies hands.I think it was Hitler who said.Give me a child before he is seven,and he will be mine for life!!!He outlawed home schooling,and to this day it is still illegal in Germany.

  22. I think this is quite disgraceful, just for the simple fact that this country was founded as a Christain nation and it is apart of our culture. This ban on teaching Creationism, even in religious schools, is going to damage our culture and affect the future of our culture. We need to preserve our heritage and culture even if we are a secular state, so as to protect against the very real threat of Islamisation. All this ban does is create a situation where Islam can impose on our heritage and culture even more, possibly with more dangerous consequences

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